Highest-rated comfort food restaurants in Austin by diners

Comfort food. Just saying the phrase manages to create a feeling of warmth that suddenly envelops you and travels directly to your stomach. It's the small, happy dance you do in your chair as your mom puts your favorite dinner in front of you when you go home to visit. It's the infamous cranberry sauce that your beloved aunt makes every Thanksgiving. It's the inexplicably delicious French bread pizza that makes you remember the nostalgia of childhood when everything was simple and eating pizza for lunch felt like a dream come true.

There's a wonderfully subjective quality about comfort food because when it comes down to it, the only criterion it has to have is that it has to make you feel comfortable when you eat it. It's the dish you eat when you're having a rough day—like a huge bowl of chocolate ice cream—or it's the dish you eat when you have something amazing to celebrate—also a huge bowl of chocolate ice cream.

Whether you're out traveling for work, enjoying a road trip for solely play-related purposes, or just tired of figuring out what to have for dinner tonight, Stacker decided to help you find some of the highest-rated comfort food restaurants in Austin, using Yelp data current as of July 22, 2025. The restaurants that serve the starchy, salty, sweet, greasy, cheesy, flaky, buttery comfort food that hits close to home, exactly when you need it most.

Businesses in the "comfort food" category were selected using Yelp's ranking system, which calculates an adjusted rating value that takes into account the number of ratings as well as the rating score itself. Only businesses with at least 20 reviews and within a 10-kilometer radius of Austin were considered. Also, in an effort to highlight independent businesses and local chains, those with more than 10 locations nationally, based on our Yelp data, were not included.

Keep reading to find out if your favorite comfort spot made it or to find a new favorite!

Haymaker

1 / 16

#16. Haymaker

- Rating: 3.4/5 (621 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2310 Manor Road Austin, Texas
- Categories: Sandwiches, Bars, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Juliet Italian Kitchen

2 / 16

#15. Juliet Italian Kitchen

- Rating: 3.5/5 (335 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 10000 Research Blvd. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Italian, Comfort Food, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp

Hoover's Cooking

3 / 16

#14. Hoover's Cooking

- Rating: 3.6/5 (1061 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2002 Manor Road Austin, Texas
- Categories: Southern, American, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Juliet Italian Kitchen

4 / 16

#13. Juliet Italian Kitchen

- Rating: 3.8/5 (1039 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1500 Barton Springs Road Austin, Texas
- Categories: Italian, Cocktail Bars, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

The Water Trough

5 / 16

#12. The Water Trough

- Rating: 3.8/5 (45 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 10901 Domain Drive Lone Star Court Austin, Texas
- Categories: Comfort Food, Wine Bars, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp

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Kinda Tropical

6 / 16

#11. Kinda Tropical

- Rating: 4.0/5 (225 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 3501 East 7th St. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Breakfast & Brunch, Comfort Food, Cocktail Bars
- Read more on Yelp

Cherry Creek Catfish

7 / 16

#10. Cherry Creek Catfish

- Rating: 4.1/5 (574 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 5712 Manchaca Road Austin, Texas
- Categories: Seafood, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Golden Tiger

8 / 16

#9. Golden Tiger

- Rating: 4.3/5 (183 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1816 East 6th St. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Food Trucks, Comfort Food, Sandwiches
- Read more on Yelp

TraphouseATX

9 / 16

#8. TraphouseATX

- Rating: 4.3/5 (21 reviews)
- Address: 310 Colorado St. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Caribbean, Comfort Food, Seafood
- Read more on Yelp

Het Say Vietnamese Kitchen

10 / 16

#7. Het Say Vietnamese Kitchen

- Rating: 4.4/5 (256 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2121 East Oltorf St. Ste 12B Austin, Texas
- Categories: Vietnamese, Noodles, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Austin Rotisserie

11 / 16

#6. Austin Rotisserie

- Rating: 4.4/5 (206 reviews)
- Price level: $
- Address: 111 Congress Ave. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Comfort Food, French, Sandwiches
- Read more on Yelp

One Bite Dumpling

12 / 16

#5. One Bite Dumpling

- Rating: 4.4/5 (45 reviews)
- Address: 1901 West William Cannon Drive Ste 115 Austin, Texas
- Categories: Comfort Food, Dim Sum, Soup
- Read more on Yelp

Community Vegan

13 / 16

#4. Community Vegan

- Rating: 4.5/5 (56 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 1124 East 11th St. Austin, Texas
- Categories: Vegan, Food Trucks, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Lee's Kitchen + Cocktails

14 / 16

#3. Lee's Kitchen + Cocktails

- Rating: 4.6/5 (107 reviews)
- Address: 701 South Capital Of Tx Hwy Ste G700 West Lake Hills, Texas
- Categories: Cocktail Bars, Vietnamese, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Vic & Al's

15 / 16

#2. Vic & Al's

- Rating: 4.7/5 (607 reviews)
- Price level: $$
- Address: 2406 Manor Road Ste D Austin, Texas
- Categories: Cajun/Creole, Bars, Comfort Food
- Read more on Yelp

Purple Rice

16 / 16

#1. Purple Rice

- Rating: 4.9/5 (33 reviews)
- Address: 10515 North Mopac Expy A-135 Austin, Texas
- Categories: Korean, Comfort Food, Asian Fusion
- Read more on Yelp

This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 95 metros.