If you talk to some of the male members of my family, Mel’s Country Cafe is the height of great dining. While quality is a factor in their personal fondness for the food, a lot of their praise goes to its portion sizes. The men in my family tend toward tall and slim so they can get away with eating two-thousand calorie meals. Me, not so much. However, on a recent drive home from Round Top, my husband Classic Rock Bob and I were trying to decide on a restaurant for lunch. CRB had a craving for fried catfish so I suggested we pull off the road at FM 2920 and give Mel’s a try.
I had only eaten at Mel’s once before. I’d read about it’s Monte Cristo sandwich and had made the trek to the hidden-away cafe to give it a try. I was not disappointed. That visit was prior to its April 2023 fire which destroyed most of its interior. After 29 years serving the hungry folks of Tomball and Huffsmith as well as visitors lured in by rave reviews, Mel’s Country Cafe was forced to close as it rebuilt the inside.
Retired owner Melody Henry (Mel) said it was an emotional time for her family, according to Community Impact. Her husband, Jeff Henry, is chef and co-owner along with her brother and a family friend, Phillip Gillian. The restaurant originally opened in 1977 as Mary’s Fried Chicken, founded by Melody Henry’s parents, Charles and Mary Weirich. In 1985, it became a burger restaurant named Mel’s Cafe. It then changed to Mel’s Country Cafe in 1994 as it expanded the menu to include many Southern comfort food favorites like chicken fried steak and fried seafood.
A year after the fire, the cafe reopened in April 2024 with a renovated interior, new exterior paint job and an outdoor picnic area. During the year that it was closed, it kept itself afloat with catering services which is still a big part of the business.
Its location on Stanolind Road makes one wonder how it ever became so popular. It’s a bit out of the way and some of the parking can be treacherous. Backing out of its parking lot into the oncoming traffic is panic-inducing. However, word of mouth is the best advertisement and Mel’s benefits from a lot of regular customers singing its praises. Folks make the drive to see what all the fuss is about.
Much of the restaurant’s protocols are the same. Guests still enter into the hallway where a hostess awaits to check them in. We were greeted quickly and seated quickly, which was impressive because Mel’s dining room was bustling. Within minutes, a plate of cornbread and yeast rolls had landed on our table, a sight to please any potato-eating country boy. Or this suburban gal. The corn bread was on the sweet side, as Southern versions often are. The rolls were soft and chewy, like a good yeast roll should be.
I had originally planned to try the Mel’s Wine Margarita. The restaurant only has a beer and wine license, so the ritas are made with wine. The server informed me that the Mel’s margarita is only served on the rocks. That made me change my mind to a cold beer. I fancy frozen margaritas, even made with wine, but a rita on the rocks has to be made with good tequila in my opinion.
My companion also ordered a Dos Equis ($5.50) beer and they were delivered dressed. The frosty mugs were rimmed in salt and there were nice-sized lime wedges, too. The cold beers were a perfect foil for the fried food on which we were about to feast.
Torn between the previously-tasted Monte Cristo ($9.99) and Mel’s famous burgers, I opted for the sandwich. It was a hard decision but I consoled myself by convincing CRB to order the Mel’s Mixed Platter ($19.99) . Unfortunately, he chose green beans and corn as his sides. I couldn’t convince him to even change one of those veggies to French fries. We chose instead to add a basket of onion rings.
There is an option of a basket or appetizer of onion rings and I’m glad we chose the basket. For $4.99, there were plenty of golden rings. The batter was light and perfectly fried with the onions still having a tiny bit of chew in them.
The Monte Cristo was also perfectly fried with no discernable sign of grease, which can be tricky when making the fried turkey, ham and cheese sandwich. Mel’s version is served in two neat enclosed triangles, which made it perfect for eating one and saving the other for later. I think, though, I was supposed to get fries with the sandwich. Oh, well. I didn’t need any more calories.
The Monte Cristo is a love it or hate it item for many folks. The first time I tasted it was at Bennigan’s as a teenager. I thought my friend was absolutely nuts to eat a fried sandwich dusted with powdered sugar and dipped in raspberry preserves. Until I tasted it. It soon became a favorite, though nowadays I may go years without having one. Mel’s Monte Cristo is a superior version but the accompanying raspberry sauce was a miss for me. I would prefer preserves. The gelatinous sauce was a bit too sweet.
CRB’s Mixed Platter, which was also in part mine, was a tower of fried goodness that could easily be split between two average eaters as long as they weren’t my brothers. It consists of two cornmeal-fried catfish filets, two chicken tenders, two steak fingers, two butterflied shrimp and two hushpuppies. Frying is where Mel’s excels. Nothing was overcooked, nothing was greasy. The shrimp were spectacular and would probably be a great meal by themselves. The catfish was crispy and flaky and the chicken tenders were juicy.
The steak fingers, however, were not really fingers. Instead, they looked like mini chicken-fried steaks. They were tender inside but lacked seasoning. That was easily remedied by the peppery country gravy served with the plate.
The vegetables didn’t stand out to me. The corn was buttery and what one would expect of a side veggie. The green beans were more than likely out of a can, which isn’t a diss. Most cafes serve canned green beans. These, however, were doctored up with onions so they had a little more flavor.
The rebuilt dining room is a bit less cluttered than the original and the half-wall is gone, making it much more open. The checkered tablecloths are now black and white rather than the previous red. The chairs are the same but the flooring is all new and more contemporary.
The Wall of Fame poster listing the names of the successful eaters of the Mega Mel Burger has survived. The Mega Mel is a $30 tower of one and half pounds of burger, a pound of bacon, a quarter pound of cheese and all the trimmings. Challengers have two hours to finish the ginormous hamburger in order to get their names on the wall.
The service at Mel’s is another reason to visit the homey restaurant. The staff is smiling and on top of things, ready to answer questions from first-time diners or fulfill the requests of longtime locals. For those who miss the feel of an old school eatery, Mel’s fits the bill, though, as with anything these days, the bill is going to be a bit higher.
The regret as we left was that we didn’t grab some dessert to go. Though we had plenty of food to take home for later, I am still kicking myself for not sampling the banana pudding or the pecan pie.
That just means I’ll have to return for a taste of one of its popular burgers or a stab at a daily special like homemade chicken and dumplings. And if my brothers are nice to me this year, I might even invite them along.
Mel’s Country Cafe
24814 Stanolind
281-255-6357
melscountrycafe.com
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
