texas chili parlor

god bless this old building and all the memories, and fantastic food, made here. a truly unique and ever important part of our city. for those who haven't been yet, try anything, it all kicks ass from the burgers to the tex mex to the classic chili bowls. some of the best bar tends in town work here as well. such a blessing for our community.

if you love death proof, you gotta check this place out!. i'm a big fan of the movie death proof, yet i've never visited any of the austin locations it was shot in. that all changed this weekend. i enjoyed my time at the texas chili parlor, and it was quite a rush being inside there. it was a really fun place. the food was great, the prices were cheap, the staff was very friendly and polite, and the atmosphere was awesome. i'm hoping to become a regular. i loved walking around there, then sitting at the bar in the exact seat kurt russell sat in, and then looking at myself in the mirror. i spoke to the owner and chatted with him a bit about death proof and he told me some cool stories. in death proof, the texas chili parlor is located out in the woods...but in real life, it is actually located in the city side of downtown austin. in the movie, it was also shown having a jukebox, a parking lot and a back porch. in reality, the texas chili parlor doesnt have any of that stuff. that was a special detail quentin tarantino added himself for his own fictional version of the restaraunt. the porch scenes were filmed at another austin location and warren's vintage ami jukebox is owned by quentin tarantino. there was also no nacho grande platter's, club soda's or virgin pina colda's on the menu. but there were nacho's. when i drop about 15 pounds, i'll go back and sit at the bar while eating nacho's for sure. anyway, the texas chili parlor was fun, austiny kinda place and the type of restaurant i'd highly recommend any out-of-towner check out, as well as anyone who loves the movie death proof.

please read for a true, authentic review:
absolutely freaking horrible. idk about the food bc it never came out. predominately a "white" bar. i went with 2 of my black friends. we arrived 805pm. drink order taken at 815pm. at 820pm, the beer arrived but none of the other drinks. around 825pm, another party came in and sat down beside us. their order was taken by 830pm and their drinks arrived by 835pm and their food at 840pm....we still don't have our drinks and we ordered before them. so we start getting frustrated and impatient as expected. after the beer was dropped off at 820, we seen our server (had 2 side braids under his hat) a total of 7-8x and still no drinks. we were finally able to get our drinks at 850pm. i asked another waitress for the manager to complain about not getting drinks and the people next to us getting their food before us. she said they're busy. i said "no excuse, get me a manager." this was at 855pm. at 9pm, the a-hole manager finally came over and instead of asking what my complaint was about, he assumed i was going to be talking about the table behind us rather than the one beside us so he approached the table and stated that "they have been here way longer than yall." i said "no, no, no" and attempted to explain my complaint was going to be about the people beside us but as soon as i said my 3rd "no" he rudely interrupted me by disrespectfully mocking, making fun of me saying "no no no nothing." i was shocked and surprised that the manager mocked me rudely and disrespectfully made fun of me. i then said "hell no, let's get outta here" bc i wasn't going to tolerate being treated that way, especially by the manager. after i said that, he yelled loudly as he waved "bye." that's strike 2 with me and i got more pissed off. he just so happened to walk to the front which was the only way to exit so i confronted him saying that was no way to handle the "f*cking situation" and can't believe he was treating a combat veteran like that. and he knew i was bc my service dog was w/me and had his vest on full of military patches. he just told me to get out but i wasn't done telling him off so i decided to stay and give him an ear full saying it's very rude and disrespectful as a manager to treat his customers that way & that it was unprofessional (and there was some other colorful language in there). he kept talking over me and interrupting me more so i decided to get louder bc he was gonna hear me at this point bc i wasn't leaving without telling him off. at this point, everyone at the bar is looking at us bc we're yelling at each other. i told him he's not a damn manager and needs to learn customer service rather than mock them, make fun of them, and just be rude and disrespectful to them along with needing to shut up when someone else is talking to hear their side of the story instead of interrupting them. he didn't like it so he told me to get out. i refused bc i wasn't done giving him an ear full yet. then he kept saying
"bye" real loud and "get out" while stepping towards me at the same time getting into my face very aggressively. we were literally within 1" of each others face. i thought he was gonna hit me, for real. at this time, his bartender grabbed his shirt and pulled him back away from this combat vet while my friend grabbed my dogs leash, which was slung around me, to pull us out of the front door. i couldn't believe what just happened. i was, and am still, in shock & surprised that a manager just treated me and my [black friends] that way. they were the only black folks in there so i'm sure he was racist and used them as a crutch to treat me like crap since i spoke up about my complaint. this was not the owner but some fat white, clean shaven guy w/glasses. he was very rude, very disrespectful, very unprofessional; he mocked me, made fun of me, yelled at me, & even got in my face/personal space. who in the hell does that? especially a manager running a bar/restaurant? it was absolutely ridiculous & uncalled for. you can't pay me to go back there. and this restaurant is right next to the texas state capitol so what's his demeanor say to visitors about the way the folks in austin run their businesses? highly recommend never going there, i don't care if they were on tv (the texas bucket list). do not go. absolutely racist and very horrible service.

ah the old chili parlor. what can be said that hasn't been said before? with it's incredibly long history and proximity to the capitol, it has served as a gathering place and meeting forum for famous texas politicians, musicians, cowboys and the like. at any given night you can see the cream of the crop, a who's-who of the austin administrative district ranging from attorneys to legislators. part of the charm is in the dark, welcoming atmosphere. part of it is in the steaming hot plate of golden, sauce covered enchiladas or the spiciest bowl of chili you've ever laid tongue to. a quality eating and drinking establishment and a texas institution. bring your friends.

this is a great place. the chili is "old school," no beans in it. spicy up to 5 stars (!) and i particularly like their hot dogs and chili dogs. they also have great entrees, like huge plates of enchiladas. staff is professional, a bit gruff, but fun! near the capitol building, when the legislature is in session there are lines out the door at lunch time.

great chili for a great price. made me cry a little with heat on the habanero chili. habanero, white, and their “famous” chili are all pretty great. while you’re there pick up an austin amber beer made here in austin, tx.

as a big tarantino fan, i wanted to check this place out. i ordered the xxx chili, didn't think it was very good. seemed that all it had was beef, chili powder, cayenne, and water. i had to add a good bit of salt just to make it palatable. enchiladas with white pork chili were good, as was the guacamole. service during lunch was excellent.

during some down time, i took a bit of an urban hike to see the texas capital (pretty, but no west virginia) and stopped at the texas chili parlor on my way.it's a bit kitschy, but the restaurant is a tourist favorite so i wanted to mark it off my list. it's pretty dark inside and smells a bit musty. but people from all ends of the spectrum - businessmen in suits to young hipsters - were waiting for their grub.texas chili has no beans in it; in fact, it's sacrilegious. just beef and tomatoes and other tasty spices. but, i wanted to try the chili, and i couldn't think of a better way to do so than atop fritos and with cheese. that's right, i ordered a frito pie. fritos, topped with chili, topped with cheese and then i got sour cream on the side, because it's essential. overall, i thought it was just ok. i did get the mild chili, but i thought it was a bit bland. i was looking for all sorts of depth of flavor, and maybe i should've gone the spicy route for that. either way, cover something in cheese and sour cream, and it's good no matter what. a decent rendition of the dish, though i think i've had better. grade: c

the best. huge portions, good prices (a meal is easily 2), and amazing vegetarian chili. dont worry about bringing a vegetarian here, there are so many great things to eat. i wish i could come here all the time.

wife & i shared a texican bean burger & chili burger with pasta salad side... 2 good thumbs up!

what a waste. i tried this place not too long ago. the service was awful, the food was pretty good, the atmosphere was cramped. i wouldn't return to this restaurant if they paid me to eat there.

awesome chili and service. loved the chili, gumbo and black beans sampler. the guacamole was pretty good too. a little hole in the wall you should try.

just had dinner at the texas chili parlor new year's eve great waitress great food ,good times!! this restaurant is not for yankees it is definitely a texas chili house , man food

great surprise. my boyfriend and i stumbled upon this place when we were starving after checking out the capitol. best decision ever.
i actually used the urbanspoon app and we decided on this place. it's a quirky little place and has big time flavor with its food.
my boyfriend got the venison chili, which was awesome. great heartiness and gaminess to it and the raw onions topped it off perfectly.
i had the chicken enchiladas and a small tasting portion of the mild chili. both were excellent. the chili was great and i wished i had gotten a full portion of it instead of the chicken haha.
clearly the chili is the star here and it is super good. don't be fooled by the appearance of it outside, it might look a little shabby but the food packs a ton of flavor for sure.

habanero chili very good. the tropical taste of the chile comes through with the heat. the tamales with xx chili are also above average. the staff is way above average. great, old school austin "dive."