It all started in September of 1980 in an old Texas roadhouse and gas station on Mason Highway, ten miles north of Fredericksburg.

 

Johnny Nicholas and his new bride, Brenda, packed all their belongings into Johnny’s 1950 Buick and left their home in South Austin for the Texas hills. Johnny brought a successful music career, and Brenda brought her recipes and culinary wizardry. With lots of hard work, love, and intense dedication to excellence (and the help of their carpenter friend Leroy ‘Pretty Billy’ Petrie), they created a restaurant and gathering spot of iconic, almost mythical proportions!

 

Hill Top Café continues to be a place where food and music lovers gather to enjoy sumptuous fare, the unique Hill Country ambiance, and great Texas music. From the two-burner hot plate on which Brenda prepared succulent pots of Port Arthur-style gumbo and Texas chili (no beans allowed, Pauli), the menu evolved. Soon after, Johnny got a call from his friends, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, who asked him to lay down some piano tracks on their new album. On the way back from Dallas, they pulled the old Buick into a restaurant equipment store and bought a used grill and broiler with the proceeds from the recording session.

 

The menu then expanded to include fresh stuffed, whole Gulf flounder, hamburgers, and steaks.  This is how Hill Top Café evolved, piece by piece, board by board, song by song, and recipe by recipe. As the food and building quickly grew and gained recognition, so did its character! Once inside, you are surrounded by its fun, endearing, and eclectic décor—a result of horse-trading, collecting, and everything left behind by happy customers showing appreciation. 

 

Always available: lots and lots of fresh garden vegetables, native fruits and meats, fresh Gulf blue crab, flounder, red snapper, catfish, shrimp and more! Not to mention, the desserts—Brenda’s amazing pies and cakes! All were painstakingly prepared from scratch by her and, when business grew, by the amazing Miss Gladys and now Mr. Jack Grimmer. For forty four years, every pie crust has been mixed and rolled out by hand. 

 

This is what Hill Top is all about—tradition and continuity. It’s been about Uncle Medie holding court at the jukebox table. It was about Aunt Alice’s Greek delicacies. It was Aunt Betty keeping the kitchen staff in line (she ought to know how, having worked there for 25 years). It’s about RaRa’s salsa and huevos rancheros at Sunday brunch (he worked there for 20 years). It’s about Oysters Bruton and so many other Hill Top creations.

 

Most of all, it’s about love: love of food, music, family, and friends. Johnny and Brenda both believe that anyone who shares their passions for all things real is part of the family. You are more than welcome, ‘cause like the old saying goes: “If you grin, you’re in!”