Austin shots

A dreary day out there. Fog, drizzle. Not yet spring, though I suppose we should be grateful for no snow and for a day wherein staying inside and doing the daunting amount of housework doesn't seem too too bad.

So we've done laundry, picked up many of the piles, dusted, vacuumed, swept, mopped, cleaned the bathrooms, thrown things away and recycled others. Time for a break. Until tomorrow. And while on pause, an opportunity to post some last photos from last weekend in Austin. No particular stories to tell, just shots of a great city to visit and a very very relaxing weekend.

vanity, part 387,296

Oh, I am vain. I know. But I cannot help it. I mean look. Just look:



Is that not a cute hoodie that I picked up at this store in Austin this past weekend? And wait until the weather is right for me to wear the short sleeve shirts I got. Size small, I will add. No longer being an enormous tub of goo is kind of nice.

(yes, yes, someone smack me for being so bloody self-involved)

a fine evening indeed

I met AJ on a plane a handful of years ago. We were on our way back from ALA Midwinter in Philadelphia, and he and a friend were connecting through Chicago. We struck up conversation over the poor weather anticipated and over the His Dark Materials trilogy AJ recommended to me.

Since then he and I have had meals together at conferences and in Austin, where he and his wife and children live. Holly was through Chicago last fall, in fact, and she, Conrad, and I had a very enjoyable lunch at the Art Institute.

Good people, and they like food. Our kind of people.

Conrad and I didn't have many set plans at all for this past weekend in Austin. We'd talked - not seriously - about an escape out to the Hill Country, but Austin is such an enjoyable city that I wanted to stay put in town. So we did, and the only thing we arranged was meeting up with AJ and Holly. How delightfully serendipitous that Holly's parents were in town, too, that weekend. Babysitters! We planned a full dinner night out.

We got off to an early start, happy hour at a place called Parkside. Cocktails (great choices, but I chose not too well, and while the first of my two cocktails was fine, it wasn't really what I thought it would be), ceviche, and some calamari. Pacing ourselves. Catching up on what's been going on, toasting all the good events in our lives. A fun start to the evening.




The main event was La Condesa. As soon as AJ suggested good Mexican, I was soooo there. I didn't even consult Conrad, just said yes, we're going.

The restaurant is a higher end Mexican with dishes all over the map. We could have opted for some great main courses (the description of the chiles rellenos was oh-so-seductive, but not quite seductive enough). Instead, we got a pitcher of margaritas and ordered two small plates each plus three vegetable sides. Sharing it all, we got a great taste of a wide range of very good food.

My favourites? The elote was a huge winner. One cob for each couple. We could have had only that, and we would have been more than thrilled. The huaraches with mushrooms including huitlacoche were also a hit. I will order that fungus whenever I can, I think. The pork belly (not pictured) stuffed with quail was also a small miracle.

And the dessert. I'm glad I left it up to AJ and Holly to decide because I generally don't bother with chocolate desserts in restaurants. I live chocolate, but often it bores me in restaurants. Oh, not this. A layer of caramel hidden under that dark chocolate, and the edge of sea salt to lift it all higher. Mmmmm. So good!



We had such an exceptional night. Somewhere around 10ish, well over 4 hours after we started out, we hopped in pedi-cabs to head back to the hotel (blurry, nighttime iPhone shots while en route).





The night came to and end, but it just means - I hope - that we have to make another visit back and dine out with AJ and Holly again!

favourite cuisine

If asked, I can answer easily. No, sorry, despite my recent (and ongoing even) outburst of patriotism, my favourite cuisine is not Canadian. Oh sure, I love me some good butter tarts and Nanaimo bars. But no.

If asked, I will always say Mexican. Hands down. Is it any wonder why I love being in Chicago, home of the Baylesses' restaurants?

Last weekend I indulged in Mexican a little closer to that country. Conrad and I were in Austin for the weekend (well, he was there longer). I have a longer post to write about our especially good dinner with AJ and Holly, but for now, a breakfast treat, huevos motuleños.



I had this dish for breakfast at Güero's Taco Bar on South Congress. Great, funky part of town (and I really do recommend a trip to Austin if you've never been). The breakfast was quite fine (and when I reminded the waitress of the side order of chorizo, it was even better). Still, I can't help but think a little wistfully of the days of Don Diego's when Dick would make this dish. His version had the bananas, and peas, for that matter. Really, I've never had a version so good. The quest, however, is delicious to undertake...

lunch with Diego

Last Texas post for the night. I'm tackling the easy ones and leaving the longer Fredericksburg narrative for tomorrow or beyond. Only so much I can do!

At the end of our weekend, on Sunday, we returned to Austin. Our flight was late afternoon, so we had a good amount of time to drop in on AJ and Holly, see their home, and meet Diego, their young son. The three of them then took the two of us to a busy Mexican restaurant called Polvo's. The food was fine, of course - I had the chile relleno al Nogal, Holly had the enchiladas de la casa, Conrad had a chicken fajita, and AJ had the beef fajita. Big portions, tasty food.

Diego? Applesauce, and beans adulterated with some salsa. I think AJ and Holly are wise to get him to acquire a taste for spicy food at an early age. Also, the kid is incredibly charming and well-behaved, truly.



I didn't get any photos of Holly, I am sorry to say. Next time!

Austin (delayed, quick wrap up)

Busy life. Bad cold. You've heard these excuses from me before. On to the Austin photos from the end of March/start of April before I blog the recent Vancouver trip. It's that anal-librarian-chronological order thing I have.

So then, let's see...

...arrived on a gloomy Friday and the threat of much rain.



Dinner that night was at Truluck's. In retrospect, the crab cake we shared and the simply prepared Gulf snapper with chef's toppings were not masterworks of cuisine, but gosh darn was it what I was wanting that night. We ate better in Austin, but that night, after going a week without seeing Conrad, I was having the most wonderful time of it.



Threat of rain? Threat of sunburn! A shame that the cold I still have or allergies or something was again kicking me around (that makes three weekends out of town this year when I've been under the weather. Grrr!) because the sunshine was lovely. After breakfast we walked around the University of Texas campus, taking photos and buying a few t-shirts. Conrad is an alum, after all!









We managed to get an early reservation at a place called Wink that sounded promising. Was it ever! I'll single out Debra, the waitress, as the single best thing about the place, and that's high praise. Many wines by the glass - and she offered us some tastings before we settled on our choices. Who knew I'd like the Italian red so much? The food was delightful as well, gaining in strength as the evening luxuriously unrolled. Spinach salad with granny smith apple, toasted walnuts, baby leeks, and rochetta buttermilk:

Vermouth steamed PEI mussels with verjus pickled garlic and tomato confit:

Dayboat scallops on endive and roasted muscat grape salad with foie gras vinaigrette:

Seared quail breast on fava bean and baby arugula salad with roasted tomato vinaigrette:

Butter basted skatewing with caramelized salsify, spring shallots, and caper pan sauce:

Happy, still sniffling some...


... I made it through to the cheese course before the dessert, which we devoured before we thought to take photos.


I'm embarrassed I can't remember the name of the coffeehouse/diner where we ate breakfast at the counter the next day, but I thought the Coca Cola Cake looked like a hoot. Made with the pop itself. Ah well, I shouldn't laugh: my birthday cake every year was mayonnaise cake.


Between breakfast and the airport we wandered in and around the Capitol. It's a handsome complex, decorated with stars and the state name as much as possible. One surprise was seeing amongst the portraits of Texan governors the face of a woman - back in the 1920s. Elected again in the 1930s. Texas is more progressive than stereotypes might make you think, I guess.