If you’re getting a little tired of the wait and food at Borders in Harvard Square, hop the T to Central Square and try some Tex-Mex at Austin Grill. The environment is fun and open, the food is fresh and flavorful, and since the restaurant is quite large, you’ll never find yourself waiting too long for a table. My friends and I were happy about that as we were all quite hungry after a long day’s work.
Immediately after being seated, our waitress arrived with a round of water and chips and two kinds of salsa for the table. While the chips were a bit on the thick side, the salsas were delicious. Though, that’s not surprising after discovering that over 25 salsas, sauces and dressings made with 12 kinds of chiles are prepared from scratch daily here at Austin Grill. We devoured the salsas without hesitation.
For those of us from Texas–especially Austin–the menu is filled with fun insights to Austin life–Lake Travis, Longhorn, Barton Springs, etc. And, if you’re dying for a great beer known to Texas, the Shiner Bock and Travis County Lager is here!
It didn’t take long for us to decide on fresh lime margaritas and the restaurant’s famous Swirlie–a frozen strawberry and lime margarita swirled together in a fun design. Next to follow were a couple of orders of mesquite wood grilled fajitas and three different kinds of burritos. Our mouths were watering in anticipation of some scrumptious tasting food.
I could hear the sizzling from behind me as my steak fajitas and my friend’s fajitas were placed on the table in front of us. The meat looked spicy and the peppers and onions were grilled to perfection. The burritos were huge–one was skirt steak, another chicken, and yet another grilled vegetables. While I didn’t try the burritos, I could tell by the fact that they were nearly gone off everyone’s plate that they must have been good. As for the fajitas, they were flavorful, and the sides of guacamole, sour cream, pico de gallo, rice, beans, and homemade tortillas were plentiful.
We passed on dessert as spring break is just around the corner. However, the key-lime pie and Amy’s Mexican vanilla ice cream were sure calling my name.
I thought Austin Grill was a great find–the food was good, the service was fast and friendly, and the environment was casual and fun with great Austin music (which, by the way, isn’t just country.) Signature dishes include wood-grilled fajitas, hand-rolled enchiladas, crabmeat quesadillas and mesquite grilled fish. A special brunch menu is prepared on Saturday and Sunday that includes migas, Austin eggs benedict, cornmeal pancakes and huevos rancheros. So, step out of Harvard Square and head to Austin Grill for something new.
