I've been using Yelp for awhile but never felt the need to review before, until now. Stopped here on our way to the Frio. So glad we did. I had Cabrito and fries, seasoned and cooked perfectly. The wife had the Axis, also very delish. The kids, not feeling adventurous had plain old cow, certainly nothing plain about it. Some of the best burgers I've tasted in a long while. Well worth the diversion off of our original route from Corpus. What a Funky little place in the middle of the hill country. A true gem. Can't wait to go back and try some items from the other side of the menu.
Review Source:I enjoyed this place. She is amazing and knows her Lamb.....
after a long road trip of Hill Country cruising this was our end stop before we headed back home.
I have started cooking more at home rather than be curious about places to eat, but on a trip like this I was tickled at how good our dish were and the quality. I grew up in the middle east and lamb is our fare and I am particular of it and to know how much she loves lamb herself .... OMG
LOVE
Went here for the first time about a month ago and loved it! I had seen it in a Southern Living magazine and knew I had to try it.
I got the cabrito burger and french fries and loved it!! I'd wanted to try cabrito for a long time and this burger didn't disappoint.
My husband got the antelope burger. It wasn't as good as the cabrito, but it was still good.
There are several tables inside to sit at, but the weather was so good we decided to eat outside.
Only down side to going here is that it is a little pricey.The burger alone was $9. But considering that they serve exotic meats, I guess that really isn't such a bad deal.
I will definitely go back next time I'm out that way.
SO glad we drove the 15 miles from Utopia to give Mac & Ernie's a try! Â Very unassuming place on the outside, but surprising upscale food twists with a Greek / Mediterranean flair. Â Husband had an expertly-prepared ribeye and I tried chicken kabob with tangerine aioli sauce (at least 8 oz of large marinated & grilled chicken breast pieces.). Our sides were baked potato with a choice of salad (spring greens with a delightful vinaigrette and feta) or grilled fresh green beans with pecans. Â I requested beans instead of potato and was upcharged $2 which was 'okay', but a slight negative, though the beans themselves were wonderful. Â Only bottle water is available, and sodas/bottles of wine/beer are self-serve from a cooler. Â You order & pay at the counter (menu posted on a whiteboard) and someone brings your plate when ready, but no real "service" unless you wish to order another beer. Â You get a real steak knife, but the plates are foam and the other cutlery is standard plastic in a packet. Â Many other diners were having heaped plates of fried fish which looked great. Â We were very happy with our meal, but we opted for pie & coffee back in Utopia instead of trying M&E's red velvet tres leches cake or chocolate pie.
Review Source:So I'd heard about Mac and Ernie's on the foodie grapevine, but had never had a reason to drive out there. The opportunity finally came up when we drove my daughter to camp.
I wish we had skipped it. It's really hot inside, there are flies aplenty, and the wine we bought from the restaurant was warm bordering on hot. The food is good, but not cheap, and as previously noted everything is served on paper plates. Have you ever been to a cookout and had to cut a steak with plastic utensils? Now imagine it's a $20 ribeye. Ya...
This is no mere roadside eatery. It's a gourmet wolf in sheep's clothing. Out in the middle of nowhere, you might as well be an aggie for anything that looks like sheep--err, food. Or not. Don't ever accuse me of going even part aggtard. Ever.
Good news! There's even lamb on the menu. I was disappointed that their original menu posted at the back wasn't available (cabrito? dude, I love cabrito!), but the delights they had on the menu were so awesome sounding that I had trouble deciding.
I wasn't very hungry, so I got a crabcake with Sriracha aioli. It was delicious. I tried a bite of a friend's lamb chop. That was tender, juicy, and delicious. I even had a little pumpkin ice cream. Also delicious, like pie in ice cream form.
It's a little pricey, but worth it for what you get. It's a bit weird to see it come out on disposable plates, but whatever. The outdoor seating area is really lovely, too.
Mind the bathroom door, though. It doesn't lock.
Reasonable food but not over the top. It's not a cheap place so don't think you getting a 4.99 burger. Â Lunch is minimal but dinner full gourmet dinners. Â The catfish at lunch was awesome, crispy. The chicken sandwich, ok. Â Some had hamburgers and said delicious and cooked just right. Out of the way place on the way to nowhere. Parking is not so good.
Review Source:We went out of our way, WAY out of our way, on a friend's recommendation, to have dinner, and I'm really glad we did. Â Don't judge this place by the exterior. Â It looks like your standard short order burger barn from the outside, but inside, the menu, which changes daily, will shock and amaze you in the best possible way. Â The night we were there, it featured pork kebabs, mahi mahi with a scallion glaze, chicken breast with roasted red bell pepper sauce, lamb, and crab cakes. Â Prices are reasonable and the best seats are outside, but they have a limited amount of each dish, so show up early!
Review Source:It's out in the middle of nowhere and kind of a "where else are you going to eat?" location. Â
The kick to this place is that it's actually really good. Â It would be easy for a place like this to make plenty of money by offering mediocre food at inflated prices, but instead they offer a meal you'll be happy to eat again if you're ever in the area.
Ever go to a restaurant you wanted to hate, but couldn't. Â This would be one of those. Â After driving to the middle of nowhere (15 minutes outside Bandera) for lunch, you are bombarded with limitations. Â Some make no sense at all and some don't exactly endear this place.
* Â Okay, we knew the interesting dinner menu does not even closely resemble the limited lunch menu.
* Â They don't make the Margarita Mixer to mix with your BYOT as noted on their website (and still noted).
* Â Pie? Â Pie is only for dinner. Â Huh?
After settling on ordering beer, we ordered the Goat (Cabrito) burger and Antelope burger. Â They were cooked perfectly and the taste really reflected the true taste of the meat. Â This is why you would go there for lunch. Â As everyone discusses, the dinner menu is more expanded than lunch. Â I would probably not go back for lunch, but perhaps if I was in the area at dinnertime, however unlikely, I would drop in.
Fun place to stop and get a decent meal... Been there three times and have always gotten ribeye, tater, salad, & decent beer... eaten outside behind the place... fun to yack with locals about other edible cuisine within 50 miles... Grotto in Bandera comes up as well as a smancy place near Utopia... The Laurel Tree
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.utopiagourmet.com%2F&s=be00ae959bead651cc3630692c5cb67de259339a3efc7642b8e2eb1914d01eee" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.utopiagourmet…</a>
Mac and Ernie's has vino and good beer selection... especially for the hood... welcome quality road food, some may be disappointed if they make it a destination and have a long drive... more of a great spot when in the hood
The quest for Mac & Ernie's has loomed in my mind like the Holy Grail. Some friends have a ranch near Centerpoint, and when you're talking ranch distances, the 45 minutes to Tarpley is a quick jaunt to the corner store. But circumstances always seemed to thwart my quest. Finally, some friends and I were heading to a ranch near Bandera, and when I saw Tarpley was a mere 26 minutes away (as the Google flies), I made an impassioned plea that we stop at Mac & Ernie's for lunch.
The original humble shack now serves as the entrance to Mac & Ernie's larger expansion. A couple of chalkboard menus are displayed near the counter where you place your order, with the large open kitchen sprawling behind. A number of tables fill out the dining room, and plenty of picnic tables are spread around the property out back. We sat outside to get the proper experience, at least my preconceived notion of the proper experience.
There were two things in my mind's Mac & Ernie's Holy Grail: the cabrito burger and the chicken-fried lamb chops. Unfortunately, only the former is available at lunch time. Most of our group went for the cabrito, while a few ordered normal hamburgers. The cabrito was formed into thin patties replete with parsley and garlic which really made it flavorful. The buns are not your standard buns, they're artisanal, and while good, they resulted in too large a bun to patty ratio in my opinion - a little too bready, particularly in the thicker middle part. And I don't normally like mayo on my burgers, but I let the kitchen dress the cabrito as they saw fit, and it made for a good compliment to the meat. I took a bite of one of the standard burgers that some of my companions ordered, and these were thicker, a juicy pink medium in the center. The fries were crispy and potatoey, if unremarkable, and we also sampled a jalapeño cheese sausage wrap, which was juicy and delicious with bits of cheese and jalapeño stuffed right into the sausage - excellent when dipped into some stoneground mustard.
In the end, the cabrito burger just didn't blow my hair back the way I thought they would, but perhaps I had just built them up impossibly high in my head. But the lamb chops still remain elusive. A friend who left Houston much later than us decided to hit Mac & Ernie's as well, and at dinner time he was able to try the lamb chops, which he raved about. So the quest is still incomplete, but I eagerly await my return to try the lamb and likely add at least another star to this Roadside Eatery.
You know that feeling when you strive, work hard, and devote time into a journey? Â And that feeling you get when your final goal is slightly disappointing? Â Yeah... finishing the journey was half the joy here, but the other half did not quite make it up to par.
What makes it even harder to enjoy a victory meal is when you must eat dense meat such as cuts from an animal's costal (rib cage) region with a plastic fork and plastic plates. Â It is not cool when your fork bends while trying to gorge yourself on satisfying meat.
The offerings were surprisingly pedestrian the one time I made it out here. Â They had pork, lamb, seafood, and steaks. Â Without any outstanding sides or bread, the menu really lacked a real oomph. Â With a choice of green beans or salad, the entrees are missing a sidekick. Â As the meal's only starch, the baked potato is not a very unique supplement.
The grilled pork chop with mustard cream was amazingly cooked. Â It was juicy, thick, but slightly bland. Â A little more salt would have played nicely with the zippy mustard sauce.
The grilled lamb chops were also perfectly cooked, though also lacking in seasoning. Â Again, the complementary cucumber yogurt would have added a whole other dimension had the meat been well salted.
The green beans were extremely oily and you guessed it, poorly seasoned! Â The baked potato was offered in foil. Â Well... I bet you they are sitting under a heat lamp just waiting to be ordered. Â Oh well... consistency is good, I guess.
Mac and Ernie's sent me on a wild goose chase. Â Was the time spent worth it in the end? Â Well, not really. Â I would probably not spend another 4 hours of travel time from Austin to eat simply grilled protein products again, but I will admit that this experience was something to be done once in a lifetime.
I had been looking forward to stopping at Tarpley to taste the famous Cabrito burger after hearing a lot of talk about it and seeing it on TV. Â I decided that on my 8 hour Texas roadtrip, I'd finally stop by and check out what all the fuss was about.
The place is really cute. I love the décor, the loud colors, a good selection of beer that even included a seasonal beer from Blanco, Texas: The Devils Backbone.  Great service, nice atmosphere.  It wasn't crowded.
The Cabrito burger, unfortunately for me, wasn't great.  I wanted to love it.  I really tried to like it.  But after a few bites, I realized that the problem for me is it didn't taste  "fresh."  It tasted as if it was heated up in the microwave and served.  Maybe that wasn't the case, but to me it's the closest I can describe the taste.  The herbs they use for the meat and the seasoning all tasted okay, but it wasn't an overall good burger.
The fries were blow me away awesome, if that gives you any idea on how my burger tasted.
I think that this place is like anything else, you have to try it at least once. Â Maybe your burger experience will completely beat mine.
Another small town Texas experiment!
Cliff notes: The food was pretty awesome, but given the price and the fact that it was served on paper plates, limited ac, good service = 3 stars. And the gal had dropped the dessert so there was no dessert that night.
I had the Chicken breast with roasted red bell pepper sauce - the sauce came on the side but it was pretty tasty. The chicken was super moist and the little baked potato cooked perfectly, but the salad was a bit over-drenched.
Mind you I don't have a problem with paper plates - but when you're paying $15+ for food it seems a bit of a let down! The area where you order the food when you first walk in wasn't very air conditioned and on a hot day like when we were there it was a bit uncomfortable for me. The dining room (self seating) did feel a bit cooler but we opted to sit outside where there was at least a breeze. Overall I would say the food was excellent and the atmosphere is all country.
If you are coming from Bandera, it is super easy to find this little hole in the wall. Two turns and 15 minutes later...you're there! I don't understand how people get lost. It is no longer the shack displayed on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" but now has a nice seating area inside.
We went here just before noon on a Friday and I expected it to be pretty busy, but luckily there was no one inside and only one party sitting outside. By this time I had already had my mind set on the Cabrito burger. My boyfriend ordered one as well and we grabbed our drinks at the fountain and sat inside because it was just way too hot outside. We watched the little electronic cow take our ticket and drop it into the basket in the kitchen right behind the register. Very cute!
Once we ordered, people started to come in. Our burgers took a while but once we bit into them, you would not be able to tell that you were eating goat! It was juicy and really flavorful. The fries were good too. Great place in an out of the way location.
Well I must admit that I was a little concerned to here that Bert had been left out of the equation. I mean how the hell was I kept out of the loop? Â Damn, Â I grew up with that cylindrical pill shaped, yellow headed, red bulbous nosed dominant, barking out nasally reprimands to the diminutive suppliant Ernie whenever the opportunity presented itself but I could see the writing on the wall.
Ernie has since moved on.
Somewhere between Bandera, Utopia, Elysium and Purgatory lies the expanded shack that was made famous by Guy Fieri who actually shows up to all of his conquests unlike Rachel Ray who usually sends her minions to compile a video which she can then narrate to create that fresh from the oven scent.
"Oh what a tangled web we weave..."
Anywho, this joint serves up a limited menu on Sundays which meant a limited taste of what they are capable of. Today was nothing spectacular, just a cheeseburger and something they call Chicken Nayleen which apparently is Tarpley speak for "we need to use up the rest of the Hollandaise"
To their credit the cheeseburger was perfectly cooked medium and flavorful and juicy atop an artisan type bun and thickly cut veggies that reminded me of GBG. Chicken Nayleen was dry and served with pedestrian style green beans, the brunch's leftover Hollandaise and Canadian Bacon, but a very flavorful twice baked potato.
By the way, twice baked potatoes should have gone out with pagers.
"Welcome to the 90's Mr. Banks."
The best thing about this trip was taking my new Maxima out on the open road and checking out a much greener Hill Country than last year's drought barren display presented.
I will give these guys and their 70's retro green and yellow diner another chance simply because I hope to try their chicken fried lamb chops among other things.
I promise to all of my Yelp friends that I shall never use the phrase "Gfriend" in any of my reviews for a myriad of reasons which include, but are not exclusive to, that I am married and that I am not a douche bag. The latter, of course, being purely subjective.
mac and ernies have definitely moved, they are no longer in the shack as in the video on their web site. there are now plenty of seats inside, though the day we went it was all smoky like kitchen exhaust all around the inside seating. we ate outside.
the lamb chops were the best i have ever had from anywhere. so good so good. Gfriend had pork chop that was huge and came with this horseradish mayo that was all good. they sell beer and wine, i think you can still bring your own with you.
as for the sides, i had green beans which were nothing that special
new location for all you gps users is right at the intersection of 470 and 462.
I consulted the website for Mac and Ernie's several times before departing my house. My GPS had no idea where the address was located, and I was traveling half an hour out of the way from my trip to Del Rio from San Antonio. It was the closest I would get to Tarpley, TX - a city that I'm pretty sure only exists because they needed an address for this restaurant.
I ordered a seared tuna steak from the specials board. It was cooked well and came with a foil-wrapped baked potato and some fresh green beans. A homemade tres leche cake capped a very enjoyable meal. It's served picnic-style on paper plates on benches outside, and there's a corking fee if you want to avoid buying your drinks from the local convenience store across the parking lot.
While it's not the best meal I've eaten, it's certainly the best meal I have or ever will eat in Tarpley. I'm sure there's no other reason to visit this town in the middle of nowhere, but if you're like me and you enjoy the scenic drives through Texas highways, it's nice to have someplace to stop between where you're going and where you've been.
You don't usually find a place that sells $16 Pork Chops in the middle of nowhere...but dang! Â After 10 miles of hiking me and my g/f satisfied ourselves by splitting the pork chop, a few pieces of really, really good fried catfish ($1 each as a side), and a cranberry tres leches.
Bring your own utensils if you want metal ones, and bring cash if you want anything. Â But if you're in the area, definitely make it a point to eat here.
I found out about this place through that Food TV Diners Dives and Drive in show (which I think is slightly suspect after watching his glowing review of Niko Niko's in Houston)....but this place is just awesome. Â
I should note that they have fairly limited hours for dinner so double check their website, and make sure you have plenty of gasoline before heading into the middle of nowhere... Â While you're at it, watch out for the deer on the roads, that cost me a wee bit more than the dinner....
Like other reviewers said, I heard about this little gem from a friend's biker uncle, described as a little shack with an outdoor kitchen and some picnic tables, and a convenience store next door where you bought your drinks. Â Such a fitting description, but it totally betrays the quality of food that's in store. Â We stopped here to meet up with some friends on the way to Garner State Park for some camping. Â It was only a 30 minute detour on the way to Garner from San Antonio or Austin, and nearby Lost Maples as well.
The place was bustling when we arrived, and stayed that way most of the night.  We grabbed some tallboys from the convenience store and sat at a table near the open air kitchen to wait for the rest of our friends.  The smells wafting from the kitchen through the cool air were pure torture, like dogs with a treat on our nose, salivating and waiting for the "ok" command.  Shuttled past us from the kitchen  were hearty thick "big daddy pork chops", ancho honey basted quail (small, but so incredibly juicy), fried shrimp and catfish, rosemary salmon, and lamb chops, served on paper plates with plastic utensils.  I ordered the big chop with an extra side of quail.  As luck would have it, they weren't out of pork chops (popular items have a way of disappearing off the menu), but it would take an extra 30 minutes and our waitress, knowing we had to check in by a certain time, upgraded me to a 12 oz. Ribeye, no extra charge.  Score.  Also, the dinner menu changes every week, so check before you go, and the place is CASH ONLY, definitely something to know before you go. Â
The food was pretty incredible. Â As mentioned, the quail were incredibly juicy. Â Though I had expected a little more spice from the ancho peppers, it was more of a smokey sweet flavor with the honey. Â The steak, cooked rare, Â was close-your-eyes, put-your-fork-down, I-need-a-moment good. Â Best steak I've had in a long long while, not over seasoned, juicy and buttery, perfectly red and without a trace of gristle...in a word, perfect.
I found out afterward that Guy Fieri profiled the place for Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, Â there's a video on youtube that would have sold me if I hadn't already been converted myself. Â If you're passing through the hill country or just looking for a beautiful drive with some delicious food at the end, make Mac and Ernies your destination.
I have to agree with Tara on this place. Â What a sweet quirky Little find literally in the middle of nowhere. Â Took my mom there while we were staying in Utopia (which, by the way, is gorgeous in the fall and also close to Lost Maples). Â Have to say driving there in the dark, along windy, hilly roads is a little intimidating, esp when you just aren't sure where it's at. Â But persistence pays off! Â This literally is a fine-dining shack that is set up in the parking lot of a convenience store. Â After ordering your gourmet quail, steak, or pork tenderloin dinner at the walk-up window, you are instructed to cross the lot and buy your beverages at the store, then have a seat at the picnic benches and your food will be brought to you. Â I went a few years ago and I remember being impressed by the eats, but what made me fall in love with the place was the atmosphere and the uniqueness of it. Â Truly off the beaten path!
Review Source:This little shack is in the middle of nowhere between Bandera and Utopia but it is somewhat of a legend with the bikers who road trip through the hill country.
This place is just amazing in every way. Â Yes it is in a shack and you sit at picnic tables with people you do not know. But by the end of the meal you will be exchanging phone numbers with your new friends who most likely do not live in TX but are on a RV road trip and heard about this place from some place in Bandera they stopped at. I shared a table with some great Folks from TN and we have kept in touch - its just that kind of place sharing a memorable meal always brings people together.
Ok on to the food - the menu is small but everything on it is good, their specialty is a carbarita burger but honestly I have no idea what that is. Â Lunch is limited to burgers and fried fish and the Dinner menu has some gourmet items you would never expect to find in a dive shack like Chili Honey Basted Quail and Yellow Fin Tuna with Wasabi Mascarpone sauce or Pork Tenderloin with a Vietnamese dipping sauce. Â For dinner I have tried the previous 3 items plus the Combo Fried Catfish and Shrimp possibly the best fried seafood I have ever had the breading is so perfectly seasoned no need for any cocktail sauce.
The service is just as amazing as the food in a casual layed back yet efficient way. Â The owner and cook Naylene comes out and checks on her guests when she gets the time.
Be sure and call before you go for directions and the daily menu. The menu changes daily with only fried seafood and burgers as staples.
Know before you go: They are only open for lunch Wed and Lunch and Dinner Friday and Sat., they only except cash and they do not serve alcohol. They are located in the parking lot of William's Creek Depot where you can buy beer or wine. And they only charge a small fee to ice down your beer or cork your wine.
If you every find yourself passing through the area do not miss out on this jewel.
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