Hey, Austin --- Let’s talk about food

 

I live in Austin and I love this city. A lot of people think Texas is a boring state (yeah…if you compare it with California or Washington or…) but still, you can have a lot of fun in Austin, whether you are a foodie or a fan of nature.

Barbecue

Have been to Texas but haven’t tried Barbecue? Then you can’t claim that you have been to Texas. Talking about BBQ, Franklin’s Barbecue (http://franklinbarbecue.com/) is my No. 1 favorite BBQ restaurant. Anytime you go there, you see a looooooooooong line. This restaurant only opens for lunch and is closed on Mondays. You’d better go there really early if you want to try their BBQ, and yes, you still need to wait in line to get in. My comments to their BBQ: D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S! How many times have I been there? Only once…I just couldn’t bear waiting in line for hours L (Too bad!)

So, if you are like me and do not have time to wait in line for BBQ, here are some other choices you can consider: Rudy’s (http://www.rudysbbq.com/page/home), Salt Lick (http://www.saltlickbbq.com/), and County Line (http://www.countyline.com/). I like Rudy’s a bit more than Salt Lick (many people might want to throw stones to me now), but Salt Lick in Driftwood looks more country. County Line’s homemade bread is pretty tasty and they are the only BBQ restaurant I know that serves beef ribs (the bones are huge but not much meat on it). So, your choice!

Don’t miss barbecue in Texas!

Tex- Mex

Tex-Mex is just like its name: Texas’ Mexican food. My friend told me there’s no authentic Mexican food in Texas. Well, kinda true. After trying Mexican food in Mexico for a straight 9 days last December, I tend to agree with him. Still, I like Tex-Mex food. Who cares whether it’s authentic or not.

My favorite Tex-Mex restaurant in Austin is Polvo’s Mexican (http://www.polvosaustin.com/) on South Congress. Not really a big, fancy restaurant and always noisy (not a good place for romantic dating). I have always been a fan of their fish tacos and like almost every dish I tried there. Be prepared to wait in line if you go there on weekends.

Huh… I admit that I also really like Torchy’s Tacos (http://www.torchystacos.com/), especially their one kind of taco: The Democrat. Don’t need to remind me this is a chain restaurant. I do know that when they opened their first restaurant in Houston the year before last year (2011), people were waiting in line to get tacos. Trust me, try their tacos. Very good!

Austin Restaurant Week

Austin has all kinds of restaurants (we will talk about them later). You have tons of choices to choose from and won’t be limited to only a few choices. One good time to try nice restaurants is the Austin Restaurant Week (http://restaurantweekaustin.com/). Austin Restaurant Week gives you opportunities to try some really nice Austin restaurants with set menus. There are usually two times in a year that you can participate, once in March during South by South West (SXSW) and once in September. Last September was our first time dinning out during the restaurant week. Very interesting experience! We tried three different restaurants:

Salty Sow (http://saltysow.com/)

My friend really liked their Triple Friend Duck Fat Fries but I felt it’s a little bit over fried. My favorite dishes there: Roasted Bone Marrow, Fresh & Smoked Salmon Rillette in a jar (Very creative and yummy!), and Beef Shoulder Slow-Cooked. The size of my dessert, Bananas Foster Beignets, is huge but was also tasty.

Foreign & Domestic (http://fndaustin.com/)

A restaurant we have been thinking of trying for a while and we finally tried it during the Austin Restaurant Week. One thing about this restaurant is that it doesn’t accept reservations. I think partially due to the size of the restaurant. When we got there we couldn’t even wait inside the restaurant because of the limited space. So, be aware of that. I also really enjoyed our food there and here is a list of my favorites: Crispy Beef Tongue (oh, my) and Squid Ink & Wild Boar Cannelloni. Unfortunately, the appetizer and dessert on the set menu that week were not that good, but I am sure they won’t keep the same set menu for the next restaurant week. 

Driskill Grill (http://www.driskillgrill.com/).

Different from the previous two restaurants mentioned, Driskill Grill is a much more formal fine dining restaurant. Not to say their food is not good. One of our friends really loves this place and loves their food. :b Guess we are just not big fine dining fans (you know what I mean, food portion on one plate is really small but exquisite). I really liked my crab salad and truffle cheesecake, but my husband wasn’t a fan of his dishes, especially when we had a three-course dinner and he only got one or two bites for each course served. 

Lots and lots of restaurants that I can introduce to you, but let’s save some for next time. Love food? Then you will love Austin.