Lunch with Dos Batos!

First, let me start by saying that this blog is not meant to be a food blog- it just seems that way because I've recently been invited or had the opportunity to go to places I hadn't been before, and it seemed like a prime time to write about them with the new blog. :) There will be plenty of events I will be blogging about, so don't fret! South by Southwest is right around the corner! :)

Now that I've cleared that up, I had lunch at a new place today! Ha ha... 

The area that I work in is a pretty busy area, and there are a ton of restaurants to choose from. I remember seeing a place called Dos Batos right down the street from where I work a few months ago, and thought I needed to try it, but never actually did. Well, today I decided to change that!

Dos Batos prides itself on being "the first wood-fired tacos in Austin", so just seeing that, I was intrigued. I thought to myself, "I don't know that I've ever had a wood-fired taco before" ha ha... There's a first time for everything, and what better time than now, so on my way I went!

Dos Batos is located in a shopping center, so if you're not looking for it, you will miss it! I decided to leave a little before noon to beat the lunch crowd, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that there were only a few people there, and they were already eating! Lucky for me, I did not have to wait in line, and I was greeted by a smiling face ready to take my order!

The menu is fairly simple, and if you are looking for tons of selections, this is not the place for you. It does, however, cover the basics- steak, carnitas, fish, and veggie tacos and they come in Jr. or Large sizes. For my order today, I went with the Pirata taco- a wood-fire grilled steak taco stuffed with avocado and cheese. I actually ordered the combo which includes a drink, and a cup of charro bean soup. I decided to take my food to go, but still had to wait for my order to be made, so I had some time to look around.

The place isn't very big at all, but it's nice. The tables and chairs are all white, and look like something straight out of an IKEA catalog. By far, the most interesting thing I saw while I was waiting was the huge mural on the wall of two characters- one, a Pancho Villa type man- the other, a Japanese Samurai. What a weird combination, right? I thought so, too, then thought, "Keep Austin Weird". Man, I LOVE this city!

Finally, my order was ready- it really only took about 10 minutes, but I made useful of my time there by looking around. Obviously. :)

The smell of smoked wood filled my car, and I couldn't wait to get back to work and dig in!! Once I arrived, I opened my plate, and saw a very large taco, accompanied with my cup of charro beans,  tortilla chips, salsa, and of all things random, a fortune cookie! 

The food was still really warm since I'm just right down the road, and the taco was tightly wrapped in foil to keep the heat in. My Pirata taco was excellent! It was full of yummy, smoky flavor, seasoned just right, and the cheese and avocado added a warm, creamy taste that was perfection! I put some of the salsa on my taco, which was also served warm, and it added a spicy kick to an already great taco! The tortilla was grilled on the outside, so it had just the right amount of crisp and chewiness! The charro bean soup was fantastic, too! I already LOVE charro beans, but this soup had so much flavor due to the added bits of meat and salsa in it! I could  have eaten a bowl of this soup all by itself and been completely satisfied! The chips were nice and crunchy and perfectly salted! I don't usually spend 10 bucks on lunch, but for everything I got and the quality of the food- it was worth it! I may try the Ostin taco next which is just the Pirata, but with a mix of wood-fired vegetables. YUM!! 

Overall, I'd say I had a delicious lunch, and the only thing that could have made it better was to have some good company join me! This place is definitely dubbed an "Austin Original" in my book!! I hope you get a chance to check it out some time! 

Until next time, friends! 

Dos Batos
2525 W. Anderson Lane Suite 175
Austin, TX 78757
(512) 452-0001
http://www.dosbatos.com/home.php

 

The Salt Lick!!!

The great thing about doing one fun thing a week, is that every once in a while, I don't have to look for something fun to do- the fun just comes to me! :) On this particular weekend, it was my friend Ajay's birthday, and he decided he wanted to go to The Salt Lick for his birthday dinner. Since I had never been there, I thought this would be a great time to check it out!

Even though The Salt Lick is not located in Austin, I still think it's noteworthy. The original Salt Lick is located in Driftwood, TX- about 40 miles outside of Austin. At first I thought that 40 miles was quite a drive for some BBQ, but I soon found out that it was well worth the drive! 

We went on a Saturday afternoon around 5, and when we pulled into the parking lot, I was shocked at how packed it was! I thought we would never find any parking, but luckily someone pulled out right when I was driving by, so I was able to get a spot pretty easily. When we walked up to the entrance, I was surprised to see so many people waiting, eating, sitting, drinking- everything! There were literally hundreds of people spread out all over the place! Most of them waiting with a beer or mixed drink in their hand! The cool thing about The Salt Lick is that it's BYOB- people can bring the drink of their choice, whether it be beer or a bottle of liquor. From what I could tell, most people took advantage of the BYOB policy, and I saw people with coolers, cases of beer, and plenty of bottles of liquor! Our group had also taken advantage of it! We had plenty of bottles and beer to go around! :) 

Since me and the birthday boy had arrived super later (oops), we had friends already waiting for us, and they were able to put their name on the list to get seated. By the time we arrived, we only had to wait about 10 minutes before our table of 14 was seated! My suggestion, though, to anyone deciding to take a trip out there- get there early if you don't like long waits because the lines are very long, and the wait is at least an hour depending on the size of the group. 

The Salt Lick looks very much like what you would think a BBQ joint should look like. It's very casual, there are both indoor and outdoor seating, all of which consists of picnic tables. The place is pretty big, so there is definitely enough room for everyone who shows up, and it's also very organized- there is a check in station when you get there, and another station when your table is called. From what I could tell, everything runs quite smoothly on a daily basis, and the staff is very friendly! 

When walking in, we passed this amazing open pit of all the barbecue that they serve there! There was sausage, brisket, ribs, and chicken all around the smoking pit, and it smelled amazing. Obviously, they have bigger pits in the back somewhere because although there was a lot of barbecue out, it wasn't nearly enough for all the people that were eating there. It was quite entertaining to see, actually, and I felt like a tourist trying to get a picture, but didn't feel so bad when I saw everyone else trying to get one too! :) 

We finally got to our table, and we were immediately greeted by a very friendly waitress who was on top of her game! Our whole party hadn't arrived yet, but as soon as someone showed up, she was right there ready to take their order! As busy as The Salt Lick is, I was really impressed with her service- it was fantastic! I should mention that The Salt Lick in Driftwood is cash only, but if you forget or don't know (like me), there is an ATM machine ready to remedy that! It's always easier to remember to get cash, though, because those pesky fees are no fun, and can get expensive! 

The menu is fairly simple: you can get a plate of your choice of barbecue, or you can get the family style dinner which includes all you can eat pork ribs, brisket, sausage, and burnt ends. It also comes with potatoes, coleslaw, beans, and rolls. The family style platter is $19.95 a person, and goes a really long way! The people I was sitting with all decided we'd try that since we all agreed we wanted to try everything! The waitress literally kept bringing as much meat as we wanted! We didn't have to get all of the same thing every time, either. If we wanted more brisket than sausage, we could get it, or more ribs than brisket- no problem! 

The barbecue was absolutely AMAZING!!! I loved everything, but my favorite was the pork ribs- they were so tender, and fell right off the bone! They were flavorful and delicious!!! The brisket was also very tender, flavorful, and you could tell it was smoked for a very long time because you could taste it!! I am a big fan of barbecue (what Texan isn't?), and I have to say this is one of the best barbecue places I've ever eaten! 

We all had a fantastic time at The Salt Lick- great company, great atmosphere, fantastic service, and out of this world barbecue! What more could I ask for?! When the bill arrived, it was all on one check, so we all just pitched in our portion (tip included) and paid the tab. By the time we got up to leave, it was a much cooler and night time, and people were still arriving to eat! The place never stops being busy! 

If you are looking for a nice, family-friendly place on any day- The Salt Lick is the place to go! It should definitely be on your list of places to visit! I was glad I went, and I can't wait for my family to come into town so I can take them- I know they'll love it! Until next time, friends! 

The "Original" Salt Lick
18300 FM 1826
Driftwood, TX 78619
http://www.saltlickbbq.com/

French Quarter Grille

In the spirit of Mardi Gras, (and also because my friend Bryan gave me a $25 gift certificate), my friend Laura and I decided to  try a Cajun restaurant called French Quarter Grille for dinner one night. I had heard about the place, and I had it on my list of places to check out, and when Bryan mentioned a $25 gift certificate, I was all in! 

We arrived to the restaurant around 8:30- greeted by a friendly face, and told that the wait was about 25 minutes. The place is much smaller than I thought it would be, and it's located in the most random places. It's located in a Wal-Mart shopping center! Apparently, that didn't matter because there were plenty of people eating, and many more waiting! 

We were finally seated at a table covered with a white linen table cloth- the chairs, solid black. The walls adorned Mardi Gras memorabilia and the restaurant had an overall New Orleans vibe! We were greeted by a waitress who immediately took our drink order and served us with some warm french bread rolls and garlic butter. When it was time to order, Laura and I both started with a house salad- I picked the jalapeno ranch dressing for mine, and Laura chose the house vinagerette- both made in house. 

Since the menu is focused on a cajun style meal, a lot of the selections included some type of seafood. I am not a big fan of seafood, but I thought I'd try a dish with maybe just a little taste of it. I ordered a dish called Chicken Oscar- a blackened chicken breast, topped with crab meat and served on top of a lemon cream butter sauce with asparagus spears. For the sides, spicy cabbage, and mashed potatoes. Since Laura isn't a big fan of seafood either, she went with the Grilled Chicken Pesto atop cheese tortellini.

Already super impressed with the freshness and deliciousness of the house salad (which, by the way, had shaved parmesean!), I couldn't wait for my meal to arrive! Once our meals arrived, I thought to myself, "this is way too pretty to eat", quickly took a picture of the presentation and then dug right in! ha ha! Chicken and crab seemed like an odd combination to me, but oddly enough, it worked very well together! The chicken was tender and juicy while the crab was creamy and fresh! The lemon butter sauce is what really brought all the flavors together. The mashed potatoes had a nice, spicy, cajun kick and were creamy, buttery, and melted in my mouth! The spicy cabbage and asparagus added a crunch to every bite! I didn't try Laura's meal, but hers looked just as good as mine (mine was better), and she said it was delicious! :)

Once we finished stuffing our faces, it was time for the check, and thanks to my friend Bryan, we had a $25 gift certificate we could use with the purchase of $45 or more- courtesy of Restaurant.com! Our whole bill- two salads, two drinks, and two entrees plus tax came out to about $47. I don't usually eat that expensive, but with the $25 gift certificate, we each ended up paying about $11 for our meals- tip not included, but still, a really great deal, I thought! The quality and freshness of the food was well worth it, and I would have paid full price for it, but glad that I didn't have to! :) 

French Quarter Grille definitely gets an A in my book- the service was great, the atmosphere was nice, and the food was fantastic! If you're like me and don't really eat at the higher priced places, I definitely recommend checking out Restaurant.com- they have some great deals on really good places around town! Until next time, friends! :)

French Quarter Grille

13000 N I-35, Bldg 2
Ste 600
Austin, Texas 78753
http://www.frenchquartergrilleaustin.com/

Castle Hill Graffiti and a little Tex-Mex...

Since my first blog entries last week, a few people have asked me to let them know what I do next so maybe they can tag along. As much as I didn't mind doing things solo last weekend, I figured it would probably be a lot more fun if someone came with me. So with that, I asked my friend Johanna to come along on my next venture. :)

Still reeling from the artistic dramatization of the Cirque du Soleil movie, I wanted to see more art, but this time, art around the city. Since I knew my friend had just started taking photography classes, I knew she would appreciate this particular venture.

I had read about Castle Hill Graffiti, also know as, Austin Graffiti Park, Castle Hill, Graffiti on Baylor...you get the picture, it's known by many different names. Anyway, we started our morning around noon this past Saturday, and it was the most perfect day- EVER!! It wasn't too hot, and it wasn't cold by any means, and the sun was shining beautifully down on us!

I had an address for the place, but didn't exactly know where it was located, so I relied on the GPS on my cell to get us where we were going! I'm glad I did too because I would have never found the place without it! The "park" is located on a tiny street in between two big streets, and it's almost like it's on a hill, hence the name, Castle Hill Graffiti.

When we arrived there were not very many people there, and even though the place is around the downtown area, you would never have guessed it because it was so serene. It was really peaceful, and the people that were there, were doing the same as my friend and I- taking it all in. Every wall was something different, something creative, something colorful and completely AUSTIN. While most of it made no sense to me, I couldn't help but wonder what the artists' inspiration was at the time he or she created it.

I learned that the walls change often, and artists' have to get permission to paint over a space- a way to be "heard", but still respect others' work. I don't know if there is a time limit on how long art can stay up, but I think it's really  neat that graffiti artists' can share their work in a common area where no one gets in trouble.  I wonder if what we saw this weekend will still be there next weekend. Probably not, but that's the beauty of it!!

I took a few pictures with my phone, but my friend had her very professional camera, as most others there, so she went and took quite a few more pics than I. While she did that, I stood in awe of all of the colors, words, and "tags" on the walls. We even saw a couple of artists working on a wall, and as much as I wanted to have a chat with them, I decided against it because I didn't want to mess with their creative flow. :)

More people started to arrive while we were there, so we took a few more pictures, and decided we'd get out of the way and let the others enjoy the wall, just as we did.

After leaving Castle Hill Graffiti, we decided to go grab a bite to eat at a little Tex-Mex place called Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina. I had been to Santa Rita many times before, but decided I'd go because I was craving some yummy chips and salsa, and they have the BEST! I used to frequent the place because my last job is located right across the street, but I hadn't been in such a long time because I am hardly on that side of town anymore. Saturday seemed like the perfect day to revisit for a nice lunch!

I ordered the Santa Rita plate, which is one chicken taco and one chicken enchilada with rice and beans.My friend ordered the Tacos al Pastor, which are always a great choice! I've always liked Santa Rita, not only for the food, but because they have some really authentic, very Austin-like decor around the restaurant. For example, probably the most peculiar thing in the place is an entire wall covered with wooden shoes. While I don't really understand the significance behind the wall of wooden shoes, I can appreciate it. If nothing else, it really makes the restaurant a memorable one! :)

After lunch, I had other plans with other friends, so we decided to head home for the day.

It's really nice taking a few hours out of the day to just go out and explore, and I'm really glad that I started this project because I'm loving it, and the places/ things it's making me see and do.  Below are the addresses for both the graffiti park and Santa Rita. Oh, and few pics to go along with them! Until next time, friends!

Castle Hill Graffiti                                                             Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina
1100 Baylor St.                                                                1206 W. 38th St.
Austin, TX 78701                                                             Austin, TX 78756