Trudy's Restaurant & Bar

best mexi ever-- super busy and long lines!! more

Excellent drinks... Awesome food... Great atmosphere... more

Hmmm... yes, we also tried out the new D.S. Trudy's tonight, and found ourselves wondering just how many other Austin-area mexican joints the 5-star reviewers have frequented. \r \r We certainly understood that this was a shakedown time at the new Trudy's, as official opening is not until Nov 1, so we tried to be kind to the overworked servers who were still trying to get their mojo together.\r \r Nevertheless, we've tried several other Trudy's locations and found each to consistently fall into the ""mediocre"" rating scale for Mexican food. Perhaps if this were in Hawaii, or Washington State, the fare would be considered good, but not in Austin where outstanding Mexican Food is available on virtually every corner (including the 5 other spots I can think of along Hwy 290 West of Oak Hill).\r \r Sad to say, we were not surprised to experience similar, less-than-spectacular results this evening...\r \r I figure the first area to judge an Austin-area Mexican restaurant is the chips and salsa, and in that category Trudy's came up sadly lacking... very clearly plastic-bagged chips, not particularly warm, and too salty, with lackluster salsa to go along. (Not to mention the fact they want to nick you 6 bucks for a basket of tepid chips)... Oh, or you could also spring another $6 for the ""salsa sampler""... Are you kidding me?\r \r We were told in the invitation that there were big ""specials"" on drinks during the grand opening(s).. but when we went to order our margarita, we learned that the ""specials"" only applied to the sweet-and-sour tourist swill that only the uninitiated would call a margarita. You want a real margarita? (tequila, triple sec, and lime juice.. what else?) Those are not discounted, and start at $9.00 ""and up"". The ""special"" price for a Shiner's was $4.00 woo-woo! Nevertheless, a sucker is born every minute, and we sprung for the $9.00 versions, which arrived at the table in those tiny little 3"" high glasses, and then only 2/3 full at best.\r \r Now let's examine the decor. What with construction taking well over a year, I guess we expected something special inside. Instead, what we found was, well, just Big... a huge cavernous room with hospital-style suspended ceiling, painted in a brain-numbing school-cafeteria institutional light green... just not really visually inviting, but I guess everyone has their own taste.\r \r On to the food...two members of our group ordered the tortilla soup, and in both cases the smallish bowl arrived at the table just lukewarm at best (forgiveable, I suppose,while the wait staff gets their act together), but worse, the soup consisted of merely a thin broth with one sad thin slice of avocado floated on top (UNFORGIVABLE).\r \r Perhaps my criticism wouldn't be so harsh if we hadn't just dined the previous evening at Domingo's Mexican Grill just down the street.\r \r There we had, the hugest, most delicious tortilla soup, crammed full of chicken, cheese, potatoes, carrots, etc, accompanied by FREE home made, delicious chips, killer salsa in 3 varieties, and home made flour tortillas. Of course, Domingo's can't compete with a giant like Trudy's light green walls, and instead provides a warm, inviting, real Mexico-style decor. Top that off with huge margaritas, using tequila, agave, triple sec and lime juice (ONLY... no syrupy mixer), all for the astounding price of just $5.99 each.\r \r Bottom line, my wife and I had a near-perfect dinner at Domingo's with all the trimmings for about $35 including multiple drinks, compared with our bill at Trudy's for appetizers-only (supposedly 50% off) with a couple of $9 margaritas each, and we wound up with a $55 tab plus tip.\r \r We love to eat out, and always welcome a new venue in town, and had the highest hopes for Trudy's. After our experience tonight, it will be a long time before we return... we're heading back to Domingo's!\r more

food was awesome and the staff was very nice we went a little early on sat to avoid the crowd. the queso was very good. Although i love spicy food the salsa was super hot this time but the margaritas were on special for 4.50 no bad for a sat. more

Lately for whatever reason Trudys hasdecided to only offer the buffet during lunch hours and appetizers between lunch and what they decide are dinner hours. The buffet is over priced and luke warm,not good at all. I do love a good taco salad or quesadilla for dinner though,... hope they don't get rid of those anytime soon. more

I visit the North Star location at least once a week, and most times twice a week. I have had the problems with wait time for seating and food, and the two Mexican martini limit is enforced by humiliation, but I love the stuffed avocado and Mex marts. I cannot help it. However, the other day was my last trip to this restaurant ever in my life. more

Sorry my party of 7 chose your place. Didn't try to accommodate. Ended up breaking up my party into two booths. Bar guy wouldn't let me buy 2 beers, even when I pointed out that the 2nd beer was going to a 75 year old man sitting at the front of the restaurant. I'm 40, and I certainly didn't seem like I'd be unruly if I had 2 beers given to me. Never again! more

I have been in Austin a little over a month for business and Trudy's is a Monday fixture. We go for the Mexican Martinis and Stuffed Avacado, but the atmosphere is great, the service has always been exceptional and the prices are very resonable. It's a great atmosphere for business as I am a smoker and some co-workers are not. The patio fits for both of us. \r I wholly agree with 1 previous post that stated if you order the mexican martinis ($5.00 on Monday) you should skip the glass. The first time I ordered it, I used the glass and lost half the drink trying to pour it. Had it been the second I would have understood. Did I mention the stuffed avacado??? I order mine with the queso and it is exceptional. The texture is unbelievable and flavors follows. Trudy's will be greatly missed when I go home and may have to drive the 4 hours if a craving hits (which will likely happen) Pros: OMG, Stuffed avocado! $5 Mexican Martini; Casual Cons: Parking is horrible, small spaces, and most people use 2 more

My wife and I came to Austin last Monday evening and had dinner at Trudy's North Star. I was in the mood for something really spicy. I perused the menu while having my first of two Mexican Martinis...and there is a limit of two---and that's all you need.\r \r I had enchiladas--two beef, one cheese. At Trudy's you can have your choice of sauces to cover your enchiladas and I asked our server to give me the spiciest, most hot sauce they had. He chose the caliente. \r \r We waited for our food to arrive and continued with our mexican martinis and chips and red hot sauce and green hot sauce both of which giving my mouth and pretty good sizzle. When our food arrived, I dove into the enchiladas and halfway through my first beef enchilda I was sweating from the heat. Not only was the sauce spicy, but so was the beef mixture. I LOVE it when it's so spicy that you break out in a sweat! The food was awesome, the service was incredible and the only thing I had against it was that I was not able to go back before I left. I'm in Houston now, craving those enchiladas. Pros: Smokin' Hot Food more

The only reason I ever eat at Trudy's is because friends want to meet at the restaurant. Every time I go, I swear to myself that I will not return- I do not understand how this restaurant draws such a large crowd. The food is mediocre and the wait for a table is always double what the host/hostess tells you. It is ridiculous. Cons: Wait time, service, food... more

We eat there at least once a week, and never get tired of it because there's such a variety. And it's a casual, very pleasant place to hang out. The service is always prompt and very friendly. Pros: Food; value; ambience; service Cons: Sometimes you can't get in! more

Never have I experienced such horrible customer service at a restaurant before! We went to Trudy's for lunch last week to try the buffet. When our waiter came to take our order he informed us the buffet was open until 2:30. It was around 1:40 so we though we would try it. When we got to the buffet we noticed that most of the containers were empty but we just figured the kitchen was a little behind and it would be restocked. As we were walking around the buffet the lights went off over the food, which seemed a bit odd. Then a lady came out of the kitchen and started rolling up the rug around the buffet. I asked her if the buffet was open until 2:30 and she said no, the buffet was open to the customers until 1:45, then it's for the employees only until 2:30. I told her the waiter said it was open until 2:30 and she caught an attitude and very rudely said that we can finish what is left if we want to pay for the buffet. When I told her no thank you, we'll order from the menu she told us we had to give her our plates of food. I was so humiliated! First of all, who is going to pay for a buffet that is practically empty? Second of all, I don't know what her position in that restaurant is but they should strongly consider restricting her from any customer contact, as her customer service is horrible. When we told the waiter he kind of snickered and said he could probably guess who the employee was. Seriously? This is a TexMex restaurant in Austin, which has tons of TexMex places and this is how they treat their customers? No apologies, no manager, no nothing. Then, to top it off, I called to talk to the GM ( an employee told me his name is Eric Beeler ) 6 days ago, left a message for him and STILL have not heard back! Clearly this place simply does not care about their customers. I will never step foot in this establishment again. I think Trudy's would benefit from some outside training in customer satisfaction, starting with the GM. more

I've eaten at Trudy's before and for the most part have enjoyed it, but don't know if I'll be back after tonight. I had the chicken enchiladas, which I have had here before, but tonight they were so spicy my eyes spouted tears. When ordering, the waitress asked what type of chicken I wanted, and I replied that I would like whatever is the least spicy, so she suggested the fajita chicken. I ordered them with suiza sauce, which is typically a very mild sour cream sauce. Even the rice was very spicy, more so than usual. I managed to choke down the enchiladas while continuously wiping my eyes and nose and then devoured the remaining chips in the basket to try to cool my mouth off, but by this point even chewing was painful! I've had the same problem with chicken tacos here before, but not quite to this extent. If I go back, I guess I'll play it safe and order the burger! I do love their sangria margarita, and my boyfriend seems to enjoy their migas, which they serve all day. Their brunch is also very good. more

Friendly staff and reasonably priced food. Great, strong drinks. Vegetarian options are clearly marked.\r \r It is a pretty casual place, so you'll have families and all sorts of patrons, so don't expect anything different. Pros: Food, drinks, service Cons: pretty casual, can get loud, service is almost too fast to enjoy the evening. more

The breakfast buffet at the North Star is freakin sweet. I love going to the North Star on the weekends. I also like how the North Star smells like 'gerts in the morning. I like the food during the day, but it is the breakfast buffet that makes it. Everything is good at the North Star breakfast buffet. more

Stunningly rude and unprofessional service from a bartender leading to NO TIP (and I always tip 20%) Sarcastic, obnoxious, patronizing, rude - those are just some adjectives that come to mind when describing this guy who works on SUNDAY NIGHTS. Trudy's needs to seriously change some of its policies. One, stop calling homeland security anytime someone from out of state wants a drink. Is it really necessary to have three managers spend ten minutes verifying a driver's license. Second, stop insulting your clientele by having your little college student bartenders treat their professional adult working customers like little children. I do NOT care to have some sarcastic kid tell me that he ""thinks I've had enough."" Newsflash Trudy's, you have a mature customer base that can handle their drinks and don't need the condescending treatment dished about by Mr. Sunday Night Bartender Guy. Perhaps if your staff would treat people like adults and stop acting like they feel like they have to nanny their customers they won't lose their tips from irate customers who do not go out to be told my some college student that ""you've been here awhile"" and then sarcastically stating ""Yeah sure, that's a great story"" when said customers basically tell you to lighten up and DO YOUR JOB. Horrendous business practices that need to be addressed because I know I am not the only ranting lunatic who has experienced this atrocious practice at the hands of the Trudy's staff. Just serve my drink, kid. If I need a mommy I'll call my own. Avoid avoid avoid. Cons: The Sunday bartender and his raging attitude. more

Just in case you've missed this treasure, the North Star location serves a breakfast buffet that will please everyone. We've gone multiple times since moving north, even with a larger group, and have never had a long wait or unfriendly service. \r Not a breakfast lover? Still the best Mexican martinis in town, and the Ciro's special is amazing. more

This is by far my favorite Trudy's location. Although my favorite days to go are Wednesday and Thursday... decent amount of people but still prompt seating. I definitely stay away during the weekends... the wait can be an hour and half+ My favorite there is the stuffed avacado and the chorizo chicken. The mexican martini is good.. they have a pretty good sangria margarita. Oh and on your birthday you get a free margarita if you have your ID Pros: unique food, good drinks, nice ambience Cons: service can be a nightmare on the weekends more

This place gets busy! We've waited for a table for quite a while on weekends. While you're waiting, go to one of the bars and have a mexican martini....I promise you'll love it! Pros: Great Mexican Martinis, nice ambiance, they have a smoking area Cons: A bit expensive, can be crowded more

Been here many times for after hour drinks and food. Sometimes its a long wait, but not too bad. Thats to be expected with a popular mexican martini. Its the best!! Not too mention the service...that's great also. Doesn't matter what other people say, I'll always be a regular here. Pros: Mexican Martinis, Food, Service Cons: Parking more