Las Manitas Avenue Cafe
Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Mexican [Edit]
Neighborhood: Downtown211 Congress Ave
Austin, TX 78701 (512) 472-9357
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 7:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Sat-Sun 7:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m. - Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Breakfast
- Alcohol: None
63 Reviews for Las Manitas Avenue Cafe
So, I am completely dissapointed in myself for not finding this place earlier. Finally some good mexican cooking in Austin. I say that because I remember when I used to live the places I used to visit were not all that great. But looky here this place will have you coming back and asking for more. Very traditional with homeade corn and flour tortillas, great tasting tacos, beans rice and best of all the Menudo and the pozole taste great. Check this place out and enjoy a good place to eat.
As side note if there is no seating in front. just walk through the kitchen to get to the back area of restaraunt where there is plenty of seating, especially for larger parties.
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Five stars for breakfast, which is served until (I think) 11am on weekdays and until 2:30pm on weekends.
If Las Manitas served their breakfast over weekday lunch hours I'd probably eat there 1-2 times a week. I don't find their lunch items to be standouts -- good, but not great and generally not worth a lunch wait for -- but the breakfast is phenomenal.
I love the migas especiales con hongos, and the breakfast tacos are great too. They make very good bacon, their tortillas are phenomenal, and the service is no-nonsense and fast.
During hot months, this can be a bad place to go to; if they seat you in the back patio area it's like a freaking heated greenhouse back there. Like so hot I don't enjoy the meal. Even in the main restaurant it gets pretty hot.
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Getting a seat in this place during lunch hours is like finishing the marathon.. takes a while but once you get there its all worth it..
I managed to get out of class early and get in there before the mad noontime rush. Service was as quick as the NYC soup nazi.. about 30 seconds after I ordered the food was in front of me. The refried beans.. they look like any other, but don't be fooled. These are laced with ambrosia and after the first couple of bites, you'll want to wear it all over your body. (Note: getting arrested for public indecency by way of refried beans is a legendary story to tell)
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This place serves up all my favorite foods to 100% perfection.
#1 I love re-fried beans and Las Manitas serves up the best in Austin - lots of garlic and probably a good amount of fat.
#2 Out of this world homemade Corn Tortillas
#3 extra spicy Salsa
#4 Cheese and more Cheese
#5 Watermelon Aquas Frescas
Minus 1 star for no evening hours. I would love to have a Margarita on the patio with something spicy.
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This place is a total greasy spoon type of joint, but with Tex Mex, and it is good. Unfortunately for me, I happened to go there on the day when it was overrun by SXSW attendees (and I was one of them) and the wait staff looked like they could kill something as they weren't prepared for the throngs of people trying to squeeze in.
Once we did make it in, however, we were rewarded with _more_surly service from a very stressed out waiter. I ordered a combo plate with an enchilada, a taco, and a flauta, and they were all awesome. I love their rice! I have to say one of my favorite things about Texas is the amazingly light texture of their tortilla chips.
Despite the insanity of trying to get in to this place during ACL or SXSW, it's a worthwhile stop in your culinary tour of Austin.
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If you don't love this place, you need to have your head examined.
One of my two favorite places in Austin, I've been known to almost miss flights trying to squeeze in one last meal here. Hangover curing, home made, Tex Mex fantasticness served up quickly and cheaply.
I love the breakfast tacos, the migas, the chilaquiles, the soup....oh dear god, the soup...it's a thing of wonder. I also love walking in near death, snagging a table on the patio, sucking down a coke, eating my breakfast, and walking out about $6.00 poorer and minus the hangover.
I'm so glad they prevailed in the real estate battle, it would have been a sad day if this place went. Great staff, cheap as hell, veg and carnivore friendly and locally owned ~ if you haven't been, get thee to Las Manitas, pronto.
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I was visiting austin for a friends wedding. I found las manitas on yelp and happened to have enough time to try it!
we went for brunch and it wasn't crowded at all. I had the plato de chorizo and it was delish!! oh...and I'm sorry...WTF IS IN THOSE BEANS??? there must be crack in it because I licked the plate clean. I am not a refried bean kind of person, but those beans are VERY tasty. they've got a smokey taste that is non-existant in this fattening side at a regular mexican restaurant. I also had a potato and egg taco...very tasty with their homemade salsa. they sell their salsa as well, if you want to take it home with you. my friend got the combo plate...it was ok. I think their breakfast is the best there.
I'd go back in a heartbeat whenever I'm in Austin!!
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Best Mexican breakfast in Austin.
The place is super busy. The kitchen is in the middle of the place so in order to go to the back, you go through the kitchen. This is good, because the kitchen is sparkling clean. The food is very good. If you're hangover, eat the chilaquiles (either red or green) with an egg. You'll feel like a new person. The staff must be on something (coke? lots of coffee) because they are FAST.
Prices are really good.
IMPORTANT: Watch out for the sink in the kitchen for you hand-washers... the hot water will give you second degree burns.
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Well, that was just about the best corn tortilla I've ever had. The service is either informal or lacking, depending on how you look at it, though my coffee did stay full & hot at breakfast. For breakfast, the Spicy Eggs a la Mexicana were plain-looking but delish. For lunch, the Enchilada de Michoacan completely blew my mind. If it's warm out, enter through the back to reach the patio seating easily.
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Easily the best Mexican place in the downtown corridor. Also hands down the FASTEST service in the world. Only open for lunch, which kind of sucks, but kind of makes it even more of a treasure to enjoy. I love my semi-Saturday tradition of hopping on the Dillo and cruising to Las Manitas for a lunch delight. I also love walking through the kitchen to get to my table...makes me feel like Henry Hill in Goodfellas. Highly recommend the rellenos and el pastor.
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As a testament to how great the food is, there was a huge line of people waiting to get in. It was nice and sunny in Austin and we had an hour and a half lunch break, so we decided to wait.
After maybe a half hour we were seated at a table near the door. The decor inside Las Manitas is simple, with some local art on the walls. There's a counter one one side and some booths on the other and some tables in between. The food is pretty simple, although they do have many items on the menu. Prices range from $5 - $8 for lunch entrees. How did it taste? I thought it was great. Matt and I each had a combo plate, Justin had enchiladas, and John had the chalupas. We were all happy with the food and were talking about going back for breakfast one day, but sadly it didn't happen.
I really liked Las Manitas and would definitely recommend it to anyone visiting Austin who wants high quality food for a low price.
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i came here because of yelp. i was looking for some yummy texmex restaurants and this came up first.
i came here during lunch and there was already a long line. the line moves pretty fast so it's worth the wait. i ordered their beef fajitas. soo good. the beef was tender and had this smoked beef jerky taste. it was really different from what i expected. for appetizer, we ordered the chips and guac. their guac is sooo good too. everyone was pleased with their dishes.
great customer service. very attentive and polite.
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I can't vouch for the lunch food, but breakfast was top-notch. The tortillas are made fresh and are delicious. The chorizo/egg dish was so tasty! The Central American dish was good, but a little skimpy on the plantains. I prefer the refried beans more than the black beans, which don't have much flavor. Coffee is wonderful and the overall vibe is very pleasant.
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Yum! Yum! Yum! The refried beans are awesome and garlicky. Everything else was just as delicious. (I had Huevos a la Mexicana, which was so good and spicy. My husband had the Migas--fantastic!)The portion sizes were perfect, and the service was quick. Plus, you have to love a place that lets you walk through the kitchen to get the the back patio. It's no wonder that this is an Austin institution.
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No better place then to recover from a sxsw hangover then at Las Manitas with a plate eggs, tortas, and some tasty sauce.
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Can I have my Austin card now?
After living here for more than a year I finally made it to Las Manitas Cafe. Unless you work downtown this place can be hard to eat at since it's only open for lunch.
A couple of Saturday's ago I was hungry, and on Congress.... Yes! I finally get to visit this Austin staple.
It was pretty dang good! Since it was windy that day it felt like the makeshift roof they have over the patio was going to rip off at any moment.... but that's really my only complaint.
I ordered my food, and what seems like seconds later, it was delivered to my table. Super fast service.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and proclaim that Las Manitas has the BEST re fried beans I have ever had. period. I'm sure they have every kind of animal fat mixed into them.... but I don't care, because DANG..... those were some good beans.
This is an Austin staple that's worthy of it's reputation.
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Please don't even think of giving this place less than 5 stars. I was born and raised in Laredo, TX and during a recent visit, while eating at Taco Palenque, I overheard Laredoans talking about the great Mexican food at Las Manitas in Austin!!!! I can't tell you how unbelievable that is...
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OMG, I want to swim in a pool of their tortilla soup. It's the perfect blend of chicken stock, cheese and tortilla strips. The broth has a nice texture, and the dish gets better as you get closer to the bottom. Too bad, they only serve it on Wednesdays.
But during the rest of the week, plan on enjoying their guacamole, refried beans, corn tortillas, chorizo and eggs, fruit bowls, veggie tacos, and pozole. These are a few of my favorite things. The BF loves their salsa, but it's a tad too spicy for me. At first we thought it strange that they don't automatically give you chips and salsa, but I got over it pretty quickly. I'd rather save my appetite for the meal.
The restaurant is cute and classy. I love their "sit anywhere" attitude. There aren't any gimics, upsales, or schmoozy servers here. They let the food speak for itself.
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Well, this restaurant bring up mixed feelings. It is the first time I ever had to pay for chips. I was told it was because they are an authentic Mexican restaurant. Ok, so I ate my migas and thought ok, they were ok, maybe good maybe just ok. Not really sure. I have been back several times primarily due to the convenience to the downtown market when I am in the area. They turn the tables quickly and walking thru the kitchen is cool in that it proves they have nothing to hide. Overall, I would like to to rate them higher, but 3 is the best I can go.
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bleary-eyed and obviously a tourist in town for sxsw, i stumble into this place with a friend for a late brekkie. i really wanted a bloody mary and was hoping to get fud at the driskill (bc if i couldn't actually go to Hippie Hollow to get nekkid and go swimmin' then i wanted the driskill's omelette of the same name... just because.) but no, ok, we go to a place that has cinnamon coffee. i don't drink coffee.
ok, so i got the veggie chorizo scarmble with the black beans and it was ok. i wanted more cheesy hangover food. and a bloody mary.
in terms of the clientle, well, it was way too cool for school and i was kinda disgusted with myself. when we left i hid behind my awesome huge and cool vintage sunglasses as best i could.
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Las Manitas is pure class.
The corn tortillas are thick, handmade and the best we know of in this town. I'm not a mole guy, but the owner of the place once brought us a little dish of their's to sample, and it was really delicious.
Lately we've been on a kick for the soup. The pozole (Sat/Sun) is great. The Caldo de Azteca (Monday) and Caldo de Pollo (Tuesday) are tasty. The Sopa de Tarasco (Wednesday) is freaking delicious. If everything goes as planned we'll round out the rest of the soup specials this Thursday and Friday, and perhaps the menudo this weekend.
Las Manitas just might have my favorite spicy salsa in Austin. I like to take turns shoveling the stuff into my mouth until I've reached critical spice, then wash it down with hot coffee. The resulting sensation on my tongue is one of numbness and tingling; perhaps it is the sensation of a million taste buds dying. I don't know; I like to think it is instead the sensation of approval from God.
Seating is self-service: sit wherever you like.
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Ohmagawd like, this place is totally GRODY. Or grodie. Or "grotty". However you prefer to spell it, that's what this place is. If I had a Burn Book, I'd put a picture of their enchiladas in it and adorn it with expletives and crude remarks. The food, if you insist on calling it that, is sub-par and the lamest attempt at mexican I have ever seen in my life, save Pancho's, and I am like, totally NOT exaggerating.
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The melon Aguas Frescas (just perfect- not overly sweet) and the corn tortillas earn this cafe four stars. Really, these were the best corn tortillas I've ever had in my life. I'll have dreams about these corn tortillas.
The rest of my meal was good enough- maybe even above average- but I was so taken by the tortillas that everything else paled in comparison. Even if the tortillas hadn't been as amazing, I still think the black beans that came with my soy chorizo would have been a little bland. But, damn, those tortillas were great.
Arrived at around 0900-ish on a Sunday morning and had immediate seating at the bar but within thirty minutes there was a line forming outside so be sure to get there early.
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I took my family here last weekend. We all gave it a thumbs up.
We really enjoyed being able to walk through the kitchen and see how the things were being made. When I was in college I worked as a beer distributor, so I hauled kegs to all the restaurants and bars in towns. I saw several kitchens that made me change my mind about several eateries. It was cool to see a place that basically forces you to walk through their kitchen while most places hide it.
I ordered the combination plate. The one thing I really love about this Mexican food is that I wasn't belching it up and dying of heartburn afterwards.
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I really wanted to like this place. My husband eats there often for lunch and told me I would love their beef fajitas. I love, love, love fajitas. So we went there with an out of town friend for lunch the other day and I was disappointed!!!! The beef was kind of tough, the tortillas were bleh, the beans were bleh, the guacamole was not good and I was left feeling like ummmm shoulda had Pappasitos. I think I still like the fajitas, tortillas and salsa at Pappasitos the best. Oh and their beans are good too. It is sad that I can't find a local place in Austin that has better Mexican (well at least fajitas) than Pappasitos!!!!!
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Keepin it short:
Drink Watermelon Aguas Frescas.
Order Chips & Salsa
Whatever you order (I like the migas), get corn tortillas...truly the best I've had yet.
Leave, belly full & happy, in under 45 minutes!
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Sandia Agua Fresca. Heaven.
Vegetarian Tamales on the weekends will have you doubting that they are really vegetarian. The sauce is like sour cream mushroom goodness with pecans.
The Sopa Tarasca (Wednesdays, I think) is fantastic: kind of a smoky, tomato-based chicken soup, very spicy, slightly bitter with a sharp sweet flavor.
The smoothies are also a surprisingly fantastic treat.
I love Las Mas!
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Eh.
Everyone in Austin seems to love this place, particularly the locals who have been here for 20+ years (a couple of whom I work with who end up dragging me there at least once a year). I just chalk it up to the i-loved-it-as-a-child phenomenon. You know? The phenomenon that still makes me only eat black olives after I've turned 5 of them into little individual fingers covers and then twiddled my fingers like Mr Burns? Exxxxxcellent...
Totally mediocre Mexican food. Offhand, I can name 3 places within a couple of miles that I'd rather go to (Manuels, Curras, Gueros, and I will throw in Hula Hut as a bonus even though they're not exactly serving "mexican food"...) I've eaten there at least 4 times, ordering something different every time, and I can't remember a single memorable meal. The menu is full of plain enchiladas, tacos, tostadas, etc. I'll bet you can get the same food at Taco Cabana for about half the price.
However, I will give it up to their whole let-you-walk-through-the-kitchen thing to get to the outdoor patio. When restaurants let me walk through the kitchen, it always makes me feel like the scene in Goodfellas where Ray Liotta takes Lorraine Bracco on their first date. I'm a sucker for it. But it can't save a place that's never once left me feeling like coming back.
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My first meal in Austin during Austin City Limits consisted of breakfast at Las Manitas. The atmosphere is casual, friendly and a bit hectic. There is a lot of activity and tons of people. It felt like a lot of fun and I didn't mind at all that the place was not as...clean. It just added to the charm.
Unfortunately, the food was only average. I had chorizo and eggs. My friend had a veggie/eggs combo. Both came with beans. I also had a side of fried plantains that was good but $2 for 3 slices? Steep. The meal was cheap so it deserves at least 3 stars for value. However, the food is nothing to write home about. Living in LA, I have definitely had better.
I will speak on behalf of the aqua frescas: Don't try the Jamaica "Mike-ah" flavored one but the others are all quite amazing. I've never had them before but I will not soon forget to order one next time I am in a Mexican restaurant.
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Like a well-intentioned but slightly misguided suitor, this place wanted my love but will have to settle for my admiration.
After a short but well-managed wait for our table, the serene co-owner/hostess cemented her Native American-like presence by directing us with the now immortalized words, "The table in the back where the man with the patch exits".
We ordered the watermelon agua fresca ($1.95, large glass) to start which was FAN-tastic. I've never has watermelon - let alone watermelon juice - that was so melon-y. Not sure what else they add (if anything) but it's one of the most refreshing breakfast/brunch beverages I've ever had.
Our hopes were further stoked by the restaurant's backstory on the menu and the various nostalgia/awards along the walls.
But when the migas plates came, any chance of love soon vanished. The migas con queso plate was skimpy - there might've been only two eggs with barely any cheese. There were plenty of tortilla chips mixed in - a perfect amount if they had put in more eggs and cheese. The salsa was just so-so. It tasted fine all together but fell short of the migas tacos at (decidedly less Mexican) Kerbey Lane and migas I've had in NYC. The side of refried beans was ok but I'd have traded it for more eggs.
I'll go with 4 stars for the migas, 2 stars for the portion size, and 5 stars for the watermelon agua fresca. Tempted just enough to come back here another time for lunch or dinner...
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Picture lunch on a weekday: tons of people already enjoying their Manitas products. They could be tourists, politicians, or just your everyday, working-class hero. You start feeling the familiar anxiety of "should I stay or should I go?" since you're not entirely sure that they have room for you at the moment, even though your belly is telling you how much it needs friends to cure its solitude. But the friendly waitress waves at you and beckons you to follow her.
You wander farther and farther into the sea of lunch-goers until you reach the kitchen door. Watching the staff prepare food and wash dishes as you stroll by, you end up in the back patio area, complete with picnic tables covered in colorful tablecloths. Ah, relief washes over you, and euphoria takes over as you realize that you didn't have to wait at all for a seat at the table of Manitas.
Okay, back to the first-person. The horchata is tasty but relatively small; I was able to down it quickly, partially because of the size of its container and because it was hot outside. I gravitated immediately to the enchiladas rojos because the menu touted the use of ancho peppers in the sauce. Awesome! And the refried beans leave you without a doubt that bacon did its magic with the beans. The portions felt large for what you paid for, especially in the downtown area. Also, I could tell why so many people eat lunch here: it's tasty, and it's very fast.
The verdict: I hope this place never dies. It's become a staple in the downtown area, and just because the City of Austin wants yet another hotel, Las Manitas shouldn't suffer because of it. I want to go back during the weekend to try the menudo.
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I will never go back to this place. The food as far as Tex-mex goes is so-so. Not bad, not good. Pretty average at best. They just have a convenient location so have done well over the years. What I really object to was the greed they showed over the whole marriot thing. They even had the nerve to pull out the race card. They damn near blew a multi-million dollar deal to add a really large tax base to the city with their greed. They are already paper millionares, they were offered plenty to relocate to the building 4 doors down that they own. These two don't believe in private propery rights, I hope mthat comes back to haunt them.
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I've been several times over the years with my parents while I was growing up and was never impressed. I honestly thought the place was in danger of going out of business before all the uproar over it getting huge loans to relocate. It always tasted so bland like something I would cook at home as a white person with no concept of how to make proper Mexican food.
Wow a limp tortilla with a spoonful of reheated beans tossed in. Must have taken alot of thought to come up with that recipe.
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The food is perhaps a 3 out of 5. The quality/price ratio is very high, however. The ambiance gets 6 stars. The people who run the place (Cynthia) are the best! Every time I visit Austin, I come here at least once. Multiple trips during the day are not out of the question.
LM is going to be moving down the block to an upscale gentrified building. I wish them well, very well.
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One of the best, oldest, most important 'real Austin' restaurants, and Tex-Mex to boot. If you are new to town, go quickly, as it may not be long for this world...too bad, as it has some of the best, most unique ambiance in this growing berg.
Two very cool ex-Berkeley hippy-chicks started this place long ago, it's got a great long-bar, where you can hop in, self-sit, eat and go, Monday thru Saturday. I love it. You can't find anywhere else like it, except maybe El Sol y La Luna...if Las Manitas goes away that is.
These two fine gals have contributed more to Austin than any public servant in many decades, period. Politicos, nerds, bums, poseurs and out-of-towner's all meet in some kind of weird and wacky neutral ground. Love it!
Tex-Mex it is, and it's one of THE best examples in Central Texas left, since all those wonderful places on East Austin are being taken over by silly wanna-be's pretending to be authentic...NOT. Forget Maudi's, who cares! Go here instead.
If you go nowhere else for breakfast during your stay in Austin, eat here. Go as a local supporting local fare, go as an open-minded out-of-towner, just go!
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I'm sorry, I just don't think the food is that good. I realize it's an "Austin institution" and politicians love it and actors eat here, but I'm sorry, the food just doesn't do it for me.
Don't get me wrong, it's not bad. Not at all. I've never had any complaints with whatever I order, but it has never been that great. Everything seems pretty standard to me, like food I could get at any number of other restaurants. Where's the pizazz?
I do appreciate the atmosphere and the history behind the restaurant, but if we're strictly talking about the food I think, no I KNOW, you can find much better food elsewhere.
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I second the Eh.
You should get seated, fed, and out the door in under an hour if you go during off peak times. Why is it so fast you ask? Because they have 5 or 6 ingredients that go into their entire menu. There really isn't that much variety in what they make. I certainly don't get a craving for this place, but it does in a pinch for lightning quick Mexican food that's palatable.
Highly recommended, however, are the agua frescas. Watermelon, to be exact. Best agua frescas I've had in town, honest.
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We were cycling by. We were hungry. We had forty minutes. We stopped in. It wasn't bad. It wasn't good (with the exception of the corn tortillas and salsa). I really don't understand why the place was so bustling for breakfast; it was enjoyably chaotic, but I don't understand why it was so busy. I'm interested in sampling lunch or linner. It delivered exactly what it seemed that it was going to for a nice price. No thrills. No yays. No complaints.
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Tomorrow is Thursday..and that means spinach enchiladas at Las Manitas!
I can't pick favorites. Favorite color, favorite movie, favorite drink, favorite car, favorite t-shirt, favorite jeans, favorite relative...(do you have a favorite relative?)...it's just too hard. BUT my favorite meal in Austin is the Thursday spinach enchilada special (not always on their menu) at Las Manitas. No kidding.
The spinach is a creamed spinach that I could eat out of a big tub with a big spoon but, no, they've done the smarter thing by wrapping it with a corn tortilla that is not smothered in cheese but is still pliable and very delicious. They typically top the enchiladas (2) off with sauteed red and yellow bell peppers and a side of black beans and white rice.
I really can't comment on the rest of their food thought my brother loves their mole and I've also enjoyed breakfast there many time...just don't remember what I had.
I do also like the crowd, the owner, the employees, the leather booths and the great location. It's a real shame that this Austin establishment will soon be replaced by a Marriott.
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