While working in Austin, Texas in 2009 I ate quite a few hamburgers. Quite a few, but none better than I had at Hut's. First off, my love affair with Hut's began with the exterior. It has the look of an old gas station/cafe, well-worn but well taken care of. Once past the screen door, you take in a counter and some beautiful neon and that Roadfood knick-knacky decoration that has been around for years.
Peruse the menu, but while you do, enjoy a ice-cold Shiner beer and savor your surroundings. The burger list is extensive and you can order one of the specials, but for me I just list the ingredients I want to see on my burger and the waitress is off.
I ordered the Hut's grass-fed longhorn burger, bacon, cheddar cheese, lettuce, pickles, and onions with mustard AND ketchup. It arrived back at the table cooked to a perfect medium-rare, making the longhorn burger pure nirvana for me. I had it twice as a single patty, I had it as a double patty once, and always, it was perfect.
I like the half-and-half onion rings with fries to mix it up and both are delicious, never greasy, and fried to perfection. The onion rings are those big, Texas-size rings that you could almost make a meal out of, but don't do it! Get a burger to go with and you won't be disappointed! Wow. I wish I was there right now!
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Half Fries & Half Rings
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Hut's Favorite #7
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onion rings
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6 out of 6 people found the review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
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Hut's has a well-worn exterior, and an interior that keeps your eyes busy until your order arrives. It is a great restaurant for observing the various people who patronize the place. There is not a bad seat anywhere as you take in the ambiance.
They offer 20 burgers. Think about it, you can have a different burger every day in just under three weeks. I had the Hut's Favorite (#7), a burger topped with bacon and American cheese, served in a plastic basket. Mayonnaise, tomato, and lettuce finish the deal. A half-order of their incredibly large peppered onion rings is the least you can have, and you better have them. They are hefty and excellent, with the juicy onion coated in the crisp batter. A large tumbler of ice tea is the drink of choice. It is thirst quenching, but it made me wish I went for the milkshake instead.
They offer other sandwiches, appetizers, and a daily special. I think that their chicken fried steak at $8.50 sounds like a bargain and I might try it after I eat those twenty burgers first.
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onion rings
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Blue Cheese and Swiss Bacon Burger
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4 out of 4 people found the review helpful. Was it helpful to you?
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Hut's is a great burger joint... but at big city prices. I tried the #7: Hut's Favorite. The six-ounce burger comes on a standard-issue bun, and includes bacon, American cheese, and LTM. I loved it! Cooked precisely medium, juicy and hot, it ranks with the best of them.
Besides the 19 varieties of toppings, additional burger options allow for various substitutions: buffalo for $1.25, chicken for $1.25, veggie for free, a second patty for $2.25, or Texas Grassfed Natural Beef for $1.25. Selecting the Texas Grassfed creates a leaner and potentially drier burger, and recommended cooking times are reduced: med-well goes to medium, etc.
I ordered chipotle mayo for $0.50 and tried it on the burger and fries. Half fries and half rings, at $3.50, are an enormous basket. Mine had four rings, two of which were the size of softballs. The two small ones were bigger than baseballs. The rings contain coarse-ground pepper in the batter, giving them a spicy pop but, at least today, the onions were bitter. A sweet onion with the pepper bits and the chipotle mayo could have been heaven. The fries are GREAT: skin on, hand-done type, brown, and crispy.
Hut's has real fountain syrups (cherry, vanilla, and chocolate) to add to any soft drink choice.
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Hut's also includes on their menu a regional specialty: the Theta Burger. I've had them in Oklahoma, as well, and Hut's version is true to the name. The Theta Burger is a burger with grated cheddar cheese, hickory smoke bbq sauce, sour pickles, and mayonnaise. The gestalt of the burger is a phenomenon rarely encountered. The mix of sour, sweet, salty, and fatty all mix together to form a taste sensation. Look for the Theta burger on such menus.
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