rajat's Profile
Take-out samosas
Bombay Express at 35 and Parmer. Plus, they have more street food than samosas.
Best Lunch Food near I-35 and 45 (near La Frontera)?
i would add Michael's Tacos, Origami, Sichuan Garden (but only get the Chinese style dishes; avoid the American style stuff like sweet and sour shrimp) and the meatball hero at Hoody's.
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Hoody's
1205 Round Rock Ave Ste 121, Round Rock, TX 78681
Sichuan Garden
110 N Interstate 35, Round Rock, TX 78681
Little help please: Dinner for 4 near Cool River off Parmer Lane
Tomo's? Just had lunch there, and it was very good.
Where to get sushi grade fish
I believe FDA regulations require that for fish to be served "raw", it must first be frozen. Is that true only for sushi sold in restaurants? I would imagine that even for a fishmonger to sell fish labelled as fit for sushi/sashimi, the requirement that the fish be first frozen will apply.
Not a link to the law, but convincing: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/04/08/nyregion/08SUSH.html?ex=1396756800&en=14403a1246cf158f&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND
Best ny/nj pizza in austin
Saccone's has consistently underwhelmed me lately. They used to be a decent NJ-style pizza place once upon a time, but, judging from my more recent experience, it isn't anymore.
Can't decide on which TX TOP 5 BBQ joints to go? This might help a little...
I usually eat it with my mouth.
Any suggestions on a first date restaurant in the Round Rock area?
Second.
On my first date with my wife I took her to a "family" style Italian restaurant in the Bronx. Great food, but sitting in long tables next to other people.
pizzeria corvina in round rock
They had a really nice selection of artisan pizzas (my wife's favorite was with fontina cheese and proscuitto on top, with argula and truffle oil!! yikes!). The crust was well done and I liked most of them. Obviously not what we would consider NY style pizza, although it wasn't deep dish either.
I don't know if that's a bad spot for a restaurant, but there seems to be other bars and stuff there. Not having to worry about parking was certainly nice. Atmosphere was nice. I don't know if they were counting on having a lot of high-end wine sales because that's probably not as likely to happen. I wonder if they would have been better off near the old town center of Round Rock.
African or Middle Eastern Food in Austin?
My friends and I have quite liked Karibu Ethiopian on E. 7th Street. I was not familiar with Ethiopian food at all prior to going here, and I can't compare it to others, but I like the food enough that I've gone back a few times.
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Karibu Ethiopian Restaurant
1209 E 7th St, Austin, TX 78702
A Few of My Favorite Things
Second the Ahi Tower at Beluga.
I like the proscuitto pizza at Pizzeria Corvina: Fontina cheese with fresh arugula, proscuitto, and truffle oil.
Salmon sashimi at a number of places: Origami, and Midori is where I usually go. This might be more because I love salmon beyond reason.
Peeves with Asia Cafe
> 3. try not to be adverse to oil. Szechuan cuisine tends to be heavier in oil.
This is my biggest problem. I always have to pay a stiff price; for some reason the oil just throws my innards off (TMI). Wish there was something like beano that I could take beforehand that would protect me from the oil reaction.
Love the food at Asia Cafe though. Must try the new fish dishes.
Ho Ho Chinese BBQ open
I hesitate to reply conclusively to this because I haven't had Peking Duck for so long before this week, so my judgement may well be off. I will say that we did have it a second time, and all four of us liked it. Have to go on a Peking Duck comparison tour next week. What are the contenders? First Chinese, Din Ho and Ho Ho's? I like the duck at Wok & Roll, but they don't serve it as Peking Duck (with the Hoisin sauce and all).
Ho Ho Chinese BBQ open
Well, I don't mind place names changing to better reflect the local name (for example, my wife comes from the city of Goteborg, which in English we call Gothenberg, which is confusing; just call it what the locals do), but changes in place names don't have to be reflected in other proper names. Volgograd is the new name, but we still refer to the Battle for Stalingrad, or it would get hugely confusing.
I was back at Ho Ho's for dinner last night, and our initial pleasant impression was reinforced. This time we had friends with us, and Chinese dinners simply are more enjoyable with more people so you can order more food and try more things. The food was as good as we expected and the service was pleasant.
One thing to take note of is that dishes similar to what you might get at Asia Cafe (ie. the Szechuan Bass), is less oily at Ho Ho's and a touch less hot, without becoming generic American strip mall Chinese food. This means that if I eat a little too much, my internals aren't quite as badly affected.
Ho Ho Chinese BBQ open
Had lunch here today (Sunday), and have generally good things to say about this. Contrary to previous reports, I thought the duck today had quite a nice crispy skin to it. Two of us had the 1/2 portion of "Beijing Duck" (shouldn't this dish still be called Peking Duck?) and we liked it a lot.
Staff was friendly and attentive.
One thing I've noticed, and not just here, is that a lot of Chinese restaurants serve pretty tasteless white rice. I realize that you are getting sauces with the dishes, but good white rice can make a dish a lot more special.
New to Round Rock
For more genuine Chinese food, try the Sichuan Garden in the same shopping center as Origami. But be careful ordering. The dishes that are "American" Chinese aren't too good (don't try the sweet and sour shrimp), but other dishes (like the boiled fillet with spicy sauce and bean curd) are really good. Oily and spicy, but good.
New to Round Rock
Some of my favorites:
Teji's on 620 for Indian food. Johnny T's BBQ restaurant right near there. Saccone's pizza (if you like New Jersey/New York style pizza) in the same shopping center as Teji's.
Thai Spoon, out on Gattis School Road, does a really good fried whole fish on weekends, particularly if you get it La and Pla style (I don't know whether to call them sauces or what, but both are much more refreshing and clean tasting than the usual red curry sauce) .
Pizzeria Corvina in the Target shopping center off 35 has some really good pizzas made in a coal fired oven. I also like their pastas, particularly the seafood one in a white wine sauce. The lasagna is also quite good.
For great sushi and good Japanese food, there's Origami on 620 and 35. Beluga is good, but I think Origami is one of the best places in the Austin area for sushi. Yama Sushi on 620 is also a good place.
For Tex-Mex, Garcia's is pretty good. I like their Cabrito Plate.
There's actually no good reason to eat at a chain in Round Rock anymore (unless, of course, you get a real craving for french fries from McDonald's or something like that). Add in some fine restaurants in Georgetown, and there's a lot to choose from without braving traffic going downtown Austin.
What to order at Teji's Indian restaurant?
One thing I must warn you about is that as a sit-down restaurant, Teji's is not the best. It's really meant for takeout, and while they have tables and chairs, the utensils are plastic, the plates are styrofoam, etc. The proprietors are very friendly and helpful, but you are not going to get the type of service you get in a place with real waiters, etc. It's a take-out joint.
I like the Lamb Korma, the Lamp Chile, the Dum Aloo and the Aloo Gobi. All of them are best spicy hot.
Chola in Round Rock
I concur with this. When I get a real craving for Indian food, I head for Teji's. While it isn't exactly what my mother used to make (restaurant vs. home cooked), Teji's satisifies. My parents also live quite close to Teji's, so they end up doing takeout from there at least once a week. And I don't find Teji's particularly pricey; usually I can get three entrees and 2 orders of Naan for under $30. That's not bad.
Having said that, as buffets go, Chola is pretty good. Plus, they'll bring you a personal dosa, if you ask, and I like that.
pizzeria corvina in round rock
I always thought it was the opposite: that you want freshly made pasta cooked "al dente", or firm; whereas, dried pasta, if you cook it that way, just gives you a chewy and unpleasantly dry middle. Of course, you never want pasta to be mushy like baby food...
I'm one of the people that likes fresh pasta to be firm and al dente, whereas the dried pasta, I find, should be cooked a little bit longer than what the box usually recommends.
pizzeria corvina in round rock
I wasn't disagreeing with you; the prices on those two items are so far out of the median, it seems a little unbalanced. Not sure what it will take for me to try the Bistecca at $36 (I guess, if someone raved about it enough, I would try it).
Can't tell about wine prices because I know little to nothing about the topic; but the beer prices seemed reasonable. On the other hand, I didn't try any of the German or European beers.
pizzeria corvina in round rock
The things on the menu that are highly priced is the above mentioned chicken, and a Bistecca (prime t bone) for $36; they have a fish dish that's at market price, which I presume will be around these levels too. The salads are $8 to $10; I haven't tried the Caesar salad here, but a good one (not the crap that's served in most places) is not outrageous at $8. The rest of the food menu is, I think, reasonable. The pizzas are $10 to $14, and the pastas are $11 and $13.
pizzeria corvina in round rock
Well, after reading the reviews here, my wife and I tried this place for dinner. The good news is that we agree with what's been said here. We had a proscuitto pizza with fontina and arugula, and it was very good. The pizza crust is delicious, and is probably the best I've had in Austin. We'll go back for the pizza again and again. Luckily, we live not too far from here.
I also had the Fettucine di Mare, which is basically what we used to call spaghetti with white clam sauce in the Bronx where I grew up, and it was also delicious. It had clams and mussels, with fettucine, in a white wine and garlic sauce. I loved this dish, and will have to try the other pasta dishes also.
Service was good, attentive and friendly, without being overbearingly friendly. The waitress described the pizza crust as being a bit charred--no doubt warning us that instead of the cardboard usually passed off as crust by the chains, theirs has taste. We will be back many times, I think.
Any Good Seafood in Austin?
New York style clam chowder, or what is more commonly known as Manhattan clam chowder, is apparently a variant created by fishermen immigrants from Portugal to Rhode Island who wanted more taste than the milk or cream-based chowder. Personally, I agree with the Portugeese fishermen; I think the tomato based broth has more taste.
Austin Thai War
An outstanding Thai restaurant is the Thai Spoon in Round Rock. Try getting the whole fried fish. They have the whole fried fish on Fridays and Saturdays, and the best way to get it is the La or Pla. They don't offer them on the menu (they offer the more accessible whole fish with red curry sauce), and you have it to get it hot or Thai hot to really appreciate how good it is. Also, you can get sticky rice with it; you make a small ball of the sticky rice and soak it in the sauce of the fish and eat it. The sticky rice amplifies the sauce and it's just incredible.
The papya salad, also best hot or Thai hot, is delicious.
For dessert, they have home made ice creams, and the mango and coconut ice creams, with sticky rice, is heavenly.
Eating at an empty restaurant?
There have been a few times when I've eaten at an empty, or nearly empty, restaurant, and felt like crying. The food and service was so good, but because it was ethnic food that the surrounding community was not used to, the restaurant was empty. And then, seeing the local Wendy's (or some other chain store) being full was just infuriating.
Anyone try the new Yama Grill and Sushi Bar yet?
I just tried it for the first time this last weekend (we've somehow overlooked this place before), and really enjoyed our lunch. Based on one visit, I would definitely recommend a visit. My wife and I will definitely go back.
We started with miso soup and it was very flavorful. One of the better miso soups I've had, I would say. Then we had dumplings as appetizers; these were perfectly cooked,not overfried and delicious. The accompanying sauce was very salty, as it usually is with dumplings, and I think could be severely toned down so as to not overpower the tastebuds. We used the sauce very sparingly.
For entrees we had various sushi and sashimi. The pieces were quite thickly cut, and were both tasty and an excellent value for the price.
If our followup visits are as good, we are going to become regulars. We are really looking forward to some of the non-sushi dishes on the menu; particularly the Yama Duck and the Sea Bass in Mirin.
Titaya Review 12/26/08
I love Titaya. While the more "traditional" Thai dishes (like the noodle dishes, etc) are really good, I also really recommend some of the specials. They serve a seafood dish called Hor Mok Talay which is one of my favorite dishes in any Thai restaurant. I highly recommend it; it's a kind of spicy, steamed seafood combo.
best Indian food
I vote for Teji's. It's where I head to when I need Indian food. I like the Bhindi Masala. Shalimar comes second to me, but for some reason, my wife and friends don't like it there.
Airport Haven was really good, but man, they were badly run. Had to wait forever for the food to arrive the last few times I was there, and then they closed. The food could be really good though.
Clay Pit is not Indian. Indian inspired, but it doesn't satisfy when I get the craving for Indian food.
thai spoon in RR
Just discovered that they carry whole fried snapper on weekends. I have tried the fish with chili sauce and curry sauce and loved both--liked the curry sauce better. This dish alone is going to keep me coming back regularly.
