In a state as large and as populous there are plenty of quality restaurants, and plenty of quality, inexpensive restaurants. In terms of food, most outsiders seem to equate Texas with barbecue, Tex-Mex, and chili. Chili, though, for better or worse, is usually only found as a topping for hot dogs. Even with the current wide diversity of ethnic eateries, and that many restaurants carry a national reputation such as Café Annie in Houston and The Mansion in Dallas, these two long popular cuisines, barbecue and Tex-Mex, provide a reliable opportunity for a quality, budget-minded meal.
In Texas, barbecue is primarily beef brisket, though pork ribs and sausages are also justifiably popular. Of the three thousand or so barbecue joints in the state, the most famous are located in small towns around Austin that are filled with descendants of the original Bohemian and German immigrants who brought their meat smoking techniques. Every large city in Texas has a worthwhile barbecue purveyor of some renown. In Houston, there are Goode Co. Barbecue, Williams Smokehouse and Pizzitola’s. In Austin, Stubb’s and Sam’s. In San Antonio, there is Tom’s Ribbs. In Fort Worth, there are Angelo’s Barbecue, which is also a fun place to drink a cold lager beer, and the Railhead Smokehouse.
Though there is a difference, for most Texans’ Tex-Mex and Mexican food are one in the same. Just as long as the food is good, and the margaritas and beer are cold. The reasons for a plenitude of satisfying choices is that as a significant percentage of the population is of Mexican descent, there is a great amount of competition with the innumerable Mexican restaurants. Plus, at these there exists a nearly uniform high ratio of quality to price. Tex-Mex is slightly different in the various cities, but beef fajitas (popularized by Ninfa’s in Houston in the early 1970s), and enchiladas are among the best prepared dishes throughout. Though the best Mexican restaurants are usually individually owned, the very small statewide chain, Chuy’s, is always a good choice in any of its cities.
The best restaurant scene in the state, in fact one of the best in the country, and the one where it is easiest to find a rewarding inexpensive meal is Houston, the fourth largest city in the country. At approximately five times per week, Houstonians eat out more than the residents of any other metropolitan area. This competitiveness, plus an increasingly diverse population, helps ensure the high quality of the dining landscape, especially at the low and moderate price spectrum, as most meals are eaten at value-oriented restaurants. The USA Today took note of this writing, “if New York is the gourmet dining capital of the USA, then Houston just might be the people’s dining capital.” In addition to Tex-Mex and barbecue in Houston it is fairly easy to find high quality and affordable Vietnamese, Chinese, Cajun, regional Mexican, Korean, Indian, Pakistani, Colombian, Guatemalan, Brazilian, and Salvadoran to name a few cuisines. Significant to the restaurant scene, Houston has many fairly recent Vietnamese and Chinese immigrants. There are several very good Vietnamese restaurants scattered throughout town including the nationally acclaimed Kim Son. The best inexpensive Chinese spots, featuring the cuisines of several regions, are located on or near a roughly two-mile strip of Bellaire Boulevard in southwest Houston. In the past fifteen years, this has become the city’s second Chinatown.
Other cities in the state are also home to first and second generation Vietnamese, where restaurants have popped up to cater to local communities. These are almost always inexpensive, and often provide delicious food, especially for the price. It is worthwhile to note that both Vietnamese and Mexican cuisines use comparatively inexpensive ingredients and cooking techniques. Possibly as a result of Texans’ general familiarity with the chile pepper, Thai restaurants have become successful around the state. Though generally more expensive than Mexican and Vietnamese ones, there are a large percentage of Thai eateries that offer high quality dining coupled with reasonable prices.
Though the cuisine could vary, Texas, like much of the rest of the middle of the country, is a big food state, meaning the portions at restaurants are generally quite ample. With help from local guidebooks and newspapers, it is easy to have an enjoyable and affordable eating adventure in Texas.