Drive in or dine in at Top Notch Hamburgers on Burnet Road in Austin, Texas – a “Dazed and Confused” movie location (photo by Sheila Scarborough)
(Part of the Austin Rocks series of posts by a local about things to do and see in Austin, Texas)
People who create coming-of-age movies need a decade or two to process everything before they shoot their film. For example, American Graffiti came out in 1973, but it portrayed the 1950s and 1960s California Central Valley youth of director George Lucas.
The 1993 movie Dazed and Confused is about the last day of school at a Texas high school in 1976. Although director Richard Linklater shot the film in Austin, it is not set or based there, contrary to legend. Linklater says it’s supposed to be “everyman” experiences in a small Texas town (he spent most of his own high school years in Huntsville, in eastern Texas.)
Still cooking up its famous burgers and fried chicken, Top Notch is probably the most recognizable of the many Dazed and Confused movie locations. Open since 1971, it serves up an extensive menu seven days a week, until 10 p.m.
You can walk inside, order at the counter right in front of the grill, and eat at the tables inside, or drive in and order from your car at a speaker box. Here’s the menu at one of the drive-in stations:
Pull your car up to one of the drive-in stations, read the menu, and order through the speaker box at Top Notch in Austin TX (photo by Sheila Scarborough)
See the “1971 Weight Watcher Special?” It’s two broiled patties, wheat bread, a salad, and a drink. The only thing that would make that more 70’s authentic would be to add some ghastly canned fruit salad or a scoop of cottage cheese.
No way I’m eating at a place like Top Notch while deluding myself about diets.
The night we were there, I didn’t feel like juggling food in my lap in the car (guess I’m getting OK Boomer old) so we ate inside. The flame-broiled burgers were tasty, the milkshakes were thick and malty, and contrary to a snarky comment in the movie clip below, the fries were NOT soggy.
Same as always, for decades, and that’s the charm. Cheeseburgers and fries at Top Notch in Austin, TX (photo by Sheila Scarborough)
Even though I’ve driven past this Burnet Road location a bunch of times, I’d never stopped in. With the loss of Austin stalwarts like the Frisco Shop and Night Hawk, Hut’s Hamburgers, the late lamented Las Manitas Avenue Cafe on Congress Avenue, the Conan’s Pizza near the UT campus, and many others, I feel as though I need to make food pilgrimages as soon as possible before special places are gone forever.
The iconic sign at dusk – Top Notch in Austin TX, a “Dazed and Confused” movie scene (photo by Sheila Scarborough)
Do you have a favorite movie location that’s still pretty much intact in your town? Let us know about it down in the comments….
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I had to laugh at “I guess I’m getting OK Boomer old”–too funny. Now I’m craving some fries and shakes… thanks for the fun video rewind.
Yeah, both my husband and I were all, “We feel guilty that we want to sit at an actual table like geezers, but we’re also old enough to shrug and go get what we want.” ?
I miss Las Manitas — memories of good meals, good conversation, good interviews there…
I miss them too, Kerry. There are still places like it left to enjoy – Cisco’s for example – but they’re not right downtown, at least that I’m aware of. I remember the Pérez sisters (Las Manitas owners) telling me that people said they were crazy to open a restaurant on Congress Ave in 1981; that it was dead down there once the office workers were gone. Wow, right?!
Wow indeed — but glad they did it anyway. I’ve not been to Cisco’s in a long time, but yes. I used to like Curra’s too, but as you say not downtown, and not quite the same thing. All of this is reminding me it’s been far too long since I’ve been to Austin…used to be there several times a month in connection with music writing.