Early September, my family and I visited Hardihoods Eatery & Drinkery. Located at EVO Entertainment between Kyle and Buda Texas, it sits in a prime spot to acquire customers. Yet, when we were there, mid-day and on the weekend, it’s dining area felt strangely empty.
In the case of being a-joined to a movie theater/arcade/bowling alley, it should be full of people feasting after they had their play.
In retrospect, this should be a worrying sign for any restaurant. Of course, Hardihoods isn’t just a food place, it’s a bar as well. And on my observation, it had a healthy number of people enjoying drinks.
It isn’t in my knowledge or ability to say whether the bar sustains the business.
Still, the lack of dining customer service and the lack of enthusiasm from the servers soured my experience with Hardihoods.
My family had just finished watching a film and decided to finally try Hardihoods, since it was so close (the same building).
It was a “seat yourself” situation so we did so. Awkwardly, we waited for someone to assist us. Our waiter was mild but still respectful as they quickly served us.
We waited long stretches of time for check-ups by the server, and often it was different waiters assisting us. They weren’t really overwhelmed, again I have to say we were one of a few families in the dining area.
After ordering, we got our food with little accommodations. I decided to try their Philly Cheese Steak sandwich and fries.
The best part of my experience was the sandwich I ordered. It was fresh and hot, the steak was well seasoned. The peppers and onions were grilled perfectly and the cheese was melted on top, without overwhelming the other toppings.
The fries did underwhelm, they were salted, but not seasoned, and they were barely warm to the touch.
My family and I found ourselves waving down servers to get to-go boxes and our check to go home.
I realize that every customers experience can vary, and I definitely do not want to drag this establishment through mud. I understand people have good and bad days, and service can sometimes be reflected by that fact.
It’s my view, though, that service is half the experience, while food is the other half, when dining in.
I would give Hardihoods another shot, and I think you should try it out. Express to me how it goes for you. For my first time, it was an OK experience. It is difficult for me to say that I didn’t fully enjoy my time at Hardihoods, but in time, I do plan to go back.
⭐️⭐️⭐️ stars out of 5.
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