Top Notch
Made it out to one of my favorite burger places for the first time in a long time, Top Notch on Burnet Road. It’s a rare original in Austin, going on 40+ years now. There’s a very family friendly feel to it with the mother-daugther combo usually running “the front of the house” (I learned that phrase on Top Chef). The burger is flame-kissed over charcoal briquettes, thin patty. Fries are frozen. Onion rings are made in-house and are tasty. The fried chicken is good. The classic signage is great. They offer curbside service in addition to a dining room. They bus your tables for you (you pick up your food at the counter). Coke, not Pepsi. There is nothing not to like about Top Notch.
One thing that resonates with me about Top Notch is the configuration of the #2 with cheddar. It’s the burger I always order, and it’s so perfectly conceived that I don’t have to alter anything about it–comes with grated cheddar, mayo, lettuce, tomato, pickle and diced onion on a toasted bun. That’s the perfect cheeseburger setup in my book. The fact that Top Notch has this precise burger configuration as a standard menu item indicates a harmonious concordance between my burger psyche and Top Notch that’s hard to deny.
The beef at Top Notch cannot boast a hormone-free grass-fed antibiotic-free etc. provenance, like so many of the new burger spots, and the fries are not fresh cut…but it has something special about it that more than compensates for any of those shortcomings.
Flame kissed
Standard American Burger Specimen
Cheddar!
Cross section
Ho hum fries
Onion rings--very tasty
Dessert available
Old school interior
Great sign (tshirts available inside)
Hamburglar 3:03 pm on January 13, 2010 Permalink |
Looks a little sparse on the mayo. Do you feel obligated to leave a tip since they bring the burger out to you?
Chris 3:16 pm on January 13, 2010 Permalink |
No tipping required. Mayo level is a tad sparse, especially considering the overcooked patty, and bottom bun suffering from Dry Bun Syndrome did not help there.
Marty 7:38 pm on January 16, 2010 Permalink |
I concur with the mayo portioning. A little on the light side so the burger was a little dry but then I added ketchup, which I always love on a burger and it moistened it right up. I would have gone and asked for a little mayo but the line was too long. My only real drawback is the single register. The place was packed at lunch on a Saturday and they really could have used another at least for the rush. Although the line was long, it did move pretty well but they lost a lot of potential customers because they saw the line and went elsewhere. But the order to table time was quite reasonable.
Christina 3:00 pm on January 25, 2010 Permalink |
I went to the new location friday night and the place was packed. They did seem to fix some of the issues with wait time. They had 1 person writing orders and another ringing them. The line moved quickly and the food came out in less than 10 minutes. That was nice to see. As usual I thought the food was terrific. I also enjoy cheddar so I ate the bacon/ cheddar burger which was too much for me
The taste was exceptional and i do love their fries. I had the burger, fries and a huge drink all for $7. I felt no obligation to tip. I would agree the atmosphere in the new one is very cozy !
Debora 10:09 am on February 25, 2010 Permalink |
I like the atmosphere and the singing trio on Wednesdays is unique. Management needs to do something about the long line during peak hours by adding a second register. There should also be a To-Go pick up line for orders that were called in ahead of time. The line is definitely the biggest issue and I’ve been there twice in peak hours and seen several potential customers leave due to the long wait in line.
Keli 1:16 pm on March 10, 2010 Permalink |
I guess I am the only one that found the fries to be not so tasty.
Laura 11:17 am on June 12, 2010 Permalink |
Wow, I disagree….my entire family loves Moonies. One of the better burgers in Austin.
Cindy 10:23 am on October 13, 2010 Permalink |
I was a huge Moonies fan…then the Moon Pies disappeared! And the onion rings went to the wide side, not the nice 1/4 inch thick ones they had been serving…so I had to toss the entire order as they were much too wide. I love the Western Burger and the bun has a great flavor…but please bring back the original onion rings and MOON Pies…its is MOONies after all!!
Kathryn 8:20 pm on December 20, 2010 Permalink |
Yeah, Chris, I was less than impressed. Coke stations were flat and needed carbonation. Sweet tea wasn’t fresh. The burger was cooked somewhat on the rare side and the fries were greasy, greasy, greasy — made my stomach curl. Just not used to eating that much grease on a whole. Had the chili cheese burger and the chili cheese was cold and the onions were miniscule, if existant that the menu stated that it had.
Only went there to meetup with my daughter and granddaughter. It’s not something that I would go to because I love to eat there. It’s okay. The environment inside has potential for a happening place to be, but they have to really get their act together on the cooking mode.