Foxhole Culinary Tavern — Restaurant in Austin

We went to Foxhole a month ago and it was great. I ordered the chauvinist pig flatbread and our server was amazing. My parents live 2 hours away and are in their 80’s. My dad recently had a few mini strokes and it has really messed with his appetite, nothing sounds good to him. I’d told him about the flatbread I’d eaten at Foxhole recently and I was so excited because he said that actually sounded good, although he only wanted the cheese and bbq sauce on it, nothing else, LOL. So my parents drove all the way here for this bbq flatbread today. We got to Foxhole at 1:00 on a Saturday. I didn’t realize Foxhole only offers a brunch menu during this time. Incidentally my dad got super lightheaded getting out of his wheelchair to sit down at our table and he almost fainted so we were fanning him and giving him water, discussing if we’d need to leave, etc. Our server came and asked in the middle of this if we were ready to order, which we weren’t. So he left us waiting a REALLY long time before coming to finally take our order. When I asked about the flatbread, he said we couldn’t order that until 3:00. I get it, rules are rules but my dad is an 80 year old (Vietnam veteran btw) who is just having the hardest time eating lately and they drove all the way down here for a piece of flatbread with bbq sauce and cheese on it. Of course our server didn’t know any of this but he didn’t even go ask the kitchen if they might be able to hook us up. My husband was a server for over a decade so I am aware of when something probably can or can’t be done. My dad ended up ordering a fried egg and toast and my mom just got a side salad. We would’ve gone somewhere else to eat based on our server’s vibe from the jump, but my dad was so lightheaded in that moment that we kind of had to stay put. There are people and businesses that go the extra mile and today just wasn’t that day at Foxhole I guess. Funny part was when we left, I noticed a kid eating a flatbread that was dressed as a pizza, which I did not see on the brunch menu. Maybe special exceptions are reserved for children. Anyways just disappointed the day worked out this way but maybe it’s my fault for not checking the brunch menu thing in advance. We left our server 20% but he missed out on a...

We’ve been here four or five times and it’s always been pretty good. But, this time will likely be the last. My wife and I brought an out of town guest here for an 8pm reservation on Saturday evening. We had appetizers and drinks and didn’t order entrees until about 8:40. As our entrees were delivered, just before 9pm, our waiter, “D” asked if we would be interested in dessert as the kitchen closes at 9pm. He told us about the two or three options and we agreed that the pineapple upside down cake sounded great. We didn’t realize that they would bring the dessert out immediately as we were just starting our entrees. So, we got to watch the ice cream melt while we ate our dinner. What a joke. We mentioned this to D and he basically confirmed that this is how they operate . The kitchen must actually depart from the restaurant at 9pm. This kind of service/policy may be acceptable at Chilis or Applebees. But, when you’re spending $30+ per entree and nearly $300 before tip, you don’t expect an establishment to treat guests this way and rush them out the door. It’s unacceptable and we won’t be back. There are too many establishments around who know the meaning of hospitality and value their guests. A few adds: outside of the rushing guests out the door, our server, “D” was pleasant and did a nice job. Drinks: Gin Ruby and Whiskey Peddler were excellent. Food: raw oysters were nice but a little steep at $28.50/6. Inflation I guess. Crab cake- great Brussel sprouts- meh under-cooked Lamb shank and bacon wrapped shrimp entrees were delicious. Ahi Tuna was underwhelming. Fish was good but “wasabi potato katsu” lacked seasoning and just wasn’t it for us.

My take is that you can get a good meal here, but I’d recommend starting at 7 and leaving before they start sweeping by your table and stacking chairs at 9pm sharp. OR choose another establishment who actually appreciates guests and makes them...

The wife and I were able to steal a couple of hours to ourselves for an impromptu date night, and decided to grab a bite at Foxhole… neither one of us had been here before, which is a bit of a rarity, so we were pretty excited to experience this place that we often drive by and comment on.

Walking in, the place had the right ambiance, perfect for an intimate experience with low lighting and dark wood throughout. And the smell… it was just downright mouth watering.

We ordered some appetizers, or “small plates”, to split. We ended up going with the crispy pork belly crostini and the artisan cheese plate. The cheese plate was good, the highlight of the dish was the fruit chutney. It was sweet and smoky, and went with everything. The pork belly was the highlight of the appetizers… it was smoky and sweet and savory and the pork belly was perfectly cooked. My wife had the great idea of putting a bit of the fruit chutney on it, and it took the pork belly crostini to a whole new level! I could have made that a whole meal by itself.

For entrees I chose the braised Australian lamb shank. Lamb shank is one of my favorite entrees to get when it’s available, but sadly, isn’t available too often. The meat was tender, and cooked to perfection, however, my only complaint was the sauce was just too salty. It overpowered the meat, potatoes and vegetables.

My wife chose the the bacon wrapped jumbo shrimp at the suggestion of our waiter, and I’m just glad the chef wasn’t in her line of site… I’m pretty sure she would have kissed them. She made yummy sounds as she ate, and when I reached out to try a bite (something we do if we find the food delicious), she tried to stab my hand with her fork. She then went into great detail about the flavors and textures of her dish in the most gloating tone I have ever seen her use.

This is definitely a place we will be back to. There were so many dishes that I was...