Booker’s Restaurant & Bar

When we’re in the mood for a creamy bowl of grits, we head to Booker’s Restaurant & Bar in Cedar Park. They serve them three ways here–with shrimp, andouille sausage, or catfish. And since the Southern spot only serves brunch in the daytime, you can find us ordering the grainy breakfast go-to on a cold day, along with cheesecake french toast, fried chicken and waffles, a burger topped with cherry peppers and caramelized onions, or huevos rancheros.

Beyond steak and eggs and salmon sliders to start our days, their dinner menu is full of comforting selections like jerk oxtail, seafood mac and cheese, and a creole vegan jambalaya that mixes peppers, onions, black beans, spicy mushroom tarragon, and yellow rice. The portions are on the large side, which is great because we only bring our families or group of closest friends here. Be sure to make a reservation as the dining room is small, and if you’re hoping to walk in, you may be stuck watching a few trolleys roll by on Baltimore Ave while you wait outside.

But you could also just pass time with their Happy Hour (which runs from 5-7pm) they exclusively serve on their outdoor dining set-up. During the discount hours, they have $6 cocktails like whiskey gingers and margaritas, $5 wines, $7 city wides, and hot fried chicken sliders that are covered with sriracha aioli and pickles and served on brioche buns.