Ryan M.
Yelp
When I was kid, Earl Abel's was synonymous with "old people food," a place where geriatric widows and widowers from Alamo Heights would convene to shoot the breeze over a slice of pie. My parents and grandparents kept trying to lure me, but I would have none of it; Earl Abel's was bland food for old white people and nothing could change my nascent food snobbery. Then I tried the food and secretly loved it. I remember scarfing down piece after piece of fried chicken, the third-pound Abel Burger, the fluffy, buttery yeast rolls, and the comforting scratch cakes and pies. When the original location closed approximately ten years ago, I shed a silent tear. This may sound maudlin, but I harbor such fond memories of dining with my grandparents, chatting up the matronly servers, and perusing the tantalizing cakes on display.
When I heard recently that Earl Abel's had moved to The Pearl, I was cautiously optimistic. Would the food taste the same? Would the new place "feel" like Earl Abel's? If the meal I devoured last night is any indication, then the answer to both questions is a resounding "yes!"
The new location (may I suggest "Earl at The Pearl"?) is significantly smaller than both the original restaurant on Broadway and the recently shuttered 2.0 iteration on Austin Highway. The concept has changed from full service to fast-casual; you order and pay in advance at the counter and the food is brought to your table. I wasn't initially on board with this concept, but the lively hostess melted my cynicism with her enthusiasm ("Today's special is meat loaf, but then again, you found us because everything's special at Earl Abel's!") and hospitality (my "nice smile" awarded me a complimentary dinner roll).
My order of fried chicken took approximately twenty minutes to arrive because it was fried to order, a rare treat these days. One bite was all it took to remind me I was at Earl Abel's. The crust was crispy and nicely seasoned, and the chicken was juicy throughout, an accomplishment for white meat. The mashed potatoes were perfect as well: buttery, undoubtedly made from scratch, and topped with what tasted like giblet gravy (i.e., just a hint of offal). I've paid significantly more for highfalutin fried chicken at hipster restaurants, but I would gladly pit Earl Abel's against those any day.
Desserts were exactly as I remembered them. A generous slab of chocolate ice box pie hit all the right notes with real whipped cream, a custard-like chocolate filling, and a buttery scratch-made crust. I bestowed similar praise to an old-school slice of chocolate cake with plenty of high quality cacao in both the cake and the fudge icing. Equally tempting were eclairs the size and shape of a mutant baby. Note to self: order several mutant baby eclairs on your next visit.
I prefer to visit a place at least twice (preferably four or five times) before leaving a review, but I was so impressed with Earl Abel's last night that I'm breaking my self-imposed rule and awarding the highly coveted Ryan M. five-star rating. I plan to return soon and see if the Abel Burger and chicken fried steak are worthy of repeat patronage. Memory can be unreliable, but I hasten to declare Earl 3.0 just as good, if not better, than the much-mourned Broadway location. Perhaps if I check in a few more times, I will knighted The Duke of Earl at The Pearl.