Tenderised cube steak dredged in seasoned flour and egg wash, deep-fried until shattering golden, then smothered in white pepper-cream gravy. Served with mashed potatoes, green beans and a buttered roll.
Chicken-fried steak (CFS) emerged in the 1920s in Texan Hill Country diners as a cheap-cut alternative to schnitzel, brought by German and Czech immigrant communities. It became the unofficial dish of Texas working lunch by the 1950s. Threadgill's (closed 2018) was the canonical Austin version for decades; Joann's Fine Foods and Magnolia Cafe carry the contemporary torch.
3 editor picks for Chicken-Fried Steak in Austin, ranked by editorial score. All Austin signature dishes · Chicken-Fried Steak across every city.
Joann's Fine Foods ★ 4.2
south-congress · 1224 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
Joann's Fine Foods in Austin is the Bunkhouse Group's Tex-Mex diner at the Austin Motel on South Congress, a palapa-bar patio of fajitas, queso and frozen.
Kerbey Lane Cafe (Central) ★ 4.2
hyde-park-drag · 3704 Kerbey Ln, Austin, TX 78731
Kerbey Lane Cafe in Austin is the central all-day diner since 1980, the 1930s bungalow that started a chain on pancakes, queso and 24-hour breakfast service.
Magnolia Cafe (South Congress) ★ 4.0
south-congress · 1920 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78704
Magnolia Cafe in Austin is the South Congress 24-hour diner, a counter institution running queso, migas and pancakes through the night, weekends round.