I’m going to be honest. In large part for me, Magnolia’s isn’t really about the food. They’ve got some delicious breakfast plates and reasonably well-inspired and well-cooked traditional diner meals, but that’s not really the draw.
People come to Magnolia’s 24-hours a day 8-days a week to celebrate the perpetually awesome life of an Austinite. Magnolia exists and flourishes because people need to go do crazy fun things or see crazy cool bands and know they can continue their awesome night/day with a visit to an Austin institution – specifically one that embraces the quirky, offers breakfast tacos and other slightly greasy comfort foods, and has the kind of welcoming environment that will let the good times keep rolling.
For that, I praise Magnolia’s and respect its place as a fixture within Austin’s culture.
With that being said, I have been to Magnolia’s a million times and know their menu like the back of my hand. First off, stay away from their dinner tacos. There are a million better tacos to be had in Austin. Their breakfast tacos, on the other hand, are musts. Either the flaco taco (bacon, avocado, eggs) or the three alarm taco (three different salsas, eggs, and cheese) are sure to please at any time of night. Their pancakes are also divine and come huge and in different flavors, including gingerbread. If you are to make it past the always tempting breakfast menu, Magnolia’s boasts a surprisingly good specials menu. Their steak salad, crawfish etoufee, and stuffed squash are definitely worth trying if featured.
