Ballinger, Texas…read more
Stopped at this cute sandwich shop on my way to San Antonio. It's a quarter after noon and we had to wait to get a table. Seems like the hotspot in town. Love the American flag on the brick wall on the interior of the restaurant. The restaurant has high ornate ceilings. There are two booths in the main dining room by the windows and many tables with chairs.
This is a very old building with lots of original detail. The bathroom is just one toilet, which all genders share. It is not handicap accessible and very small.
The stairs that lead to the top floor are full of dust. I would suggest occasionally cleaning them so that they are not dirty to look at while dining.
The napkins are dispensed by a napkin holder on the table. Drinks are served in oversize plastic cups while some people have Styrofoam cups. The cutlery is real with a mixture of glass dishes and red plastic baskets with red and white checkered paper.
Multiple sandwich choices with choice of bread. They offer hamburgers, daily specials such as quiche, catfish, and salads. Every plate comes with chips, pickle and a homemade cookie.
I ordered the Waldorf chicken sandwich. It is made with chicken breast, grapes, apples, celery, walnuts, and mayonnaise. I also chose the oatmeal raisin cookie. My husband ordered today's special, which is chicken fried steak with mashed potatoes, green beans and a roll. They aren't sure if it is still available at 12:30 in the afternoon so he ordered a hamburger as a back up.
It took quite some time for us to receive our food. From the time that we sat to the time, our food was received was more than 45 minutes. Three tables walked in after us, and they were all served food before us. The waitress came over and told us we were next as she saw we were perplexed.
I enjoyed the Waldorf chicken salad with squaw bread. My disappointment was potato chips had a few large ones on top and as soon as I ate, those, the rest were tiny pieces that were broken.
My husband was not able to get the special of the day. Being so early in the day, it was odd to see they had run out. So the burger was served. Tasted fine, but again the potato chips were nothing but small pieces underneath the larger few on top.
Had to ask for silverware. Never received a refill on my drink. In fact, the waitstaff only came by only two times after we ordered. Once to tell us, our food would be coming up and then when it was delivered.
Overall, I was pleased with the way my food tasted. I understand. They were very busy for lunch hour on a Tuesday afternoon however, perhaps more than two people should be waiting the tables for the whole restaurant. This inconvenience to me having to wait for something that I should have taken no more than 15 minutes, cuts severely into my reading.
Another frustration is that they charge 4% if you use your credit card to pay. I own a business and the max that one is charged from the credit card 2.8% to 3%. Why did they fail in need to charge more?
Overall, I would give this place 4.3 stars. I would come back to this restaurant. However, I would come in earlier in the day so that I could get the special that they offer as well as more timely service.
