Horrible food. Poor woman that worked there was nice. Took our order, cooked our food & we paid before we left.... although, we had to go to her & stand there & wait to pay.... if we were not honest, we could have very easily just left without paying. My cheeseburger tasted like a frozen burger you get at a warehouse store & I had chunks of stuff (I don't want to know what) from the grill in my burger I had to pick out as I ate. So gross. Their soda machine was broken, so I got a canned soda... that's fine, but usually when you pay the price of a fountain soda, you get free refills, but since I had to get a can & still paid the same price as the fountain, I feel a bit cheated... I suppose I could have asked for another can, but I felt bad for the poor woman behind the counter since she was the only person there.... overall, not a good experience & will not go back. Shame on Hays County Community Impact newspaper for saying it was a great establishment with great food (hence the reason we went to try it)...
Review Source:This is the same review I wrote for Buda Grocery & Grill. It's the same place, not sure why they have two Yelps, but that probably goes back to the place not being able to find an identity....
My girlfriend and I were looking for a good place to get a burger and a beer close to home. So we gave Buda Grocery & Grill a shot. And I can honestly say I will never go back again. Unless you have some sort of love for stadium/bowling alley like food, you're going to be disappointed. The burgers were clearly frozen patties, the onion rings were nothing spectacular, and the chili fries were disgusting. The "chili" tasted like someone had a serious fondness for Heinz ketchup. One plus, the Fireman's #4 I ordered was nice and cold, but it doesn't take a whole lot of effort to pour a beer.
On to the ambiance...well there really wasn't any kind of ambiance. I don't think this place has any idea what they want the identity to be. One side had a small bar with  a wall of taps, some tables, and a pool table. The other side had where you ordered food and a few tables. The decorations probably came from Budafest and were a hodge podge of tables and chairs. The arm on my chair even popped off when I went to scoot myself up to the table. Buda Grocery & Grill needs to find an identity. Is it a grocery? Is it a grill? Is it a bar? Is it a bar and grill? Why does it even have grocery in the name anymore? Whoever owns this place needs to figure it out and give some direction. But if the food continues to suck, ambiance won't matter.
Finally, the service. The only reason I gave this one star was due to having a nice lady who took our order. That's about it. She was very friendly, so I'm really giving her the star. One problem with the service is that ordering is confusing. You go to the counter  to place your order (with a cash register right there), but they don't take your money then. After they bring your order out you get to eat the lovely frozen soy patty burgers and go back up to pay. Why can't you just pay when you order? I know, because the poor woman taking orders has to go man the grill and cook up the soy patties. No time for taking your money then. Honestly, a part of me wonders if they prefer not to take your money until they know you've been able to hold your food down or it's completely gone. I'm nice enough that I always tip even if the food is terrible.
Overall, not sure how Monique O. came to her rating. My theory is that she's either an owner, family, or a close friend. Either way, I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.
Also not sure how Melanie R came to her rating (see above theory).
The place has a comfortable feel and the food was awesome. I ordered the Antman without ham (I'm a vegetarian) with all the fixins' and chips, my husband had the double bacon cheesburger with fries. A sweet lady took our order and told us that we would pay after we ate. It is a real small town feel to the place but with a large beer selection. They already have 20 beers on tap and plan on having 32. We talked with one of the owners, Anthony and had a great conversatiion about the store and how it has changed over the years. We are fans of the place and will be back many times. We noticed that they have a special everyday and they have a lot of choices but after watching my husband down that burger, I think he will be eating here a lot. One side of the place has a pool table and a bar look to it while the other side is strictly food. They have big TV's in the place for sporting events but today was a fishing show which is just fine with me. They also have a very nice patio in the back with a fountain and lots of trees. Next time I'm eating on the patio.
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