Zocalo Eclectic Cafe

Nice menu choices, great local wines, fantastic local music. This will be one of our regular places to eat out and enjoy.

Surprisingly sophisticated meal. I had fish, fresh asparagus & rice blend, my husband had chicken piccata with fresh spinach. Both were wonderful. This restaurant is a little red house, off the main streets & it is delightful. Try it out!

We are locals so I am so embarrassed that we are just now trying this great little hidden gem! They get the Hill Country perfectly, eclectic enough for the Austin crowd but enough favorites for the rancher types like my husband. I had the Eggplant Lasagna and it was amazing, very light and not heavy at all. My husband had the steak and loved it and we both loved our salads (I tried the Blue Cheese with Walnuts, Cranberries and he had the House with homemade Ranch). The restaurant itself is adorable, we are just really glad we tried it out and have another local favorite we can add to our rotation. The beer and wine selection are also very good, they just seem to get everything right.

Found this little place while driving thru Blanco and Soooo glad I did great staff and awesome food, unfortunately the humas was too good and I didn’t save enough room for the monster Texas club, can’t wait to go back, worth the drive

Zocalo is one of my favorite restaurants, ever. People in Blanco know where to go for good food and I turn to this café again and again. I went last Friday, right before they closed for the day and they whipped up a magnificent mini feast for me. The homemade salad dressing was sublime as was the tomato pepperoni soup. The staff is attentive and I love the hideaway atmosphere; it’s cozy and interesting.
My go to «café secret» is out.

I’m so glad I found this café in Blanco!
I’ve been a handful of times and don’t think I’ll ever go without ordering the soup of the day. The chef seems to have a special knack for amazing soup. Last time I went I got the last cup of Poblano Bisque and felt like I was the luckiest gal on earth.
I suggest ordering the specials simply because the meatloaf sandwich I had one day as a lunch special was the best meatloaf I’ve ever had… and I love meatloaf. The burger is also ridiculously good and the BLT is a classic. I definitely wasn’t hungry the last time I got the BLT with a side of soup, but if you have a huge appetite get it with the homemade chips or fries. (Actually, you shouldn’t leave without trying the chips.)
This is the perfect place to take out-​of-​town guests. I’ve been with a group of six and the service was excellent. We were seated at a big table in the back room with a settee and a few books that kept the kids with us busy while we drank amazing coffee.
This place is quality, creative food in a charming, artsy atmosphere. It always feels like a special event when I go, and I can’t wait for their live music events to start back up again when the weather is warmer!

Fish tacos were good other food not so special. Wait staff great, portions very small and we r not heavy eaters! The lunch special sounded better but we were there for dinner-​only customers!

On any other day of the week, this place would have ranked a solid 5 starts. But we were there during the Lavender Festival and they were admittedly a tad overwhelmed with all the people in town. The two ladies working the restaurant were running their buns off and were doing a decent job keeping up with everyone.
We had an order of the pan-​fried pot stickers which arrived fairly promptly, but looked like they were in the pan too long. I thought they were going to taste burned, but surprisingly they were very tasty! The presentation on my fish tacos was excellent and also very tasty, although the tortilla had stayed on the warmer too long and was almost crisp, but aside from that it was pretty damn good. A friend had the Asian noodle bowl and I had a taste. Awesome!
The service was very good even though you could see they really wanted to sit down. The young waitress was feeling the pressure but she kept up the pleasantries and was even pretty funny sometimes. I think she was only eighteen or so, but she would have run circles around any waitress from Austin.
All-​in-​all, it was a great experience and we’ll definitely be back. And I’m sure I’ll be upgrading that experience to five stars!

Zocalo is the brainchild of a Texas musician who combined his love for food, music and art into one of and maybe the best café in Blanco! I love everything about this awesome old house turned café from the inviting open cozy inside with hardwoods galore to the dog friendly front porch and outdoor seating.
The menu focuses on healthy and locally sourced meat and veggies with vegetarian and gluten free options.
I decided on a BLT with avocado added for an extra 1.00 and it was awesome — with a generous serving of fresh veggies and thick slices of bacon! My only beef so to speak is with the avocado up charge since it makes it the same price as the huge Club sandwich my friend ordered. But whatever it was delicious and worth 8.00. I tasted my friends Cream of Mushroom Soup (Soup of the Day) and it was amazing as well so fresh tasting. For dessert we shared a slice of strawberry cake and while I am not a huge fan of dessert my one weakness is strawberry cake and this is definitely one of the best strawberry cakes I have had the pleasure of putting in my mouth!
I had a hard time deciding between the BLT and the Pan Seared Tilapia Tacos so I am already looking forward to a return visit!

The new chef Michael Alvarez is amazing. The dinner specials on Friday and Saturday night are outstanding. I had free range chicken with a raspberry blue cheese glaze and a warm baked potato salad. Nan hed the hand made fettucini with shrimp in a chipotle sauce. We finished dinner with a piece of Nans homemade cheese cake.
By far the best dinner I have had in Blanco. I highly recommend every body stop by and check out the new chef.

I just happened to make a wrong turn off 281 and found this wonderful restaurant! The menu has wonderful salads with local and fresh ingredients, that are very different and bursting with flavor… the tomato basil soup was the absolute BEST I have ever had and everyone was friendly and the chef came out and gave me the grand tour. I stopped by the next week and tried different items and again was delighted with the choices. I travel every week to South Texas and will stop every time I get within range. Do yourself a favor and stop in!!!