I should have paid attention to the fact that there were only 5 reviews. My friend and I went on a Friday night--she was in town from up north and was craving chicken fried steak. She ordered the chicken fried steak, I ordered the chicken fried chicken. I had to send one side back--the creamed spinach was bitter. It was replaced with carrots. the mashed potatoes and gravy were barely warm. How can you mess that up? No flavor. The steak and chicken was just "OK". In a word: mediocre. Does Austin have The Cotton Patch? read more

We were looking to enjoy some good soul food so we decided to try Hoover's. I saw mixed reviews but due to Hoovers's being black owned my party of 3 wanted to show support. I can tell you that I am highly disappointed. When we first got there we sat at our table and waited 10 minutes before a bust boy came over and sat eating utensils on the table. He didn't speak or anything which we know was rude. Next, we waited 5 more minutes before I had to get up and ask to be served and was told it's a Sunday and it's like this but the place was empty. After letting them know we weren't served we sat for a few more minutes thinking we should just leave when the cashier/host came and asked have we been served and brought us menus and took our drink orders. Finally we were able to order. The beet margarita was the best thing on the menu. The collard greens taste like vinegar, mustard greens were sugar city, chicken was ok but greasy and fatty, Lima beans and potatoes soupy, and not a lot of flavor. I asked for condiments and they brought me out empty bottles of hot sauce and let me know they did not have any Hoover's hot sauce or Louisiana hot sauce. They also had Mexican music playing and no African Americans serving, cooking, or in the establishment except for the host. This place doesn't feel like home to me and that's what you need when looking for that soul mix. I would never recommend this place to anyone. The food was horrible and this should not be considered a soul food establishment. The staff gave great service to the white people but treated my party like we wasn't paying customers nor wanted. We wasted $100.00 and should have just went to McDonald's for this rate. read more

I would hear to take a break from studying my friend suggested it. It was alright we were seated by one person though and then the next were waiting almost 15 minutes to get Acer to get someone to come take her order even or drinks we did took way too long and it seemed like we were forgotten about in the mix of a shift change which the person who said I should have known where shifts were happening and I guess the guy that side of town didn't even wasn't even like the host person he was another server. He just sat us in the brain of spot without I just checking to make sure that there was a server for that section. We waited a good 15-20 minutes and it we finally had a lady come by and make sure that if we got an and taken care of we told her no and she took our drink orders came back make sure we got our food order and I mean but it was a long wait. And the food was okay I have the catfish Po Boy and it was good a little too much sauce stuff on top but it was good serving size. And I say overall it was okay time food good the service lady was very friendly and nice once we got that and I think the only thing I would have to say is if someone's sitting people down to just make sure that there is a server sign to that place read more

Hoover's Cooking - Trying a new place and taking a mental break from the world - Southern Near Me - Austin, Texas

Great chicken fried steak. Good atmosphere. Didnt get try the desert as I was all too full.

Decent spot... Had a shrimp caesar salad which surprisingly had a nice portion of medium sized shrimp. The service was cool as well. The bartender waited on me. I guess I was sitting in his section just off the bar. By the time I was leaving the house was full. Not the demographic I was expecting but not a big deal. I'll more than likely be back. read more

Visited on a Sunday evening a couple of weeks back. No wait...I ordered the Chicken Fried Chicken (Hoover size), Macaroni, Potato Salad and a Lonestar Beer. My wife had the Catfish. Excellent batter on the chicken and fish along with great sides. We will be back for sure. read more

Very sub-par food. It all tasted left over and was not even hot when it came to us. The sausage tasted like a slimjim and had a thick chewy casing and the sausage was darker around the edges and extremely tough. The server was great and charismatic though. read more

Still the champion! BEST chicken fried steak in town! Crispy crust with slightly sweet note, perfectly textured/peppered gravy. Perfect representation of mashed potatoes. Green beans with pork pieces tender, juicy. Soul food at its best. Thank you! (please re-open your trailer) read more

Hoover's is the definition of feel-good, comfort-food. Absolutely love this place. Their lunch and dinner menu is great for sure, but my favorite is the weekend breakfast menu - sooo good. My favorites are the Chicken-Fried Chicken Étouffée and the Shrimp n' Grits; always torn between the two! They also have great Biscuits and Gravy and pancake platters. In my opinion, Hoover's is the best place to grab breakfast in Austin. Service is always great, friendly staff, they get you in and out, and they make you feel at home. read more

This is my favorite southern style cooking restaurant in Austin. The food is exceptional. They serve you cornbread and gingerbread biscuits with you meal, both of which are amazing. I recommend everything on the menu. *Tips* Chicken fried Chicken breast or Jerk ribs with some jalapeno creamed spinach and mashed potatoes. read more

We stopped there after playing 'Church Under the Bridge' on Sunday. Lots of parking and got a table for 6 after about a 20 minute wait at lunch time. Chicken Fried Steak was perfectly prepared and the single portion was the perfect size. Salad and mashed potatoes were just right. Good sized tea, cola and lemonade and they brought lots of free refills read more

I frequently visit Austin at least 2-3 times annually, and this is my go to spot for food before I head back home to Houston. I was searching for directions and somehow ended up coming across the reviews and was shocked to see so many negative ones. So I called my buddy Matt who lives in Austin to ask what was up, thinking perhaps they sold the place or was under new management. They aren't. Matt told me he was baffled because he was at Hoover's two weeks ago with his daughter and everything was fine. Considering I wasn't ready to jump ship just yet it and how much of a stickler Matt is for good service I decided to take my chances. Good move. The food was just as good as I remembered and the service was on point. I ordered the fried fish with yams, mustard greens, and butter beans and was pleased to see it on my table within 15 minutes. My server Kevin was friendly and attentive. Maybe management got the memo about the reviews. Either way it's a win for my stomach and 5 stars for my favorite place to grub in Austin. Whoop Whoop! No mo' talk! read more

We started out at the salty sow across the street and gave up on that after 5 minutes. The menu was too too too beyond our taste. There was a 50 minute wait which we were expecting but again the menu was just far too out there for us. So here we are at Hoover's and so far we're thrilled that we came here. Our server Ron knows what he's talking about at this restaurant and recommended some dishes for us. he explained how everything is handmade here at the restaurant and the food looks and smells amazing. We were sat immediately but this place is very busy so we do not expect to see our food anytime soon but I would love to see some bread as I am starving. I was wrong the food came out really quick and the bread that was served with it was very good. Mike order the smothered pork chops which appeared to be the Saturday Night Special and I have the grilled catfish, delicious. Lots of awesome down home country sides, including black eyed peas, okra and tomatoes, collard greens, squash casserole. I ate just enough of everything so I could save room for homemade cobbler for dessert. I'm letting Ron pick my cobbler with homemade ice cream. The blackberry cobbler is good but very seedy. Overall a very good place to come for just down home American Cooking. read more

Five stars because it is the one place all of my friends can agree on. Also because they are amazingly consistent; have good hours; serve an awesome kale and beets salad; have a great location; and are unpretentious and affordable. Even vegetarians will get by fine here. I almost forget to mention they give you free bread. How many places still do that? read more

I ate here for the first time tonight and was highly impressed. The chicken fried steak was crispy and flavorful. There are so many delicious choices for sides. I had the greens, fried okra, and jalapeno creamed spinich. Everything was full of flavor. We shared some coconut cream pie and blackberry cobbler for dessert and it tasted homemade. I will definitely be going back. read more

This place serves classic homestyle southern comfort food at a really affordable price. I come here because I get the most food for my money, the best options on a large menu, service with a smile, and to support a local business. This review is long overdue as I've been coming here for years. read more

Hoover's is where you go for the 'itis.' Just like grampa's restaurant in the Boondocks, except without the beds. Big mistake. They need the beds. Unfortunately for my arteries I've probably tried way too many things at Hoover's over the years...their ribs are, well stick to your ribs good. If you can finish a half rack, you're man (or the woman), and the itis will set in. You will go into a coma for the next 6-12 hours. Elgin sausage is always good. It is also always a mistake to eat Elgin sausage in Elgin en route to Houston or coming back from Houston. Again, food coma will commence. But they make darn good sausage. So its much safer to eat the sausage on Manor, and maybe drive a couple blocks home than have to go at it from Elgin. The Jamaican Jerk chicken is, well, not quite jerked enough for my taste. People are averse to some real heat in this town. The chicken fried steak is, well, as good as that sort of thing gets. And it can get quite good. We're talking low cuisine here, and great chicken fried steak is really at the apex of low cuisine--as good as it gets. Fried meat in gravy? Where do I sign up? Oh yeah, and their meatloaf is pretty tasty (though you ought to be able to do better at home if you're not completely lazy--though going to Hoover's suggest you're completely lazy or soon to be completely lazy). Lets talk sides. They're dangerous. If they have butter beans, you must get them. And they are BUTTER beans. Actually I think they're cooked in some insane mixture of sweetened condensed milk, butter and pork fat. Seriously. The devil's food. Give me a bowl, dig me a grave and push me right in when I'm done. The potato salad and cole slaw are kind of meh, go for buttered carrots, mashed potatoes, green beans, and black eyed peas. And yeah, if they got the butter beans, 2 get 2 of them. Lets not forget mustard greens and fried okra. Other essentials and they do them justice at the H. If you make it to dessert, you're done for. I'm not kidding. They're gonna have to wheel you out of the place. Last supper time. I have vague recollections of making it to some sort of rhubarb pie or peach cobbler a couple of times, and then I also recall passing out for the next week. Hoover's can kill you any time of day. See, they do brunch on the weekends. There's any number of evil, evil ways they can do you in. They have sweet potato pancakes. They have hoecakes. They have grits. You can get em cheesed and garlicked out, or drowned in sugar. You can get fried chicken and hoecakes. You see where this is going, right? Itis at 11 am on Saturday morning. You can have a pot of coffee and your day is sunk. Probably about the only other place that could put you in more severe insulin shock on a Saturday morning is Waffle House--and they're practically illegal anyway (which is why they stuck them way the hell outside of down by the crappy flea market). So Hoover's is solidly good Southern eats. But its also going to mess with your insulin, raise your cholesterol, and add inches to your waistline. But hey, food is worth it, no? You only live once, but you get to eat a few thousand times, so, give me a slab of ribs and some butter beans. read more

Those who've been to Hoover's will be unsurprised to learn that regional obesity rates are, roughly speaking, inversely related to latitude.

If I were to choose a way to bring myself to morbid obesity and early onset heart disease, then I would choose going to Hoover's every day. Their mouth-watering soul food makes me drool just writing this review! This place has the best chicken fried chicken and meatloaf that I've ever tasted. If you decide to come here, be sure to beat the church crowds on Sundays, at least that's been my experience. read more

Took a friend and loved the home style cooking. Huge portions for the price. LOVED the tomato cucumber salad and blackberry cobbler was like grandma's. Appreciated all the sanitizing and distancing precautions they took as well. read more

I had the chicken gumbo, the chicken fried steak, and the cherry cobbler a la mode. The gumbo with the sausage was unbelievable. The sausage was smoked to perfection and was the best I've ever had (though I'm from SF and was raised in Seattle so my bar is relatively low). The chicken fried steak was solid, I'd order it again except their menu has a ton of other intriguing options. The cobbler left something to be desired. read more

I never eat "home style" food, but I am a big fan of Hoovers now.. I had the Jerk Chicken and it was better that the real thing I had in Jamaica. It came with Candied Yams and Okra and I was stuffed and happy when I was done.I did see some rather large people eating there, so I assume that eating there everyday is not good.. read more

The food is delicious! I ordered takeout and even the fries I had in the car knocked it out of the park. Good prices and flavorfully filling food. read more

Hoovers......a great big S U C K I N G sound. I'm not quite sure what happened to this restaurant but it's food quality has gone SOUTH. The four of us went to dinner tonight and we were SO looking forward to a wonderful meal. I felt I was eating the food that was prepared sometime before lunch today. After asking twice for the cornbread it finally arrived......dried out, hard and forgettable.The mashed potatoes were STIFF and needed milk, the gravy was gelatinous and you could pick it up with a spoon. My carrots looked like the came out of a can and were dark, lifeless and had ZERO taste. My chicken fried chicken lacked the key ingredient called CHICKEN, mostly crust. My friend had the jerk ribs and reported they were TOO fatty and out other fan ordered the pork chop that resembled a poor cut of meat. We also ordered more drinks about halfway through our meal and were were finally served after we finished our dinner while the wait staff was clearing our plates. My momma didn't raise no fool.......... read more

We went to eat there today, July 09, 2022 and got seated immediately as it was mid afternoon and only 3 other tables were seated with people. The waiter came to ask for our drink order, we got two waters, he brought them back and then left without taking our food order. We saw him standing at the bar visiting with other employees. While waiting for him to come back to take our order, I picked up, luckily, and read another notice on the table that they are now automatically adding an additional 20% to the cost of your meal (not including the tip). Now add the other 1.00 per person addition they are charging for employees sick leave to the check. We are are seniors on a fixed income. This additional 20% would make our meal of meatloaf $14.99 and my ham steak $12.99 now cost almost $45.00 with a tip. We never got our order taken so we got up and left but that was fine because we could not afford almost $45.00 for two meals. Even worse, we live in Cedar Park, so this was a over 40 mile round trip for us to get there and back home. Sad since we have eaten there since the eighties and liked the home cooking. read more

I was introduced to Hoovers by a friend who knew the owners and had never been there before a few years ago. After eating there I can't believe I didn't know about this place before. If you want real southern down home comfort food, just sit down and order yourself a plate. If you leave here and are still hungry go see a doctor immediately. Its on the east side but easily accessible and other than the parking is a treat on any night of the week. I can't say enough good things about the people or the food, and the last time I was in there they were filming something for the food network, so they must be doing something right! read more

Straight Texas comfort food here. We hate the trip downtown (from P-ville) to visit Hoover's, and we just discovered the 2nd location on 183 North near Chuy's. We stopped in on Saturday night and were a little apprehensive that the second location would be the same as the original. We did not have to wait even though it was 7:00 on a Saturday night, and were immediately shuffled to a windowed booth that highly resembled Shoney's. (Did this used to be a Shoney's?) Our waiter was fantastic and quickly brought out drinks and took our order. I know the whole menu must be fabulous, but I can't ever resist the chicken fried steak. I had to order that, plus mashed potatoes and salad. My husband got the smothered pork chops. Even the kids grilled cheese looked enticing! I have not had enough left in me to order dessert, but the desserts look great as well. Our only tip- come very hungry or split an entree. (Or be pregnant and eat the whole thing.) The portions are huge! read more

In Austin to pick up my hubby's niece and saw Hoovers, knew it would be comfort food, so stopped and what a treat! We both ordered tea which was fresh and strong. Hubby got the chicken fried chicken, mashed taters, greens, fried okra..he cleaned his plate! I got the catfish with fries, creamed spinach, and the carribean rice..I should have paid the $2 and ordered from the children's menu because I brought most of mine home..not that it wasn't good, just huge portions..saying that, we shared the peach cobbler topped with a scoop of their in house ice cream. Yes, I believe we left happy! Great waiter and meant to remember his name but do know he loves the creamed spinach.. read more

idk what these reviews are talking about... I don't believe any seasoning was used the Mac and cheese had to have been Kraft out the box.

'On a Sunday go to meetin -rubber biscuit?'We come here a lot, mainly for the amazing burgers& fries. Hoover's fried catfish is out of this world, and their tartar sauce is really good, like you would expect your tartar sauce to be... chicken fried chicken and mashed potatoes and gravy, check, check and check! read more

I thought the food was for the most part bland. Green beans out of a can. Mac and cheese-bleh! Chicken fried steak-mediocre. Jerk chicken was ok but nothing like I had in Jamaica. read more

Well, I can't really make any new points here so I'll just rehash some of the points other reviewers have made. Portions are huge. Traditional Southern food It was Easter morning and my boyfriend's parents were in town and he wanted to take them to a gospel brunch. I was afraid that we'd be waiting for hours if we went to someplace like Threadgill's, so I turned to Yelp and Yelp suggested Hoover's. There wasn't a gospel brunch but there was gospel brunch food. There were barely any people when we arrived around 10AM (probably still in church or hunting for Easter eggs) so we were promptly seated. Our waitress was very friendly and pointed out the Easter specials on the board behind us. After looking at the menu for a while I finally decided to get the cajun taco plate with some garlic cheese grits on the side. My bf had the hoe cakes and his parents ordered chicken & biscuits and the muffaletta plate. I have to say the tacos were good (but not mind-blowing), but the refried beans, wow. Awesome. Really weird, right? The grits were a bit watery and not very flavorful (compared to Snack Bar's grits). Everyone else was impressed by what they ordered, and the bf's mom ordered some blackberry cobbler for dessert and shared it with the whole table. It was pretty solid. Overall, Hoover's made a good impression on me and I will have to go back for seconds. read more

The food is great, but it's just not ran like it used to be. For some reason appetizers, consistently in my experience, never come out. And if they do it's with your dinner. Then when I complain, I get nothing but a "sorry". I really hope this once great establishment gets itself together. read more

Gotta love their fried okra. Hoover's isn't just for carnivores. They have a delicious selection of veggies and other sides. Hoover's = Comfort Food. Always a good spot to take guests from out of state. read more

Money in the bank items: chicken fried steak, garlic potatoes, red-white-bleu burger, candy yams & the breads are pretty darn tasty too. Staff friendly and helpful. Pretty good spot to bring visitors. Snagged a shirt too. read more

Let see, how can I describe my experience with just a few words? Oh wait, I won't. After hearing about Hoovers, I was very excited to eat here regardless of their 3 1/2 stars on Yelp. When we came in there was a small wait, the host described it as very busy, but the dining room did not look that busy. The wait was about 10 minutes and then we were taken to our seat towards the back. We were given the option to a table or booth and we chose a booth. Ones we were there we were greeted by our server (I believe his name was Kevin) a person who seemed like he spent his life waiting tables, he was not a bad waiter just very monotone and seemed like he was just waiting till the end of his shift. He asked us for our drink order in which we ordered 2 lemonades, and the he disappeared for a bit. When he returned a few minutes later with our drinks, he seemed to be rushed and wanted us to order already. I stopped him and ordered an appetizer, nothing big just chips and salsa. He stood there after I gave him the order for the chips so we gave in and just ordered. I ordered the chicken fried chicken with 3 house mates (sides). The house mates were mac & chz, coleslaw, mash potatoes. My husband ordered the meatloaf, with mash potatoes, mac & chz, and fried okra. The lemonade arrived in qt size pitchers, after my first sip, I realized there was a little food debris on the outside of the pitcher stuck on it. At first I didn't pay too much attention as the lemonade was so good, but then I saw more. After inspecting my pitcher and my husbands, we noticed there was lots of food debris all over the drink(s). The chips were standard, nothing special about them but the salsa was extremely good. Well I thought it was good, but my husband said it was just okay. On to my entrée, My entrée looked like it was going to hit all the spots and the main course delivered. The house mates though were a different story. The mash was good and the gravy which was on both the mash and the chicken was also very flavorful. The coleslaw was packed with delicious flavors, but the fact this it was so warm was off putting. The mac & chz was just awful, not only was it bland and boring but it was also room temp. The cooks need to revisit their recipe and fix the mac & chz, honestly it tasted like the one from golden corral. My husband's entrée also looked like it was going to hit all the spots, his main course was okay, not great but okay. The meatloaf tasted more like Italian meat balls and was covered in some kind of spaghetti like sauce. He felt the same way about the house mates. We both felt the fried okra tasted like it came out of a bag and right into the fryer. It had no flavor and was boring on the taste buds. Overall the place is not bad, I would love to give it another try and I hope that they would address these minor issues. read more

Another place I must visit every time I come home. The chicken fried steak is the best. Period. No discussion. There is no better. And the size of their lemonade is perfect. Sides are perfect. Fried okra is a winner every time. I've seen some of the haters trying to say that Hoover's is not all that. Don't listen to them. Eating at Hoover's and not smiling is like being angry while riding a jet sky. It's not possible. read more

AMAZING! Thank you, Hoover's!!!! Definitely eat here - delicious food and wonderful service !!!

So my friend and I were thinking about places to go for dinner and I made the mistake of saying I was "pretty hungry." I mean, I was pretty hungry, but apparently he took that to mean: Dying of hunger, ravenous, haven't eaten in weeks sort of hungry. Or at least that's the kind of hungry I think you have to be in order to consume an entire meal here. Holy mackerel. I can eat, but the portions here were supersized. My friend got chicken-fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and a side of ribs. I had the catfish, grilled with a Cajun seasoning, with coleslaw and mac and cheese. His chicken was delish..greasy and crunchy just as I imagine fried chicken should be. It was also the biggest piece of chicken I've seen in my life. If that was a chicken breast, I wish I could have seen the rest of the bird. Wow. My catfish was also very nicely done and it paired nicely with the coleslaw. I'm not, in general, a huge fan of catfish, but the Cajun spice added a little something and the texture was a lot better than I remember. The macaroni and cheese wasn't really that flavorful, but my taste buds might have given up by that point as it was the end of the meal before I attempted to eat it. Also, there was a pretty delicious little sweet potato bread number that was light and flavorful. Even though I was stuffed, I found a way to choke down two. Anyways, maybe it was the atmosphere, but I totally gorged myself. I was so full, my friend had to drive home. (I have a problem, I know). From the looks of those around me, that seems like it's pretty much par for the course here. I thought the food was tasty, but it didn't blow me away. I'd go again, but I don't think it will be food that I "crave." read more

I really enjoy going to Hoovers the many times I have gone. They always give you huge portions which is always another meal for me. One week I wanted to go there but I called in every day to hear their specials until something caught my interest. I enjoy their crawfish etouffee and tilapia with etouffee sauce which are only specials. If those aren't on their special, I think they're chicken fried chicken is the best. As for the sides that come with your entree I love their cowboy beans, roasted garlic new potatoes, fried okra and their mash potatoes aren't bad either. I also some times get their lemonade which is delicious and they also give free refills. Some times they even let you take a cup to go. read more