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Best Places to eat at The Domain

What are the best restaurants at The Domain? I'm primarily interested in moderately priced to inexpensive places and like all types of food.

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  1. The dishes at The Steeping Room are in that range, and pretty tasty; it's even better if you like tea.

    4 Replies
    1. re: ret3

      On the whole there's nothing that blows my mind at the Domain. I've gotten great service at Flemings and McCormick and Schmick's.

      If you're looking for moderate to inexpensive, Maggiano's at the Domain II isn't bad. They have wine tastings twice a week to try out new wines. It's quality is better than Buca di Beppo or Macaroni grill but in the same vein. It is a franchise after all. They also have a today/tomorrow deal which sends you home with a whole separate dish. Lots of pasta.

      Haven't tried sushi zushi yet, but I'm kinda a sushi snob. Anybody give it a try?

      1. re: addicted2rice

        I went to sushi zushi for lunch recently and was not blown away. The sushi was fine, but the price was high. We'll stick with Mikado or Midori for lunch from now on.

        I do enjoy Gloria's at the Domain. I love there black bean dip that comes out with the chips and salsa and their sour cream chicken enchiladas. The rice and beans are nothing special.

        1. re: addicted2rice

          what's not a franchise in the domain?
          I guess Gloria's is a regional chain, not a franchise.
          Don't forget Ventana, right around the corner.

          Austin, TX, Austin, TX

          1. re: TroyTempest

            I agree Ventana is a good recommendation. They also have a less fancy cafe there too.

            Jumping on the food truck bandwagon: Sometimes Chilantro parks in the lot and serves hungry lunch-goers. Try the Kimchi fries. Something different if you want to add something new to your lunch rotation.

            Austin, TX, Austin, TX

      2. i don't have a tremendous amount of experience dining at the domain, but i do know that a lot of the restaurants have happy hours with good deals.
        for me, that is always a good starting point for learning a restaurant without breaking the bank.

        1. I like North the best of all the places I've tried in the Domain. Maybe a little more expensive than what you were looking for, but I've always enjoyed my food there. My favorite dish is the short rib osso buco. Here's a link to the menu:


          4 Replies
          1. re: ssouth

            Cru has a limited menu but some rather nice dishes. I particularly liked the lamb chops I had the other night.

            1. re: thebodytx

              We went to Cru this weekend (during the festival so it was very loud). Excellent food, seriously flavorful. However, our waiter was dismal. He didn't know what the dishes were, he dropped nearly everything he brought to the table. He turned the music up so loud we could barely talk and then kept the music on after the band started outside at the festival. We had to ask him to turn it off. Again, we'll be back for the amazing food at lunch. Like thebodytx said, it's a very limited menu, but the chef really knows his/her stuff.

              1. re: amysuehere

                However, our waiter was dismal.

                Interesting. About two weeks ago last Sat. I was at the D. and went to Cru , sat outside and had their flight of sparkling wine. Enjoyed the Latin music and watching the crowd, especially the MILF's and cougars. But, I couldn't help be so very unimpressed with the quality of service, even for something as simple as serving a glass of wine. It's all in the follow-through. ( I ate there one time for lunch over a year ago, the Bento box, but wasn't impressed. Will try the place again though simply on the strenght of ASH's comments)

                1. re: singlemalt

                  You know, I haven't been back since. Domain gives my husband the ebby-jeebies. I do remember being impressed by our brunch items, though.


          2. Looks like they are having a promotion tomorrow - $20 for 10 tastes from almost all of their restaurants -


            The item is on the left side of the screen, I think two or three items down.

            1. Per ret3's rec, we ended up going to the Steeping Room. We had been there a few years ago for our wedding anniversary and liked it. I guess I just forgot about it after that. It's not a chain which is good. The prices are a little steep:) but the food is excellent and the service is superior.The portions aren't overly large; but just right for us as we're not big eaters. We were there around 5pm on Friday. There were only a few other tables. Every other place in The Domain was crammed full of people for happy hour. The Steeping Room was a serene haven.

              My husband had the Goat Cheese Tea sandwich ($8.75); and I had the Roast Beef Sandwich with Chili Lime Tomatoes($9.50). Though the goat cheese sandwich was good (goat cheese, olive tapenade, and arugula) the Roast Beef Sandwich was delicious (natural roast beef, feta spread, arugula, sauteed chili lime tomatoes and caramelized onions). What a great combination! It's making my mouth water right now. The sandwiches come with a choice of chips or salad. We both chose salad which was a mesclun salad with an Asian style dressing. I could taste the toasted sesame oil but it wasn't over powering. It also had a slight tang to it which I just loved.

              We also each had a pot of tea. I chose the Ginger Rooibos ($3.75). It has just a slight hint of ginger. My husband very much liked his Golden Monkey black tea ($4.75). He ordered in on the recommendation of our waitress. In fact, he liked it so much, we got some of the Golden Monkey to take home. It was strong without tasting bitter.

              For dessert, we each had a sweet scone ($2.35) with clotted cream ($2.25). The problem with a lot of scones is they often taste strongly of baking powder. These scones had a wonderful flavor. The only downside was they fell apart a mite too easily. We ended up smashing them into our clotted cream and eating them with the little clotted cream spoon. The crumbliness wouldn't stop me from ordering them again!

              We plan to go back again soon!

              Steeping Room
              11410 Century Oaks Ter Ste 112, Austin, TX 78758