Elevate Your Road Trip Snacks with These Iconic Stops

There are 3,233 miles of the interstate highway system in Texas, and along every major road are small-town eateries that have fueled Texas travelers with home cookin’ for decades. If you really want to enjoy your next road trip, take a moment to fill your tank — and your belly — at one of the many small-town gems that give a good name to Southern cooking.

1. Grab Kolaches at Czech Stop

Between Dallas and Austin is a long stretch of Interstate 35 that is impressively boring. That is until you reach the exit for Czech Stop in the small town of West, between Hillsboro and Waco. There is usually a long line for the savory and sweet kolaches available in the glass cases — winding through the aisles of plastic-wrapped pies, brownies, and other quick breads — but it moves quickly.

105 N. College St., West, TX 76691, czechstop.net

2. Savor the Sausage at Slovacek’s

Meat lovers, this stop’s for you. Slovacek’s is famous for its Czech-style, hickory smoked sausage. Since 1957, the Slovacek’s meat market has served up all sorts of savory delights, from stuffed pork tenderloins to armadillo eggs, burgers, steaks, jerky, and more. Pick up a juicy chopped barbecue sandwich from the Kissing Pig Café, and if you’re traveling with furry companions, they can run around in the enclosed dog park.

214 Melodie Dr., West, TX 76691, slovacekwesttexas.com

3. Revel in the Rib-eye at Leona General Store

The Leona General Store is a hot spot with humble beginnings. After its founding in 1921, it sold basic snacks and cold drinks for a long time. But in 1997, Jerry and Cynthia House transformed the little country store into “the best little steakhouse in Texas,” a haven for hungry travelers with refined taste, serving up hand-cut rib-eye steaks, smoked chicken, and catfish. On average, they feed over five times the population of Leona every weekend. Before you leave, pick up a shaker of the custom-blended steak rub.

136 N. Leona Blvd., Leona, TX 75850, leonageneral.com

4. Pile Up a Plate at Underwood’s Cafeteria

For those of us who like a little bit of everything on our barbecue plate, Underwood’s hits the spot. This cafeteria-style roadside stop in Brownwood has served Southern staples for almost a century. In fact, the restaurant began with door-to-door barbecue sales during the Great Depression in the 1930s. Help yourself to some “world famous bar-b-q beef steak,” smoked meats, sausage, cooked carrots, and red beans. Sweet endings include peach, apple, and cherry cobbler.

404 W. Commerce St., Brownwood, TX 76801, underwoodsbbq.com

5. Get Your Pie on at Royers Round Top Cafe

In 1987, Bud “The Pieman” Royer and his late wife, Karen, took over the 40-seat Royers Round Top Cafe. They had no culinary training or kitchen experience but miraculously transformed the quirky restaurant into a sensation. In lieu of typical country fare, they opted for gourmet comfort food: center-cut filets, fresh fish, and, most famously, pie. There’s a whole menu just for pie: strawberry rhubarb pie with granola crumbles; “junk berry” pie made with apples, strawberries, blackberries, peaches, and sour cream; and Texas favorite pecan pie, with the insistence on the pronunciation “pa-can, not pee-can!” on the menu. Exclamation mark included.

105 Main St., Round Top, TX 78954, royerscafe.com

Will Brake for Iconic Eats

Texas is a big state with ample roadside mom-and-pop eateries. If you really want to enjoy your journey, take a moment to fill your tank, and your belly, at one of the many small-town gems that give a good name to Southern cooking.

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