TV Restaurants

Is Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery Still Open? (Tarpley, TX)

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, Season 1 Tarpley, Texas

Current status

Open

As of October 2026, Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery is open — confirmed via Yelp, May 2026.

What the source shows: Yelp's May 2026 update and Tripadvisor's July 2026 update both show Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery in Tarpley, Texas posting current reviews and specific weekend hours. How we decide a status →

What happened after Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives? 2 episodes

Part 1 — Season 1, Episode 1 Aired

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives' first-ever episode, 'Classics' (aired 2007-04-23), featured Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery, a burger stand along FM 470 outside Tarpley, Texas built around a hand-formed gourmet burger and fresh toppings. The eatery is a rural roadside restaurant and holds the distinction of being the first stop the show ever made. Yelp's May 2026 update showed the eatery still posting customer reviews and a Friday-through-Sunday schedule, with hours listed as Friday and Saturday 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and 5-9 p.m., and Sunday 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tripadvisor's July 2026 update likewise showed continuing reviews for the same restaurant. The eatery's own website, macandernies.com, maintains a page listing specific dates it will be closed, consistent with the reduced weekend-only schedule.

Part 2 — Season 33, Episode 10 Aired

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives featured Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery, a roadside eatery in Tarpley, Texas, in the episode "Takeout: Goin' Big and Bringin' Home," which aired on Food Network on 2021-03-05 and centered on large takeout orders.

The episodes Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Episode 1
Aired
Title: Classics · What was featured: gourmet burgers at a rural roadside eatery
Season 33, Episode 10
Aired
Title: Takeout: Goin' Big and Bringin' Home · What was featured: Mac & Ernie's Roadside Eatery fare, on a big-takeout-order episode
How Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives restaurants have fared: 27% closed →

Also in Season 1 Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives

Season 1: 21 of 37 still open · 5 renamed, moved or under new owners

All 12 Season 1 episodes →

Nearest restaurants By distance from 11804 FM 470

All 304 TV restaurants in Texas →

Before you go: Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources we checked 4 references

  1. Yelp https://www.yelp.com/biz/mac-and-ernies-roadside-eatery-tarpley-2
  2. Tripadvisor https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g56744-Tarpley_Bandera_County_Texas.html
  3. macandernies.com http://www.macandernies.com/
  4. Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, S33E10 "Takeout: Goin' Big and Bringin' Home" (Food Network, aired 2021-03-05)
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Record ddd-0001 · checked by Cal Marchetti.