Jo's 2nd Street

Before I moved to Austin, I'd never had a sweet bun. Now I love me some sweet buns. And, apparently, I've lived here long enough to come to expect my burgers on a sweet buns. Jo's follows that model and delivers a perfect, juicy medium rare 100% Angus half-pound burger on a soft, sweet pillow of a hamburger bun that does the sweet & salty dance on my tongue. Juices dripped, I swooned a bit, yeah it was that good. And the giant basket of hand-cut crispy fries... these were some of the best and most plentiful fries I've had in Austin. It broke my heart just a little that I couldn't even finish the basket. 


My husband had a burger and a basket of onion rings. The onion rings were lightly coated on the premises and were golden with flecks of black pepper. Not only were they delicious, they were also rather photogenic. They don't have soda fountains, so we grabbed bottles of Mexican Cokes. We did get a lot of quality food for the downtown price we paid. 


Jo's is known for their coffee, and their menu includes breakfast, burgers, sandwiches and salads. You order at the counter and get a number. They'll bring your food to your table. There is seating both inside and out. They are friendly, but not particularly fast. I checked out everyone else's food and it all looked tempting. 


It took me years to make it to Jo's downtown, and I'm now kicking myself. A tip, if you're going on the weekend before 5pm, you can park free in the Austin City Hall parking garage, which is less than a block from Jo's. Completely off-topic, but what's up with the uvula sculpture outside the parking garage there?

Jo's Exterior

Beautiful Onion Rings

A Metric Ton of French Fries (bigger than it looks)

Jo's Interior (the chairs are almost kindergarten-sized)

Order at the Counter

Yummy Burger with Bacon and Bleu Cheese

I know it's a water drop, but tell me it doesn't look like a uvula.