Brentwood Tavern

Cool place with zero web presence

Location: 6701 Burnet Rd, Austin, TX 78757 Phone: 512-420-8118 Hours: Sun-Thu 11a-10p, Fri-Sat 11a-12a

Our next rush hour review takes us to the Brentwood neighborhood to a joint that seems to be half Old West cantina, half neighborhood bar. If you arrive from the south, you're greeted by Dog Almighty, home of a plethora of hot dog options (but since I rate hot dogs up there with road kill, you won't find a Dog Almighty review here) and the Travis County Farmer's Market. All three share a parking lot, but the Dog and the Market both close at 6pm, so there's plenty of parking for dinner. Just walk across the bridge under the big welcome sign and you're there.

Inside are concrete floor, natural wood walls and low ceilings, but the only reason to step inside is to let the hostess know you're there cause if the weather cooperates you're sitting outside where you can watch the horseshoe game. It was a little chilly, but I talked The Woman into an outside table, especially when she heard they hand out big Mexican horseblankets to wrap up in. (That red thing isn't the blanket, it's her jacket. The blanket was on her legs, covering her cute little schoolgirl shoes.)

One skim of the menu shows that it barely escapes being pigeonholed as traditional bar fare by adding a twist here and there. The burgers are really what it's all about, with the Mullet Burger leading the pack in popularity. Angus beef on your choice of bun with jack cheese, bacon, avocado and some other stuff. (I'm handicapped by the fact that they have no website with a menu I can consult, nor little paper menus you can take with you and I didn't feel like transcribing the menu while I ate. I'm just funny that way.) We got the fried okra for an appetizer based on an inside tip from The Good Daughter. It was perfect - crunchy on the outside and nice and slimy on the inside. Num num.

I opted for the Chicken Mullet (donating the bacon to a worthy cause) with a side of bock beans. (Pinto beans cooked in a bock beer concoction. The Woman didn't like it, but it was just right for me. Made me feel like I was back in Fred. Not that they cook beans with beer in Fred since it's a dry county, but it had that down-home flavor.) The Woman got some kind of burger. I took one bite to verify it was more than acceptable. If you're going for the beef, the burger is the way to go.

There are things besides burgers and sandwiches on the menu. I've also had the fish tacos, which are quite good, with black beans. I'd give you more of an idea of the variety, but I'm a little handicapped, here. (Hey, BT, get a website!)

I hear the Tavern is a hopping place during prime time, and I'm sure that's an attraction for their target market, but if you’re looking for a quiet place for an early supper, you’ve found it. The nice thing about Brentwood Tavern is the nice thing about Austin, live music. We caught a local country guy releasing a new CD. He had a few nice tunes but he was breaking in a bass player, so it was hit-and-miss for a while. They do have live music often, but I can't tell you the schedule because . . . well, you know by now, don't you?