My "I"s (Iron Cactus & In-n-Out)

It was too much to narrow down my list so I settled for 2 "I"s on the restaurant list.



While I'd heard good things about Iron Cactus happy hour and since was on work travel in Dallas when I went (can you say reimbursement!) I figured it would be a great time to check this off my list. In my defense there are Iron Cactus restaurants in Austin so I didn't think I was cheating too badly being out of town technically for this one...

Ugh, what to say? The best only good part about this was the $2 house margaritas on Sundays.

The queso topping the veggie enchiladas, whose description was cleverly crafted to sound delicious, was incredibly thick and fatty with stale-tasting tortillas and not saute'd, but rather completely soggy veggies inside. The canned charro beans were better...

Austin has seen a recent invasion (no PC strikethrough) of Californians in the last few years. They've demanded their Trader Joe's and In-N-Out Burger restaurants, so of course I had to find out what the hype is all about :)

  

The double cheeseburger was good: small patties but no gristle and the veggies were crisp and fresh. I was a little confused with the thousand island-esque spread, though... Fries were cold within a few minutes (I saved calories not finishing them) but wow wow wow on the strawberry shake. They may be fooling me, but this actually tasted like real strawberries not just flavoring. Very yummy. 

McDonalds < In-n-Out < Dan's Hamburgers

Austin has local hamburger joints for all budgets to need another chain that was just so-so. 

Sorry Californians. Well, not really.

Wordless Wednesday: First Solo Trip

First time ever for a solo trip: Denver did not disappoint!!

      

 

 

 

            

My "H" (Habesha)

It was important to have some creative or unique cuisine on my list and I truly lucked out with a Groupon option for Ethiopian food a short drive from work!

Habesha, Ethiopian cuisine around the corner from one of my old neighborhoods, was both pleasantly delicious and fun to eat -- no silverware!! A few things to expect:

(1) Wash your hands; because...
(2) when dining family style, everyone is served dishes over injera: a spongey "pancake" perfect for soaking up meal juice as well as served for each person on the side to takes the place of utensils. A staple to the meal.
(3) Give yourself enough time to do a coffee ceremony - not really an option for a normal lunchtime.

Myself and two coworkers ordered 2 vegetarian (Gomen Watt [collards on left] and Shiro Wot/Tegabino Shiro [on right]) and a lamb dish Yebeg Fitfit [foreground]. The small salad we each had had a unique addition: jalapeno! 

My only complaint was the lamb was served in chunks with bone which made it hard to eat with hands/pick over it with teeth. The Tegabino Shiro, we all agreed, was the standout favorite by far. http://www.habesha-austin.com/

My "G" (Garbo's)

My boss kept talking about this food truck and I am so glad it went on my list...

A simple menu -- you come here to get serious with some lobster roll and/or chowder. They also have a daily homemade side. Garbo's does two different styles of their lobster roll:
Maine - your traditional roll, served cold over tender bibb lettuce after being tossed in a mayo-celery-scallion-spiced-lemoney deliciousness OR
Connecticut - straight chunks of lobster with a brushing of lemon-tarragon butter

You can probably tell from the description that I opted for the Maine roll. I tacked on the side of the day  as well which was a ginger coleslaw.

WOW!

In some cases, the trailers can be a bit pricier than I think they should be. You will most certainly get your money's worth with this truck. I honestly have -zero- complaints, the huge chunks of lobster meat were perfectly cooked and dressed with what is probably a super-secret mayo bound to make them a huge favorite in Austin (high five on the perfect hint of lemon - no need IMHO to use the included wedge).

The bun even (a friend of mine made the same comment) was light, soft, and buttery and thank goodness not a dense rock that would have ruined this roll completely! The slaw as well was solid but unique with a great touch of ginger.

I'm crossing my fingers their brick-&-mortar will be opening soon up in my area. Until then, you can track their weekly location at http://garboslobsteratx.com/

RAK Week 3

My mailman is such a sweet person I thought I'd leave a small treat one day for him.

I love getting mail. It's like a surprise (even if it is junk mail mostly) so to return the surprises he leaves and his sweet spirit every time I see him I baked up some bite-sized peanut butter chocolate chip cookies :)

The fun thing about RAK is sometimes it touches more than 1 person and sometimes you get to see the result (they were both kind enough to write a quick Thank You)

My "F" (Fonda San Miguel)

I will keep this brief.

I was so incredibly excited to try Fonda; unfortunately, the service on my visit was poor enough to severely cloud any positivity toward the food or any other part of the visit.

Yep, I do indeed write less-than-gloating posts. Sorry. Overrated.

My "E" (East Side Pies)

Nothing says food-gasm like the "Mojo": handmade meatballs seasoned and formed to perfection with bacon, sun dried tomatoes, jalapeno, and cilantro on thin-crusted pesto slices of deliciousness.

High five East Side Pies. High. Freakin. Five.

Particularly special because I got the chance to spend time with my Sweetheart. Once again the slices were halfway down our throats before the camera snapped a shot :)

My "C" (Contigo)

My first visit to Contigo was for my birthday on their "un-Valentine's" party. It was a unique buffet-style setup that was good-food-but-better-company-type night. Either way, I knew I wanted to return.

I was blessed to go with my friend curiousnotions. I'm embarrassed to say, but I dug into half the plates before even getting a quick pic (a combination of hunger and the food-porn spread going on in front of me). At her recommendation, and my partial unease, we started with Ox Tongue Sliders and Fried Green Beans.

You might be thinking right now "Ox Tongue? Seriously?!" Even if you're not sure - DO IT.

Chicken Thighs and Cauliflower Gratin were equally as yummy. I used to have a thing about cooked cauliflower: smell, texture, something like that is just wasn't appetizing at all. Contigo and Barley Swine have both really impressed me with their dishes, though, aaaaalmost enough to try getting some cauliflower creativity in my own kitchen started.

Or maybe another day.

My "D" (Dan's Hamburgers)

At some point I had to add a burger joint to the list.

While it may be a topic for another time I decided to not go down the road of which divorcee serves the best food - Dan's/Fran's , Tino's/Zorba's , etc. - and opted for the North Lamar Dan's Hamburgers.

The epic people-watching that occurred during this visit was almost as good as the food itself. Everyone from (what I think were) college students in a state that induced the munchies to gentler souls that probably ate at Dan's back in 1973 to first-timers like me, the range of clientele at least made this a promising find. I took some jalapeno cheeseburgers to-go and opted for the curly fries (a no-brainer).

I can't be sure, but the flavor and slight crunch of the jalapenos led me to believe they were fresh until the point they wound up on the skillet when my order came in. Fifteen minutes later I was wishing I'd sat right then and there and not taken to-go...

Not disappointed. Will be coming back - and maybe even checking out their breakfast - another day.

My "B" (Barley Swine)

Barley Swine: mad respect for your ridiculous skills.

And props for giving out mini spatulas...which is much more graceful than licking the plate.

Since a picture's worth a thousand words------

 

From barleyswine.com/food (menu changes frequently)

Nantucket Bay scallop, ponzu, finger lime

Cured lamb loin, cottage cheese, sour rye

Caulifower, pecan, orange

Hedgehog mushroom, pine caramel, trout roe

Golden Tile fish, romanesco, dashi, turnip

Biscuit, apple butter, bacon

Escolar, sweet potato, radicchio

Beet, tangerine, kefir

Duck, broccoli, sesame

Rabbit leg, pinto beans, cornbread, hay

Pupusa, shrimp, escabeche

Hoe cakes, fermented peas, bacon, hot sauce

Whey panna cotta, citrus, beet, coffee

Barley cake, sweet potato, whipped caramel, brown butter

Go. You'll air high-five yourself.

My "A" (Alborz)

I'm catching up with a few goals already checked off my list. The first restaurant on the list - my "A" - was Alborz Persian Cuisine.

I'm cheap I like a deal and ran across this gem through a Groupon dining deal so snagged it pretty quick and dragged my brother along for some quality time around a dinner table.

Dimly lit, and not too loud Alborz is in the corner of a parking lot that I'd never find if I wasn't looking.

We both decided on the Friday night buffet, taking a bit of a gamble, I thought. I've had Greek/Mediterranean so this offered the variety I was hoping for.

The pita was crunchier than I expected from Greek pita bread, the dips and "appetizers" were all strong (first time for must-o-khiar and kashk-o-bademjan). Kabob was slightly dry but it didn't stop us from each having 1 - or 2 - the stews stole the show. Bademjan and gheymeh? nom nom nom...

Additionally, I'm not sure what it's called but the veggies (eggplant, squashes, celery, carrots) baked and marinated were phenomenal. If you're in Austin and craving Persian...do it. 

Apparently later in the night on Fridays they have belly dancers. Next time I'm there I'll definitely make sure I catch that show :)

http://www.alborzpersiancuisine.com/files/85274709.pdf

Goals: Restaurants A-to-Z

One of  the things I've been profoundly disappointed in over the last 5 years of living in Austin is my exploration of the amazing food this city has to offer.

2014 was the year to change that.

Stolen from the idea a friend had, I challenged myself this year to find a restaurant (2 in some cases!) to work eat my way through the alphabet of Austin restaurants.

With moderate obsession I carefully outlined almost every letter before the end of 2013 and I've got, what I think, is a pretty impressive list: from burger joints to food trailers to prix fixe menus and farm-to-table wonders.

It has been, and will continue to be, a delicious exploration and venture. Some of the times I'll sit with friends and laugh, drink, and relax the night away but I'm sure a few chances will exist to people watch and silently reflect on what my palate is currently experiences.

Enjoy! I know I will :)