After a mountain bike race, all one wants to do is eat so we were looking for something fast, filling and cheap but still cute and charming. Magnolia Café was perfect. This little café is very cute, partially because the décor is as random as you can get. Our tablecloth is African inspired, there is a skeleton of a dinosaur hanging from the ceiling, red neon squiggles on the far wall. We arrived at 4pm on a Saturday and I think the staff where exhausted from a busy brunch service because our waitress didn’t seem too keen.
The hot chocolate came in the heaviest white ceramic mug I have ever seen. I loved the mug and the hot chocolate inside was pretty nice too. Very simple, a little sweet but not too much.
It was the appetizer to our massive post ride meal which included pasta, lentil soup, cornbread and a couple of Magnolia’s popular buttermilk pancakes. We ordered ours with blueberries and bananas. Austin seems to have a love affair with pancakes. Believe it or not we finished every ever last bite of that meal. It was all delicious.
Verdict: A very cute spot for hot chocolate and a couple of pancakes. Just across the street is the river and a very nice pathway where you can enjoy a little walk afterwards. Magnolia Cafe, 2304 Lake Austin Blvd, Austin, Texas, USA.
