Helind's Profile
My favorite things from Central Market
Fiesta might have them. That's where I get my More Spice Tony Chachere's Seasoning.
Adios Austin Chowhounds
I know I haven’t contributed much, but I just wanted to say how much I’ve enjoyed reading all the comments and suggestions from the Austin Chowhounds. I’m moving to Asheville, NC next week, so I probably won’t have much need to lurk around the Austin boards anymore. I haven’t been exactly flush with cash since I moved here 4 years ago, but here are some of the foods I will miss when I leave:
The Huevos Mexicanos from the Eastside Café
The Chicken Tortilla Soup from Central Market Westgate
The BBQ at Blacks in Lockhart
Some of my favorite meals where at:
Uchi
Parkside
The Eastside Café
I’m especially going to miss this board. Asheville doesn't have a dedicated board. It's lumped in with everyone in the Southeast:( If you’ve ever been to Asheville and have dining or food suggestions, I’m all ears.
Happy eating, y’all!
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Uchi Restaurant
801 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78704
Central Market Westgate
4477 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX
LIGHT Sunday brunch
I kind of feel like I'm eating in trailer when I eat in the garden room. It's good for large groups though. I always request inside the house now and have even waited a little longer to be seated there. I think it's worth the wait.
LIGHT Sunday brunch
I was going to recommend Eastside too, but the Flip Happy thing threw me off. I try to take out of town guests to Eastside Cafe as often as I can. You can order light there, but my favorite dish, Huevos Mexicanos, is pretty heavy. My husband and I often share it which is perfect. It's definitely got the Austin vibe happenin', make sure you ask to be seated in the house, and be sure to check out the garden and the chickens.
Cajun/Creole restaurants
I avoid all of them. It's just too disappointing. Though, the last time I went to New Orleans I was unable to pace myself and overindulged on the very first day:) Maybe I should go to Evangeline every once in a while.
Visiting Austin WHERE TO EAT??
Sarah - It would be great if you'd let us know what kind of chow you like to eat as well as what price range you'd prefer. Also, it would be great to know what part of town you'll be staying in and whether or not you'll have a car.
Client dinner recs?
I went to the Eastside Cafe with an out of town guest who was allergic to just about all foods. They were very accommodating. It might be too casual.
Good spot for miniture liquor (retail) in Austin?
You might try Spec's. I'm not sure if they have miniatures, but I know they have a locked smaller bottle section in the front on the liquor side of the store on Brodie Lane. I got a 375ML bottle of rum for my eggnog at Christmas time. I think I still have 275ML left:)
Good fish sandwich??
I like the Salmon Burger ($9) at Central Market Westgate. Salmon Burger isn't really the right name for it as it's not really burgery at all. It's a piece of miso glazed grilled salmon with seaweed salad and wasabi avocado spread, on a soft slightly sweet bun. It comes with fries.
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Central Market Westgate
4477 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX
Whole Foods - Lunchtime Best Kept Secrets and Deals?
You also get 25 cents off if you bring your own cup for iced tea.
Rabitos?
I'm reviving this thread with the hope that someone has spotted them around town this year.
Happy Hour Recs for Downtown(ish)
I went to Parkside Saturday evening for happy hour (5-7) and to celebrate my birthday. We arrived 5, and the hostess escorted us to the big table in front of the window (great for people watching). For approximately an hour there was hardly anyone else in the restaurant; it' started picking up around 6. The restaurant was pretty full when we left around 7, but it was never loud which is one of my main complaints about Austin restaurants. I liked the casual atmosphere. We ordered from the bar menu which is half off during happy hour.
Here's what we had:
The Lump Crab Fritters were very good, crispy and hot but could have used a little more seasoning. Of all the things we ordered they were probably my least favorite. It might be unfair for me to judge though as I grew up on the Chesapeake Bay where there are a lot of excellent crab dishes. They weren't bad though.
The Fried Oyster BLT was a crispy fried oyster atop a little piece of bread with Green Goddess Aioli and BLT all skewered with a toothpick. It was pretty to look at, a little awkward to eat but delicious.
The Fried Okra was perfectly fried and pipping hot, excellent! It came with a green colored House Ranch which was great for dipping. It might have been the best fried okra I've ever had.
My favorite dish was the Quail, it was seasoned perfectly and so so tender, yum!
We also ordered The Frozen Goat Cheese dessert (not half price). It came with very intensely flavored Basil Ice Cream which I liked but was a little off putting to my husband. He was very into the frozen goat cheese though.
We shared a Jasperilla Old Ale (22oz) and a Convict Hill Stout from Independence Brewery, also half price for HH. We especially liked the Jasperilla which was something our waiter John recommended. He gave us fine recommendations on food and drink throughout our meal.
Last but not least we had coffee, decaf for me. It came out nice and hot and fresh!
When our check arrived I couldn't believe we had eaten so much quality food for so little. What a great value. The happy hour is so worth it! We were very pleased and will go back again!
Suggestions? Food & Live Music - the Austin Experience
I was looking for a similar location to take my 60ish mother when she was here in December. We went over to the Broken Spoke for dinner around 7pm on a Wednesday, but it was very crowded and the median age was about 90. We ended up at Artz Rib House right down the road and had a great time!
Artz has live music every night and though I've never tried it myself, I've seen other recommendations on this board for Artz vegetarian sides. There are a few things that don't meet your requirements. There's outdoor seating, but I've never seen anyone sit outside. The band always plays inside. Also, I've never seen anyone dance.
After we ate dinner at Artz, we went over to the Continental Club and heard more live music. There was a nice mix of different ages, some seating and people dancing, but there is no food, only drinks.
Good luck with your search!
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Artz Rib House
2330 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78704
Broken Spoke
3201 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78704
Brunching on Eggs Benedict in Austin
I looked online but couldn't find the Apothecary brunch menu. Do you remember how much your eggs benedict cost?
Paggi House
At the very least the manager of the restaurant should of come to you in person and explained the situation. It sounds like Paggi House has bad customer service. Thanks for the info!
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Paggi House
200 Lee Barton Drive, Austin, TX 78704
Best Bars and Bartenders (Mixologists?) for Serious cocktails
It's not exactly what you requested, but I really enjoyed the drink reviews in this thread:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/773852
Where to watch
There's another new place on Riverside @ Barton Springs called The Upper Decks. I don't frequent sports bars, but there must be a need since two just opened up on the same street.
Sit-down places for Hot Tea
The Tea Embassy is having another high tea on April 2, 2011:
http://teaembassy.com/afternoon-tea-april-2
Hard Hat Report Vol 5
It looks like The Upper Decks on Barton Springs and Riverside is now open. I drove by there yesterday and saw a bunch of people inside. Also, a Howdy Donuts is going in at the corner of Congress and Riverside.
Share your not-so-traditional Valentine's
We went to The Steeping Room and had the Century Oaks Tea Service. It wasn't crowded at all.
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Steeping Room
11410 Century Oaks Ter Ste 112, Austin, TX 78758
Where Can I Find A Moka Pot (Stovetop Espresso Maker)?
Eso es una hermosa cafetera, pero buscan una cafetera más grande como bebida de semana cafés grandes, estilo norteamericano:) ¡Gracias! tanto para su oferta.
Sit-down places for Hot Tea
The Tea Embassy serves hot tea made from leaves with proper water temperature. They only serve tea though, nothing else - unless you go to one of their special high teas. They had one on Feb. 5 for Valentine's Day.
http://www.teaembassy.com/
I went to the Four Seasons high tea awhile back. I think they get their teas from The Tea Embassy, so the tea was good. The atmosphere and the food were okay but not outstanding.
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Tea Embassy Tea Treasures
900 Rio Grande St, Austin, TX 78701
Four Seasons
98 San Jacinto Blvd, Austin, TX 78701
Good food near Ikea, in Round Rock
I agree. It's not the best, but it's really inexpensive. And, it's part of the IKEA experience for me. I wander through the showroom maze, eat at the cafe, and then continue my journey through kitchen stuff, rugs etc...
Brunching on Eggs Benedict in Austin
Went to Frank today for Brunch and had the Texas Benedict (cheddar biscuit topped with pulled pork, fried eggs, jalapeno hollandaise, and a roasted jalapeno) $9.75. The best thing about it was the roasted jalapeno. The holandaise was bland. I prefer mine tangy and the rest of the dish was under seasoned. It wasn't cold but could've been hotter. If I ordered it again, I think I'll ask for extra jalapeno.
My husband had the Franktastic Four $11.00 which is any four items from the a la carte menu. He chose two eggs over easy, hash brown casserole, four slices of bacon and a cheese biscuit (because they didn't have whole wheat toast). The bacon was fine, but I thought it would be better since Frank is such a meat oriented place. The cheese biscuit wasn't that cheesy which was okay because he wanted something he could put jelly on. The eggs were perfectly cooked and the hash brown casserole was excellent. I think the casserole might have cheddar cheese in it. I'm still thinking about it...yum.
The coffee $3.00 was great! I had decaf and my husband had regular. I tasted his. They were very different but both delicious and fresh, each cup is made to order.
The hostess was adorable and friendly. Our waiter was excellent.
The big problem with the whole experience was the volume. Frank is housed in the old Starlight building. There was a problem with the noise level in the old restaurant, and there is still a problem. To top it off there was a DJ spinning very unbrunch like music; it was kind of loud and pounding. I actually appreciate the fact that they hired someone to take care of the music. I wish more places would do that. I might have enjoyed the music choices if it hadn't been Sunday afternoon. I'm not saying it has to be classical or jazz. I just prefer something on the mellow side and slightly softer when I brunch.
I might go back, but I'm sort of on the fence.
"Real" Texas Bars?
Okay...I just want to say, I went to The Broken Spoke over the Christmas holidays with my mother, who was visiting from Virginia. She's been to Austin several times and wanted to go to a place authentically Austin with live music. We went around 7pm on a Wednesday (ladies night). There was nowhere to sit and the median age was 90. The band was playing "Mama Tried". We ended up eating at Artz Rib House and going to The Continental Club where Elana James (violinist) was playing with a western swing band. That part of the evening was great! Did I go to The Continental Club on the wrong night, at the wrong time, or is this just the way it is?
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Artz Rib House
2330 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78704
Broken Spoke
3201 S Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78704
CHOW Tour Austin, Your Thoughts On Where to Go?
Brunch at the Eastside Café. My favorites are the Huevos Mexicanos and the Blueberry Blintzes! I always try to take out of town guests there.
Austin restaurant suggestions for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day?
Here's a link to restaurants that will be open Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Year's Eve:
http://www.austin360.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/dining/entries/2010/12/14/restaurants_for_christmas_and_1.html
Let us know where you ended up and if it was any good. Happy Holidays!
Looking for Alicante Almond Turron Candy
They have a bunch of different varieties of Turron at the Fiesta North this year.
Tom Yum soup in Austin (or other delicious cures for the common cold)?
I'm not a coconut soup aficionado, but I had a delicious bowl of Coconut Chicken Soup at Ming's Cafe this afternoon. It was spicy and a little sweet (but not cloyingly so). Maybe it wasn't the soup, but I've felt fantastic all day.
