La Madeleine Country Fresh Cafe

This past February Laura and I took an impromptu trip to Washington D.C.  I wanted to see an original comic book art exhibit at the Library of Congress and the two of us had our first romantic getaway in D.C. the year before so it was time to revisit that trip.  In May of 2011 when we went we found an amazing little French Bistro that served us the best, and actually my first, crepes ever!  When we arrived there in February of 2012 we did all of the touristy things we wanted to do, the Library of Congress, Folger Theater and most impressively the Botanical Gardens.  The next morning we craved crepes and tried to find the original place we had visited in Alexandria, VA.

We ended up finding ourselves in more of the downtown area and tried a different little French place, the service was so nasty that we ended up walking out.  It ended up being the best decision we had ever made, because literally right down the street we stumbled upon the most amazing little French Cafe we could ever imagine.  It was like a French Panera Bread, a cafeteria style restaurant.  La Madeleine impressed us so much that when we found out that they originated in Texas and that there was locations in Austin we knew we were going to move there, if not for the music, art and culture, at the very least for the delicious French Cuisine.

We arrived in Austin last week and yesterday we went to sign the lease on our new apartment.  Afterwards we were starved so we searched the GPS for the closest eateries.  While we knew we would end up at La Madeleine's sooner than later we were amazed that their Austin location was literally a half mile away from our soon to be home.  With complete exuberance we made the four minute trek over to them and when we entered we felt like we were right back in Alexandria.

It is a little overwhelming when you walk in.  You are given the opportunity to look over the menu at the door while waiting on line, then when you reach the host she... or he takes your order on a little touch screen device.  From there you walk down a cafeteria line to pick and choose any extra salads or pastries you might want to add to your meal.  When you reach the register they have your order in the computer and ready to ring up.  Very impressive service and style.

Since we were in a French Cafe I went with a lunch combo of a French Dip Sandwich with French Onion Soup and tomato basil pasta salad.  Laura got a Savory Strawberry Crepe as well as a small tomato basil pasta salad.  I also ordered a Mango Iced Tea, which I was upset to realize wasn't sweetened, it still hit the spot though.  The salad was freaking incredible, the crepe which I had tried in Alexandria and also yesterday was top on the line and my French lunch combo was absurdly good.

I was dressed to impress as I had just gotten out of one interview and was on my way to another, so it was one of the first time's I ever put a napkin on my lap and ate VERY carefully.  I truly felt like I was eating at a top of the line restaurant even though it is literally closer to a school lunch room in style.  One of the most impressive, although silly, parts of my visit was my trip to the bathroom.  The stall was made out of fine wood that looked like it was ready for a King to use.

The fact that there is a La Madeleine in Austin is enough to make me salivate at the thought, finding out it is less than a mile from my home is priceless.

I wasn't aware until right now but apparently they have over 60 locations, the majority of which are in Texas!  According to their website:

We have 60 locations in Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin, San Antonio, Houston, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, Atlanta, Washington D.C. and surrounding areas. Click here for a list of all cafes.

La Madeleine