Arlo's Curbside — Restaurant in Austin

Why is vegan/vegetarian food so bad in Austin? I mean this is not to say that it’s not edible. But seriously, if I am going to go out to eat and spend money for a place such as Arlo’s, that isn’t cheap, it should be pretty f*ing amazing. I don’t want to be eating something that I could have made better in my own kitchen. I’ve been vegetarian for 20 years now (vegan for 2) and moved to Austin from another state. What strikes me about all the vegan/vegetarian places is that when you start to eat the food served, it’s more than obvious that you’re eating a veggie patty or some other fake version of meat. Typically if I go to a vegan/vegetarian restaurant, I’m taking a meat eating friend with me to show them that eating vegan/vegetarian is just as good if not better than what they would have had with animal flesh. I want them to say to me “are you sure this isn’t meat” like a carnivore friend of mine said to me when I took him to the Bodhi Tree (not in Texas). And, he was genuinely sincere as he bit in to the Crispy “Chicken,” eyes lighting up as he questioned what he’d just ate.

When one bites into the burger at Arlo’s, it’s oh so grainy like the old school Garden Burgers of the 90’s with a taste that is rather bland to say at best. At $8 bucks for a burger, you’re better off spending $6 bucks for a 4 pack of Field-roast vegan burgers from Whole Foods and serving them to your friends. For the same price you can serve 4 of your friends and not only will they be questioning if it wasn’t a real burger that they just ate, but so will you because it’s that good. Arlo’s on the other hand, I guess if you’re vegan and in a pinch and have to eat out, you can at least eat there being fully aware that you’re eating a vegan burger with every dry grainy bite of your hard spent $8 dollars. To all the vegan/vegetarian places in Austin, you seriously need to up your game. Check out places like Native Foods, Wheel of Life or the Bodhi Tree to get an idea of how good vegan food...

I'll begin this by saying I really wanted to rate Arlo's highly. The atmosphere is super cute - a quiet, adorable courtyard shared by Cheer Up Charlie's. The food wasn't bad either - the bac'n cheeze burger tastes exactly like a Burger King burger, only without dead animal carcass. This could have been the making of a fabulous meal.

Problem is, we had outrageously bad service - the kind of service that's bad enough to prompt me to write a review. Despite only three customers in the whole picnic area, the server was slow to greet us, working solo to fill the previous order before turning around to acknowledge us. Once he did greet us, he seemed amicable, taking our order with a smile.

The trouble began with payment. After paying for the $10 ticket with card, the payment kiosk prompted us for a tip which we declined. As soon as the server saw the zero in the tip field, he became outraged. He started rattling off some passive aggressive made-up song at audible volume - "cheapskate" this and "too poor for a tip" that. He even managed a lame rendition of TLC's "No Scrubs" during the 15-minutes it took to make a single burger and tots.

The entire experience was childishly rude and disrespectful. As someone who worked in food service for the better part of a decade, I get that tips pay the bills. This being said, there is no excuse for that juvenile lack of professionalism.

Arlo's should have been a vegetarian fast food delight, but the service left a lingering terrible taste...

Waited 30 minutes in line behind the two people in front of us. Ordered food from girl at the window (paid cash). I asked if they had drinks and she replied “no”. I then asked if she was serious and if they have water. She replies with “water is 2 dollars but we can’t sell it because the bar is open [next door]”. I waited for 15-20mins and had prior obligations to attend to so I Requested a refund for food from the guy cooking and he said he’d take care of it. I waited for the person placing an order to finish and then approached the girl working window. She asks my name and when I placed the order. I tell her 15-20 mins ago and my name. She couldn’t find the order in the iPad she placed it on. Asked my name and I tell her again and that I paid with a $10 bill and she gave me $2 back ($8 order). She rudely says she recalls that but can’t find the order. She then asks if it could be under a different name than what was on the card I ordered with... I tell her again, I paid in cash. I wait while she stares at the iPad for over a minute and finally surrender my $8 then left after realizing what a waste of time this was. As I was leaving, the person who ordered 30 minutes prior to me, finally received her 2 burgers. She waited nearly an hour for 2 burgers... if you have nothing better to do and like rude service, this is the perfect dining...