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Goodson's Cafe
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good for:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
13 reviews for Goodson's Cafe
I used to work here, a long long time ago.. so I've eaten almost everything on the menu.
My faves: dinner rolls, chicken fried steak, baked squash, fried okra.
I still like visiting Goodson's when I go back home to visit. The food is great and the service is friendly. Prices have historically been pretty reasonable. The only bad thing about this place is the wait - it can be LOOONG, especially on weekends.
says best CFS in Texas, .........it is,
I was hungry, I eat more than average, I finished the large.
I had heard Ken Hoffman of the Houston Chronicle write about this place.
parking easy, Service very good, checked on me often.
I was hoping for 1 trip small bowl of self service salad bar , but they do not have as in other country style eateries. ex Hickory Hollow.
Ordered a basic salad for 1.99, not bad price but salad was not good on the count the way the cut the tomatoes like real small like for tacos.
I ordered the CFS in a large with mashed potatoes and green beans.
Green beans were awesome, not frozen or canned.Real mashed potatoes, not processed, cream gravey did not have much flavor, the only downside to this meal. (Wonder if they have brown?) anyhow, yeast or wheat roll was devine!, yummy. The CFS was over the decent size platter.cut in half and attacked it that way, a strategy I recommend.
Taste was great, like how its sposed to be done, batter was plentiful but airy and not greasy in the least, amazing how they did this.Steak had nice beef, peppery flavor, and tender, easy to cut.
Price was a good point to, with iced tea(witch was great as well), and the side salad was around 15 bucks.
I
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For the life of me, I don't understand the allure of what folks call home style food. Did all of these folks grow up with a mother that had no taste buds?
Everything here is bland and/or greasy. I went here because of all the hoopla about their chicken fried steak being the best and spent most of my visit trying to chew through the rubbery tasteless meat that was used to build this greasy fried stomach puck. That turned out to be my own fault. And either service was extremely slow, or I was experiencing a chemical reaction making everything slow down...
I went home and took a nap to try and digest the slice of tire in my belly. On the upside, I saved a lot of money on food after that, because it took me a week to digest the damn thing.
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Was here on Valentine's evening with my parents, and I gotta say, it was *BUSY*. The entryway was standing-room-only, and the restaurant seemed very busy. That said, we didn't wait too terribly long (maybe twenty minutes), and when we left, the entry had cleared up, and so maybe they just suffer from a small entry space.
This place is billed as "BEST CHICKEN FRIED STEAK EVAR", and unfortunately, I do not like chicken-fried steak. But that's not the point, the point is that this review is not about chicken-fried steak, it's about everything else. That disclaimer aside, here goes:
I had the Wurst Chicken. No, not "worst chicken", because it was actually rather pleasant; chicken layered with some barbecue sauce and sausage links, with cheese melted across the top. It was good, but there wasn't anything special about it. Just about anyone with a kitchen could prepare this dish with basic ingredients and minimal cooking experience. And while this could be billed as "down-home country cooking" it just comes across as pedestrian. I go to a restaurant to get things I *can't* make at home, and that explains my score.
But at least the entree was satisfactory, because the side dishes were truly apalling. The kernel corn was cold, flavourless, soggy, and was probably the least appetizing thing I've eaten in recent memory. The macaroni and cheese was also bland, but at least it was warm.
The service was the one saving grace of the evening. Our waitress was attentive (even whilst busy), made sure we were covered in terms of refills and extra silverware, and was very friendly. Even the hostess staff was very friendly, despite being slammed with people when we showed up.
Overall, it's a middle-of-the-road dining experience. I didn't like my dinner, but my parents seemed to do okay. I wouldn't go here again, but that's my assessment, your mileage may vary (especially if you like chicken-fried steak).
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I never heard of this place till a friend told me it was on the food channel. I believe the show was a special on southern cooking or large portions, im not sure. Overall, sweet place to get some great chicken fried steak.
The pros about Goodsons: the portions for chicken fried steak are huge and the price is reasonable. The dinner rolls are great. The mashed potatoes are fresh, like you can tell they mashed them in the back.
The cons: The gravy, not as good as other places, tons of families eating there= kids running around making noise, somewhat loud place.
Recommended for people who love chicken fried steak. The waitstaff was quick and there was no wait time for seating, although the parking lot seemed kinda small
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The chicken fried steak was decent, but not the best as falsely advertised! It came with 2 sides, and tons of gravy.
However the steak is HUGE, with great bread and yummy sides. The banana pudding was marvelous.
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Whenever I tell someone that I live in Tomball, they invariably mention that 'Chicken Fried Steak' place they saw on Food Network. I never actually saw the show they are referring to, so I have no idea if it was just the typical annoying 'Diners and Drive-Ins'. Regardless, I became intrigued, so I took my parents there for a Friday night dinner. How could one pass up the best chicken fried steak ever?
Well, apparently, we had the same idea as the rest of Tomball and North Houston, as there was a 30 minute wait. I thought to myself, 'Wow, the chicken fried steak must be REALLY good if people want to wait this long...'
It was not.
First off, the service was pretty bad, but I won't fault them too harshly since they were obviously slammed with some major crowds as previously mentioned. Our waitress was actually quite friendly and she would be the one star I give this restaurant despite the fact that she forgot our order and it took 15 minutes to bring our drinks.
To the food: I wouldn't have waited 30 seconds for the chicken fried steak at Goodson's. I am so surprised to read the other reviews for this restaurant touting their food. Luby's has significantly better chicken fried steak and down-home comfort food. WTF? Best chicken fried steak? I don't think so...there was WAY too much batter (which was almost a blend of a tempura batter and wallpaper paste) and the steak was tough. Oh, also, I ordered fried okra for a side, and it was the worst frozen, pre-cooked vegetable side dish I have ever attempted to choke down. And the cole slaw? It was fizzy...as in FERMENTED. If this were a Korean joint and we were served kim chee, that would have been one thing, but the last thing I want to eat in the middle of summer is fizzy, tainted cole slaw with sweet mayo or Miracle Whip (I couldn't tell which and wasn't about to take more than one bite).
We actually had so much food leftover on our plates that we felt badly for leaving it all, so we had it boxed up and brought it home for the dog--even HE wouldn't eat the chicken fried steak and we ended up tossing it.
So, all of this being said, the next time a friend comes for a visit to Tomball and wants to go to get 'The Best Chicken Fried Steak EVER' at Goodson's...I think I will just tell them that it unfortunately closed and take them to Luby's instead...
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Voted the best chicken fried steak in Texas by The Eyes of Texas and featured on a program on The Travel Channel
They are spot on about the chicken fried steak
Burgers are big but not huge and super juicy
Pot roast is fall apart tender
Chicken kickers are full of kick
Rolls are bigger and better than competitor's and they give a huge bowl of their country gravy for dipping
Waitstaff is consistently reliable
Veggies are always a bit overcooked
Not particularly vegetarian friendly - even though they have a vegetable plate most of the veggies have been cooked/flavoured with some sort of meat
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The.Best.Chicken.Fried.Steak.Evar.
I'm not putting that lightly, either. I mean it! Nobody has EVER come close to matching the Goodness that is Goodson's.
I could eat the rolls all day, although I'd probably pop like a too-full water balloon. I always feel like one when I leave anyway, with my handy stryofome container in hand with the other half of the SMALL chicken fried steak I can never finish.
If you're not a red-meat eater, the Chicken Fried Chicken is just as good and is probably lighter on the calories. Although if you are looking for a healthy meal, this is probably not the place for you.
If you are looking for good, authentic old-fashioned cooking, then this is definitely the place for you.
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I've been quite a few times to Goodson's twice recently. Both times I have had the Chicken Fried Steak. I must admit it is very good. The gravy here is excellent. One of my little ones ordered the fried shrimp and I had a taste. They were amazing. Some of the best shrimp I have had in awhile. They are a great down home restaurant.
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Seriously good chicken fried steaks and other Southern favorites are the hallmark of this comfortable family restaurant in Tomball. Be sure to bring your appetite: Portions are large, and the homemade, buttery dinner rolls are impossible to resist.
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4 stars for the chicken fried steak--hands-down the best I've ever had. If not for the chicken fried steak, I'd give Goodson's 2 stars. Anything else I've eaten there has been bland and greasy.
The best chicken fried steak I've ever had. I had the small portion but it was still too much and made for a great lunch the next day. The homemade rolls were addictive and probably the reason I couldn't finish my meal. I've since moved to San Francisco but every time I'm home, Goodson's is always on the list of must eat places.
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