Austin Restaurant Icon Closing

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I agree with PC... that placed sucked... not an Austin icon... most people don't even know where that is.
 
I work downtown and go 2-3 times a month.

Service is as good as any other inexpensive Tex-Mex place.

But the old-time Austin ambiance is why you go. Laid back with great margaritas.
 
Where will the 18 year old sorority girls get drunk on a Friday afternoon?

(not that it is a bad thing)
 
That really bums me out. If Jaime's wasn't a hangout for you in college, then you had a far different experience than I did. I think there's still a picture in the back room I'm in from a party we had there in the mid-80s.
 
Not the best food, or service, but definitely an Austin landmark. I haven't been there in ages, but I had some good memories there while at UT 30 years ago. OMG, I meant over 30 years ago ...what year is this?
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This is an Austin institution, and I mourn its passing. My grandmother opened a business on the drag in the '30's, and she said Jamie's was there then. It may be the oldest Tex-Mex place in Austin (ownership changed a couple of times).
I had a shop location at 11th and Red River in the 70's/early 80's, and would walk down there for lunch a couple of times a week. The owner was a super nice guy, always greeted you at the door. He passed away a couple of years ago, but sounds like a relative kept the doors open.
OK, it wasn't Fonda San Miguel, but they had some edible Tex-Mex plates, and it was a popular hang-out for frat and sorority types over the years.
Another Austin institution gone, due to the greed of some New York landlord. He will get more money from a Denny's or McDonald's he is probably fantasizing about. Hope he gets Motezuma's revenge for 10 years from a bad taco.
 
It's an austin landmark. my grand dad went there when he was student, my dad when he was student, my brother and then me. when we all passed the bar, we had a big party there for all of us that took classes together. good times, strong margaritas, a great place to score coke if you were into that kind of thing....bad food, but you were normally drunk if you were there so who cares. yeah, its never had awesome food but it wasnt too awful in the early 90's, but lets face it, austin has never had any great restaurants anyway until the last few years. you could count the good ones on one hand until afew years ago. austin establishments were based on ambience, not food quality.
 
The food may have sucked, but they sure were lax about checking IDs in the late 80s. That made up for a lot of shortcomings.
 
For nostalgia, we went there before a couple of games in the last several years and we couldn't tell you if the food was worse (it wasn't good) than when we ate there in the early 80's while in college. It was most definitely an icon. So were Dry Creek and Alcatraz.

For the record, El Patio, Matt's El Ranch, La Tapatia, etc also served some pretty ****** mexican food. Doesn't mean you can't have fond memories of them. You just don't remember them for the food.

Pretty much all of the beaches in Texas are ******, but they still serve up some great times.
 
Used to drink a lot of cheap margaritas there...

Perhaps the C3 people can buy it and annex it into their party house next door.
 
Jaime's was the first "Mexican" restaurant I remember going to as a boy in 1966. My parents, who had met while students at UT, loved it. I seem to remember my dad swore off the place after our first visit there after returning to Austin in 1977.
 
I think it's in the Austin city charter somewhere that only places with no redeeming qualities whatsoever can be considered "icons".

Oh, and I'm another native Austinite. My wife is a third generation native, and her entire family thought the place sucked.
 
I've never been to Jaime's.

But if you don't think El Patio's taco meat is the best in the city, then you've got no tastebuds.
 
You two find a place you like, meet there to eat and share some margaritas and enchiladas. That or I will find some specialty Mamba to take you out.
 
I liked Jaime's.

It wasn't the best, but it certainly wasn't the worst. My fist taste of hot sauce (with the influx of Californians, it now "salsa") was there at about the age of 4.

It was a fun place to meet up with friends every once in a while, and if nothing else, like many other old-time Austin places, it was always somewhat comforting to know it was there.

I'll miss it.
 
Yes, El Patio had saltines for decades. When Mr. Joseph died, and the kids took over, they brought back the tortilla chips. You can still get saltines by request, and I always do, but it's not the same.

I'll take me a #3 with Queso please...
 
Yes, El Patio had saltines for decades.
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you could always get chips, you just had to pay for them.
 
1. El Patio now serves bag chips

2. You can still ask for -- and receive -- saltines.

3. They also still fry up corn tortillas to make their allsome fresh chips. You have to pay extra, but VERY worth it.

4. Any word on EP's parking lot trouble? Has it been resolved in such a way that the place stays open??
 
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