Hruška's Store & Bakery

What an absolute gem of a stop! I wasn’t expecting much from a store next to a gas station, but this place completely surprised me. The shop itself is spotless, bright, and welcoming, with tables where you can sit and actually enjoy your food instead of rushing back to the car. The coffee selection is huge, with plenty of drinks on tap, and the shelves are stocked with all kinds of snacks and groceries. But what really makes this place stand out is the bakery, every pastry looks like a piece of art, and they taste even better. I tried the sausage and sauerkraut pastry and it was incredible, truly something special you won’t find anywhere else. The bread is also fresh and delicious, the kind you want to take home and keep for later. On top of all that, the staff is so warm and welcoming, they’re happy to explain the options and even recommend their favorites, which made the experience feel really personal. This is hands down the best store by a gas station I’ve ever seen, and honestly, I’d go out of my way to stop here again. If you’re anywhere nearby, do yourself a favor and try their baked goods, you won’t regret it

Prefer these over Wei.. Just wish they'd added more filling and more seasoning to their boudain.

Have been stopping here over 20 years, since being a college student at UT. The perfect midway point & stop between Houston and Austin. My favorite kolache is the pan sausage with Jalapeño & cheese. Now that I drive an electric vehicle, I wish they offered fast electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. My company, Pangea Charging, would welcome the opportunity to help when ready to serve this growing customer base.

Stopped by to get our Kolache fix. Got the last pack of peach, score! Take care not to run over their pet rooster… awesome.

Assuming Czech bakery inside of a gas station in small town Ellinger, Texas. You wouldn’t think much from the outside but man are these kolaches incredible. Fruit flavors were great, didn’t have a chance to try the meat kolaches however the bread on these had an almost cake like texture. Bread was so soft you could pull it apart by piece. Some of the best kolaches I’ve had and would definitely come back if in the area.

Anytime I find myself traveling through Ellinger, Texas, I make it a point stop here! Absolutely love their kolaches and the store has so much merch to offer travelers! Very clean bathrooms as well.

Great place for taking a rest, refresh! The Kolaches are tasty, soft and flavorful! Fresh bread filled with sweetness. Very kind staff. Will visit again

Walking into this establishment was like taking a step back in the far past! The nostalgic toys, candy, and delicious food make this place a must stop by!

What an absolute gem of a stop! I wasn't expecting much from a store next to a gas station, but this place completely surprised me. The shop itself is spotless, bright, and welcoming, with tables where you can sit and actually enjoy your food instead of rushing back to the car. The coffee selection is huge, with plenty of drinks on tap, and the shelves are stocked with all kinds of snacks and groceries. But what really makes this place stand out is the bakery, every pastry looks like a piece of art, and they taste even better. I tried the sausage and sauerkraut pastry and it was incredible, truly something special you won't find anywhere else. The bread is also fresh and delicious, the kind you want to take home and keep for later. On top of all that, the staff is so warm and welcoming, they're happy to explain the options and even recommend their favorites, which made the experience feel really personal. This is hands down the best store by a gas station I've ever seen, and honestly, I'd go out of my way to stop here again. If you're anywhere nearby, do yourself a favor and try their baked goods you won't regret it

Best kolaches and klobásníks here. Come early to get the flavors you want. Best hamburger? Eh - definitely wouldn't say it's award-winning worthy, but it's cheap and filling. Bun is soft and the meat was not dry... just missing the proper seasonings. Hruska's doesn't serve fries, so I'd go to McDonalds for fries to make the meal more complete.

Wonderful. I like Hruska's and it's recommended for anyone traveling from Houston to Austin or vice versa. They have a nice selection of pastries and kolaches.

The service could improve , poor costumer service in the kitchen employees have an attitude that makes you not ever want to come back

Such a quirky little place to stop on your road trip through Texas! We've stopped here a few times over the past several years and it's definitely worth stopping at least once to take in the scenery! They have all kinds of random novelty things for sale in this place - it's quite entertaining. They have relatively clean restrooms which is why we continue to choose to stop here. Keep that in mind as it's not always easy to find a clean restroom while driving long distances through Texas!

This is a MUST-STOP if you are traveling on Highway 71 between Austin and Houston. I'm Czech and I am a kolache snob; these are some of the best kolaches and klobasneks in the State (yes, there is a difference. Kolaches are open faced with a sweet / fruit filling; klobasneks have meat). The apple, blueberry, lemon, and poppy seed are kolache staples but you absolutely have to have the strawberry/cream cheese or cherry/cream cheese kolaches. If you're going down the klobasnek path, go with the pan sausage/jalapeno/cheese or boudin. This is also a convenience store with lots of great road trip snacks and candy that I haven't seen since I was a kid. It really feels like walking back in time (in a good way) when you stop at Hruskas.

Is the bathroom as big or tidy as their bucktoothed competitor? No. But the food? Insane. Yes, big monied competitors have sign urging you to put off stopping. Don't listen. The selection of pastries, both sweet and savory is unbeatable. The best kolaches and klobasnikys I have ever had. The flavor, amazing, the selection insane. And the service is always super friendly. A must stop on road trips from Houston to Austin.

This is a great gas station to stop at on the way to Houston! It's right off the main road and easy to get to. Lots of things to choose from inside the store as well. And the staff is very friendly! Prices are reasonable too. I'll be back again at some point on another road trip. Their kolaches also look very good based on some of the other reviews! Well done Hruska's team!

Definitely better than Buccees ! This is our go to stop when coming out to the hill country! It's not too busy, you can always get a spot at the gas pump, and the kolaches are amazing ! Usually I'd rate it 5 stars but this time they seemed to be renovating or reorganizing. Half the gas options were not available and the store was a but sparse. That being said it's still worth the stop! Come earlier in the day if possible to have more kolache options (we stopped at about 5pm and they were pretty much out of everything). They also have a lot of their own branded snacks plus the usual gas station options. All the staff here are always very chipper and upbeat which is nice too

Hruška's is an absolute must on the way to Austin from Houston. Not only are the kolaches amazing but they also carry a large selection of portable electronics and knick knacks. On our way we naturally stopped for the kolaches. I opted for the spinach feta one that I always get and it was so good this time that I can't ever remember it being this tasty. Five stars just for that. Staff is also very helpful. My car charger stopped working mid drive and they were able to help me find the last cord that was in the store. Clean restrooms so that's always a plus. Almost ended up buying a small collection of lotions and sweet nothings because they were seasonal and all smelled so good. People swear by the jalapeño sausage kolache so if you're into that go for it.

It's a good tourist attraction in the area! Great spot to stop at! Their kolaches are yum yum

Always need to stop here on our drive to Austin. Love their homemade bakery items. Plenty of parking out front. Friendly staff. Worth a visit.

‍ We stopped here on our way to Lakeway, TX. Passed this place & have not stopped before. We bought: breakfast item: kolaches, croissant sandwich with bacon & sausage. The kolaches were very delicious. Lastly the cinnamon roll was soooooo yummy! Don't forget a fork. Definitely we will be back & the service was friendly & quick.

Great little stop between Houston and Austin. It's what you'd expect - lots of snacks, country knock knacks and prices to match. Clean restrooms, ample selection and chickens running around outside. Just be careful and watch your kids - it's literally a few yards from the highway.

If you are traveling on Hwy 71, you have to stop here. The kolaches, dried sausages and jarred pickled garlic are fantastic. The employees are friendly and the store has that typical Texas charm.

First of all, the Double-Meat Cheeseburgers are to DIE for! They are thick, juicy and made to order! Fast checkout, friendly folks, and a spot to get Chevron Gasoline. EVERYTHING in the bakery is fresh & delicious! And this is the perfect spot on your way to Houston or Austin! And the ambiance is cozy, but it's busy! And I would have to say, this is better than Buc-ees in Katy & in Luling! (This store is more personal.)

Good food! Quick service! Close to my home.can fill up with gas while I wait! Clean bathrooms if you are.intstrsted.

Convenient and clean road trip stop between Houston and Austin, huge variety of convenience and snack items in addition to the bakery, kolaches and sandwiches. Not the average quick shop accompanying a gas station. Staff friendly and seemed happy to work there as well. Would definitely return.

Best burger I've ever had (and I'm picky and have had amazing burgers) we got the single cheeseburger with grilled onions and grilled jalapeños. Incredible flavor. Employees are super nice and I could spend hours in here shopping. A true Texas gem!

Not sure what's the hype about this place other than the strategic location. The food was average.

I can't remember why this service station is as popular as it is. Whatever the reason is could be because this is one of many upcoming gas stations that are unnecessarily expensive. Think back to the days when you would stop for gas and get a snack for the road to hold you over without spending an arm and leg on the products. Seems like a distant memory, doesn't it? The few times I do stop here to get gas or use the restroom, occasionally I'll pick up something to munch on for the travels to and from Austin. I've increasingly started to notice how pricey the snacks are. Even the assorted condiments made in-house were up there in the price range. I get that they are homemade, but I don't remember traditional made-from-scratch being that over-the-top costly. Chips, candy, nuts, popsicles, drinks, and cakes are much more expensive than the average hole-in-the-wall service station. I stopped to get a mangonada popsicle and a bag of chips, it cost me $6. The store is clean without any lingering debris, but the outside of the store could use some work. There were two hens and baby chicks roaming near the front door. The chicks were cute, but I feared for their safety as they could easily be killed by an oncoming vehicle. Anyways, it serves it purpose for gas, but usually, most of the pumps are full. I can't say much about anything else.

Being a Californian, this was the 2nd time ever that I tried kolaches. Was on a road trip from Houston to Austin... So luckily got to try Hruska's! People were raving to me about it. I'm no kolaches expert, but I can tell you I thoroughly enjoyed them. Hruska's staff were really efficient with the long line of people. I ended up ordering two boxes of kolaches, and brought them to where I was going in Austin. If you're on the road in these parts, you must try and enjoy!

Stopped here on the drive home from Houston to Austin. I came hoping this would be my Houston equivalent to Czech Stop for the drive to/from Dallas, while it didn't quite live up to that expectation, I will definitely be returning on future drives. Their layout reminded me a lot of Slovacek's setup across from Czech Stop, large store convenience/apparel store in addition to the bakery area, which also has a lot of non-kolache options. The pan sausage sounded like their speciality on the savory side, so I went for one of those with jalapenos and cheese. I also went for a boudin kolache and a poppy seed one from the sweet side. I thought the savory ones were okay, the bread quality wasn't spectacular and kind of reminded me of dinner rolls with how dense they were. The pan sausage/jalapeno one was quite spicy, was hoping for a bit more balance with the cheese. The boudin one was very rice heavy and pretty light on flavor by comparison. In the future I'll definitely be opting for different ones on the savory side to see if I like some of the other options better. On the sweet side I had an open poppy seed kolache and thought it was fantastic! The bread was much fluffier and the filling was just the right level of rich and sweet. Based on the volume of sweet options it seems to be their speciality. If they were in the vicinity of a stronger competitor I'd probably give them 3 stars, but the utility of being a solid stop on what is an otherwise fairly barren drive nudges them up for me.

Double meat cheeseburger was AMAZING! Friendly and traditional service. Technology was surprisingly modern, nothing broken down, and they take contactless payment. I'd definitely visit again!

April 22, 2023 Stopped in (with the rest of the world! LOL!) for snacks, RR and gas via my trip back home to Galveston This place has been around forever, has a great variety of snacks, bakery with kolaches, homemade salsa's, pickled veggies, sauces, etc I bought 4 kolaches-2 pan sausage, 2 link; I've had better. I bought some salsa; it's good with a slight kick but, it's not one I'd buy again. The store clerk over-charged me by 2 kolaches which I didn't notice until I got home; called and spoke to Martha (very helpful) who gave me her cell number to show her proof I was overcharged She referred me to Angie on Monday and gave me the owners information too, if need be That's the kind of employee you want in payroll

Simple small town food stop and gas station, but the hot breakfast food hits the spot! Had to find a place for breakfast when visiting nearby baseball park, Hruska's kolaches hit the spot!

I was on the way to Austin from Houston. My coworker recommended I stop here. Since I was hosting a morning soccer watch party the next day, it was perfect timing. The pan sausage kolaches were excellent. And the ones with jalapeño were phenomenal. And everyone in the store was very helpful and friendly.

Anyone who's driven along highway 71 knows the best halfway stop between Austin and Houston is Hruška's. I grew up with fond memories of this place and talk about it all the time with my friends any time we make plans to go to Houston! The absolute best pastries, kolaches, and bakery items, a large store with plenty of other goods, clean bathrooms, and good old southern hospitality service...this isn't your regular gas station stop. My absolute favorite pastry item are the (cream cheese) puffs, but the regular cream cheese-based kolaches and the ham and cheese kolaches are amazing, also! The cinnamon rolls are gigantic, and the muffins are moist. I always get 3-4 items to eat for breakfast because it's so incredible. My perfect halfway stop for road-trips - everyone must experience the magic that happens here!

I've only eaten breakfast type foods at Hruska's; awesome kolaches from the fruit items to the unusual sausage and cabbage. My preferred stop between Austin and Houston; even after Buc-ee's set up a store in Bastrop. Another reason only breakfasts was I was usually gunning for a high end restaurant in H-town. But, I never forgot they were recognized on Texas Monthy's 2009 best burgers in Texas. Number 42 if I recall correctly. Work trip again lined up perfectly with a late lunch stop and I'm ordering a cheeseburger at the counter. I guess the only complaint is no fries/onion rings offered. Instead, you get chip options from the convenience store side. A few minutes later I'm unwrapping a glorious treat. I order two cheeses; I never do that! Heck, even the tomatoes appeared locally grown. Mayo, onion, pickle being my other topping choices. Damn fine burger; tasted better than #42!

This is a nice place to stop for kolaches, sandwiches or burgers. Fast and friendly service

I used to love stopping at this gas station over a decade ago and have been wanting to stop by for years. Unfortunately it is not the same anymore. Maybe I just like Buc-ee's way more since it's cleaner, newer and well maintained. Oh well... at least I tried.

Cool stop on way home from Austin to Htown. Reminiscent of a mini-buckles with gas stations that give you a quick stop in and out. Their signature danishes looked good and next stop to Austin will definitely pick some up. Parking; easy In and out; easy Convenience:very Food: will try next time

Loved the place!!! Visiting from out of state... stopped by for some coffee and treats and will say this is definite must-visit place. Its a convenience store with coffee and an amazing bakery selling fresh kolaches (the sweet ones - I would describe as warm bread with jam fresh out of the oven). So many flavors of sweet and savory kolaches made fresh and lined up in the bakery shelves. You can mix and match to get a pack of six - exactly what we did and finished it all up in few minutes. YUMMY

Overall, solid pit stop on our way to Fredericksburg. I was looking up places to stop along the way and Hruskas came up as a highly recommended place for kolaches. I wouldn't say they have the best kolaches but they were good. The jalapeño sausage cheese was smaller than I expected, but still good. I really liked the bread on the spinach feta mushroom one. Super soft and fluffy. The poppy seed one was my fiancées favorite, poppy is always a good flavor (sweet salty). I was looking forward to the blueberry cream cheese one but it just tasted like pure sugar/icing, wasn't my favorite. The breakfast burrito was premade, and was just okay. There's an indoor seating area to eat. Restrooms are clean. They sell a lot of souvenirs, games, and also had a variety of organic/"healthy" snacks/beverages along with the normal snacks you'd find at the gas station. I wouldnt seek out stopping here over bucees again, but it was still a great experience!

During the looong stretch of Hwy 71 between Buc-ee'ses and Love'ses, there exists this life-saving rest stop / gas station / convenience store, and thank goodness! You'll find clean, comfortable bathrooms with plenty of stalls, an incredible selection of freshly baked goods and breakfast items, coffee and cola on tap, plenty of other refreshments, stereotypical gas station fare, apparel, fun doodads (like home goods and kids toys), and even a nice place to sit with table and chairs to relax while you consume. The staff are always so friendly no matter what hour you roll in, greeting you on the way in or wishing you well on your way out. Also attached to a Chevron gas station.

Great stop between Austin and Houston to grab kolaches sweet or savory! This time I grabbed a tray of mixed "reduced price" day old sweet ones that they sell at a discount- still fresh and only $8. There is usually a line on the weekends but there is plenty of staff to keep things moving. There is lots of local Texas retail items for sale as well.. and plenty of other snacks.

I've been stopping at Hruska's for over six years now on trips to Austin from Houston. I always add this as a quick "breakfast" pit stop. It's a quaint little European bakery, I recommend coming first thing in the morning because they run out! You can also call and order ahead if you want a specific item to be in stock by the time you pick up :) the staff is formidable, friendly and truly embody southern hospitality. I've ordered pecan cinnamon roll, vegetarian kolache (spinach, mushroom & feta) boudin and pan sausage kolaches in the past. I will say though, I'm normally not a fan of boudin but theirs is exquisite! I always add something new to the list and the taste, flavor, quality & freshness never seem to disappoint. The restrooms are clean, which is a plus if you're on the road, and it just happens to be conveniently located next to a gas station if you need to refuel. You'll probably see a rooster or two, so don't freak out.

Hruskas is the best of the best!! You cannot go wrong getting kolaches from Hruskas. They are authentic a recipe handed from years ago. The owners employees are fast friendly and will treat you like royalty. The next time you're passing through the small town of Ellinger be sure to make a pit stop at this business. Clean restrooms clean store and a lot of truly unique foods and snacks. P.S. the hamburgers are the best in Ellinger too!!

I want to thank Reddit for recommending this place. We drove from Houston to Austin today and along the way we were in need of a potty stop and snacks for the kids. This place was right next to a gas station so we refueled and popped in for their famous Kolaches. We tried the sesame, blueberry cream cheese, spinach feta mushroom, ham and cheese, and pan-sausage. Our absolute favorites were the ham and cheese and spinach feta mushroom. The best sweet one was blueberry cream cheese. Our least favorite was the sesame. It was almost too sweet and a bit dry. Love that they have a plethora of other snacks to purchase, clean bathrooms and tables for a quick bite before you get back in the car. They get a solid 5/5 stars for being a unique and convenient stop along our route!

Kolaches were good. Kids are happy. I tried the BEC biscuit and HEC croissant. Both were big fails. No love in them whatsoever.

Perfect halfway point between HOU and Austin, TX. Hruška's is a gas station, kolache and danish bakery and novelty shop. Some say thy have the best kolaches in TX but I'm not sure of that. They are fabulous and their danishes are great too. But is not just that. On my last trip I picked up two really fun dog toys for the puppy lab I'm caring for.

A must stop when commuting between Austin/Houston. Got the boudin kolache, ham/jalapeños and cheese. Peach, poppy seeds and cream cheese on the sweet side. They heated the savory ones and all gone before we got back in the car. Boudin was a bit spicy with liver, pork, etc. Yummy!

The best burger in Austin is 1.5 hrs away in Ellinger. I can't say anything else. It's just perfection on every level. It's worth a day trip out here. Enjoy!

Today I stopped by my usual route coming from Houston. I didn't realize till today that I had not written a review on this location. This place has a memory of laughter, fun and great food. My late husband who passed away in 2020 always took me and my son here to grab a few kolache's and some fresh baked goods for the office at the start of the week. This weekend was a celebration of his memorial after two years. If it wasn't for him I would not have known about this location. Every time I drive from Houston this place has a special place in my With all the emotions of the weekend, I realize I had not eaten so I decided to definitely stop today. I had this lovely turkey and cheese grilled sandwich which was quite scrumptious and The best part is the bread was made here! If you're wanting to create memories, and grab some great fresh pastries and bakes, multiple choices of kolache's and fresh baked cookies, or even a wonderful breakfast sandwich, This is the place to go

We visted Hruska's on our way home from Austin. We did not try their food. So we will have to visit just for that purpose. The staff was very welcoming and kind. They made sure that the checkout lines were moving quickly and made time to engage with all patrons. Everything was very clean including the parking lot. The storefront has clothes, souvenirs, and other goodies. Definitely recommend stopping here. We will definitely be back.

My wife and I cant drive by Hruska's without stopping. The kolaches are as good as any I've had anywhere in Texas. The store has a huge selection, and there is never a line at the gas tanks. For some reason there's also always a pack of chickens walking around in the parking lot and it adds a bit of a quaint aesthetic to the place. This a great stop don't drive by it!

Extremely belated review from last weekend when we finally stopped at Hruska's for the first time after driving by it bazillions of times over the years. It's kind of like a mini-Buc-ees in the sense that it's got a bit of everything. One of us actually purchased a random shirt there that had a cool cowboy boot pattern! There's also a ton of pickled items (we bought some okra that we still have to try), jams, etc. We stuck to kolaches for food, and they're good. Nothing extraordinary that you would need to go out of your way for, but just a solidly good Texas kolache. We were enamored with the poppyseed one which you don't find in most places, and of course we also got our family favorite, apricot. The popular one, strawberry cream cheese, was good, and our kiddo appreciated the cherry although the fluorescent fake flavor wasn't for us. The sausage cheese was OK. The bathrooms are clean, the folks are pretty friendly, so what is there not to like? Would we go out of our way to come here? No, but if you're driving through, why on earth not? We can see ourselves coming back again for a random stop. Three stars.

Hruska's is love. This place has been our go-to for the Austin-Houston road tips for 20+ years. Expect great baked goods (we're trying the Ranger and Raspberry cookies today) including classic kolaches.

We stopped on our way from Houston to Austin. Large staff was nice and hard working. We ordered Burgers to eat inside and a wide variety of kolaches to go. The burgers were fine. Everything was fresh but nothing stood out. It does take a while for the food to be made. The kolaches were on par with what you'd get in West Texas. Tons of flavor, wide variety and absolutely a joy. The best part about Hruska's was the wide variety of patrons. Every walk of life came in. Tons of smiles and everyone enjoying the location together. Great place and we'll go to again