John Anderson

Best Comfort Cuisine

Hyde Park Bar & Grill

Sometimes it's hard to remember that we were not always a foodie town, that the current array of tastebud-boggling options was not always on our social menu. So it's easy for old favorites to get lost in the din of dinnertime dilemmas. Strolling in and sitting down at one of Austin's two Hyde Park Bar & Grills after not being there for a while and ordering one of their perfect meat-and-two-veg standards, like their pan-roasted chicken with green beans and mashers in a delicate tarragon jus, is much like that first holiday back home after being away at school: The experience is not just nourishing, it's visceral, packed with mouthfeel memory and the revelation that while we may not have always been a foodie town, we've always had someone and somewhere saving us a seat at the table and pointing us in the right direction.

Hyde Park Bar & Grill
4206 Duval, 512/458-3168
4521 Westgate Blvd., 512/899-2700
hpbng.com