Recently, it has become hard to find a good greasy spoon in a filling station. Subway, McDonalds, and Burger King are all taking up the space once reserved for mom and pop diners. I guess when folks travel they would rather eat somewhere familiar instead of trying something new. However, the Flagstop Cafe, located in an Exxon station just outside San Antonio between Leon Springs and Boerne, is bucking this trend and serves up some country style grub made to order.
I was tipped off to this restaurant a few years back by a true blue cowboy who swore by their biscuits and gravy. Now if a cowboy tells you that a place has good biscuits and gravy, then it is a spot worth driving a little ways to check out.
The Flagstop Cafe takes up about half of the filling station and is usually full of locals and wayward travelers, especially on a Saturday morning. The inside has a roadside diner feel (there is a sign that says, “If you want a stable relationship, get a horse”) complete with booths upholstered with the Texas Flag. If there happens to be a lot of people, don’t fret as they are very quick at getting your order out regardless of the length of the line.
I went with the Two Egg Breakfast where you get a couple of eggs (duh), choice of hashbrowns/grits, choice of biscuit/toast/tortillas, and a choice of bacon/ham/sausage. You get all this for $6.29 and can add coffee for another $1.59.
I wanted to try out their grits, but since they were out I ended up getting the hashbrowns along with the side of bacon and a biscuit. In a short time later, I got my plate of food that was piping hot. My least favorite part of the meal was hashbrowns, but that is because I usually don’t like hashbrowns anyway. They were still good, but I could have had them a little more brown.
The Flagstop Cafe doesn’t skimp you on the side of bacon and they serve it up nice and crispy. As mentioned before, I like my bacon crispy and love to combine it with the egg yolk. What really steals the show is the homemade biscuit. These are the type of biscuits that make you want to slap your momma, the kind that have just a little crunch on the outside and are soft on the inside. Be sure to get a side of gravy (especially if you are a Yankee and have never tried it) to dip that biscuit in.
The Flagstop Cafe is country cooking at its finest. Take a little drive outside of the city limits and enjoy a hearty American style breakfast. But don’t take it from me, remember that a cowboy is never wrong when he tells you about good biscuits and gravy.
Value: 8.5/10 (for a breakfast, $6.29 isn’t too bad, but it can get expensive by adding on coffee/juice)
Atmosphere: 10/10 (perfect greasy spoon atmosphere; anything with a Texas flag upholstered on the booths gets a high mark in my book)
Service: 9.5/10 (very fast and very friendly)
Taste: 9.5/10 (some of the best biscuits and gravy this side of the Pecos)
Website: http://flagstop.com/
Twitter: Follow FlagstopCafe
Facebook: Like Flagstop Cafe
Sign up for the SA Flavor Newsletter for all the best of SA without the spam! And be sure to shop the SA Flavor Store for the best Fiesta Medals, stickers, shirts and more!
