Not Your Mothers Diner

Not Your Mother's Diner

The Bar

            Austin, a conglomeration of people, ideas and cultures.  A city that started chanting its name the moment I was told to write a restaurant review.  I am currently studying in Seguin, Texas but restaurant choices are pretty slim in this lovely town so I planned an adventure in the big city using the best excuse in the book “it’s my homework”.  I ensnared my sister with this logic as well as my ever looming and dreaded birthday coming up on Sunday, next thing I knew I was in my car jamming on 35N ready for lunch in Austin at the 24 Diner.  My sister chose this restaurant because it was within walking distance of all the stores that we were going to be stopping at as my present, and it was also on some show on the Food Network.  The plan was solid…or so we thought.  The one problem, I have no idea how to get anywhere in Austin.  The looming skyscrapers of the Austin skyline were in my sight, I knew I just needed to find Lamar street and I would be golden, simple right?  Wrong…I turned down every street and every time I thought I was getting close, I was just getting further from my destination finally as I was surrounded by houses and a small Presbyterian Church I realized…maybe I was going the wrong way.  I finally decided to ask for directions, I found myself back in the heart of downtown on the famous 6^th street frantically searching for a Lamar among all the Texan river streets.  Austin:1 Brett: 0, I took the seemingly easy task of finding the most famous street in Austin and made it a tour of the entire city.  Yes, the restaurant is easy to find once you know where 6^th street and Lamar are.  The 24 Diner is across the street from Bookpeople, cattycorner from Whole Foods, and located in a little shopping mall right next to the interesting music store called Waterloo; all in all a good location for the cuisine found in the diner.  Yes, this is a diner the menu is full of all the classic diner breakfast, lunch and dinner foods but clearly with a twist.  As you step in the restaurant there is a very modern eco friendly feel, the interior looks a little like Chipotle if you have ever been in one, and the first thing that you see is a bar, clearly not your typical diner!

Eco-friendly modern interior

 Even though it is 3:30 in the afternoon when my sister and I finally get into the restaurant it is still fairly busy.  Customers eagerly devouring their selections occupy almost every seat in the front.  As we are seated, our waitress promptly comes over points out their daily special menu which shows the selections that are prepared using the local fresh produce, she took our drink orders and we were left to peruse the menus.  They are located online at http://24diner.com/menus/, the front contains the breakfast options that you can get any time of the day and the back has the lunch and dinner.  Here they have all your favorite meals you would expect from a diner, but much like that bar that will keep drawing your attention, there are some surprises:  bourbon waffles, a burger with tuna steak and so many more.  Also they prepare their own veggie burgers and sausage, telling you the veggies that they use to create their concoctions, maybe next time I’ll try one of them.

Swiss Chard and Artichoke Gratin

 We decide to go all out since it will probably be the only meal either one of us will eat today.  Brooke picked the appetizer, Swiss chard and artichoke gratin. I had no idea what this was but she wanted it and it was amazing!  It was like a spinach and artichoke dip brought to the maximum level.  The parmesan and cream cheeses used brought a creaminess to the Swiss chard and artichokes that did not overpower their earthy flavors.  The breadcrumbs brought a distinct texture that balanced the creamy, velvety goodness as did the toasted bread they provided to put the gratin on.  

Angelic Melody of Flavor

When deciding our entrée choices we wanted to experience almost all of their options so Brooke ordered from their breakfast side (Chicken and Waffles) and I ordered from the lunch/dinner side (a meatloaf sandwich).  There is a reason they are well known for their waffles at the 24 Diner, they were an angelic host of flavors in my mouth.  The bourbon, vanilla, vanilla bean, cinnamon and other spices combined in a batter that was prepared to perfection, a crunchy exterior and fluffy interior.  The chicken was made to provide the perfect harmony for the melody of these waffles, they spices in the batter balance out the sweetness and once again the texture was beautiful, the breading was perfectly crisp while the chicken was still juicy chicken-y goodness!  

Epic Battle of Flavors

The meatloaf sandwich is like an epic battle in your mouth of textures and flavors.  The bread is toasted to look like a waffle and is crunchy and crispy, but after the initial crunch the creamy meatloaf sneaks in and snatches all of the attention, this is definitely homemade meatloaf, not to dry and not to soggy, perfection!  After the first two chomps, the flavors stop fighting and instead come to a treaty combining to create a clear winner, you.  

The Milkshake!

After the to go boxes were brought, Brooke let me pick the desert.  I was really intrigued by the fresh produce desert options, peach pie and blackberry cobbler, but one of the milkshake flavors caught my eye: banana and brown sugar.  We shared my birthday desert and they even split it into separate glasses that were adorable and just like everything we had tried, AMAZING!  It was creamy and definitely a treat, but it was not overly sweet, the flavors were balanced and clearly pronounced.  The banana was real bananas and no artificial flavors, they provided a nice addition to the texture of the shake as did the addition of cinnamon to bring out the richness of the brown sugar.  Definitely a delicious compromise to a birthday cake.  As you sit in the restaurant enjoying your food, the different people that come in make the building ,that initially can feel intimidating because it is so modern, feel warm and open; this is definitely a place to come with friends if you are ever in Austin and hey it’s open 24 hours (except on Wednesday’s when the close to deep clean) and easily found off 6^th street.  I know I plan on going back!