Restaurant Review: Cleburne Cafeteria

Every now and then, Houstonist gets a little nostalgic for the plastic trays sliding on metal bars along steaming heaps of cafeteria food. No surprises, no hard-to-pronounce names, no fancy ingredients, what-you-see-is-what-you-get comfort food. Discreetly tucked away in West U, Cleburne Cafeteria (3606 Bissonnet) proclaims they serve the "Best Food in the World." Well, that's a bit of a bold statement. "Best Cafeteria Food" might be a little more believable. "Best Cafeteria Food in Houston" would be more accurate. Cleburne was established in 1941 by a Greek immigrant who came to Houston via Ellis Island with $2.50 in his pocket. Loyal and hungry patrons have steadily streamed through the doors ever since.

What makes Cleburne different from other cafeteria-style digs? The fresh ingredients and local flavor: fresh-made mayonnaise, muffins and bread baked every thirty minutes, never frozen meat and poultry, and daily deliveries of vegetables from local farmers. Here's a run down of our Cleburne encounters: The chicken fried steak was bigger than the full-size dinner plate. The one and a half inch thick pork chops came in pairs- eat one for lunch and bag the other for dinner. The chicken and dumplings was as traditional as football on Thanksgiving Day. The rich-n-creamy mac-n-cheese was gooey-n-delicious. Our favorite side dish is the yellow squash casserole; slightly sweet and smooth with a crisp, fried onion topping. The salads all seemed a bit over-dressed and soggy, so we'd recommend skipping the salads and getting an extra side dish. With a fresh batch of bread every thirty minutes, Atkins doesn't stand a chance. We've never tried the desserts since our trays were always busting at the seams by the time we got to the goody section, but they always look like they came straight out of yo mama's kitchen. Our only complaint: everything needed more salt! However, since it seems that the majority of Cleburne patrons pay with their social security checks, it makes sense that the cooks go easy on the salt. High blood pressure would definitely sour the ambiance at Cleburne.

The Verdict: When you need comforting, let Cleburne do the the cooking. The fresh ingredients do the trick, but when it's time to choose a table to set your tray down, make sure you choose one that comes with a salt shaker.