September 27, 2009

Sushi Showdown

After having a great experience at Pirhana next door to Max’s we thought we’d try Zushi Sushi next to Mean Eyed Cat. Pirhana:P Terry::Zushi:McD’s. In other words if you are looking for downtown sushi, skip Zushi and head to Pirhana-an all around better experience.

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Sushi Showdown

After having a great experience at Pirhana next door to Max’s we thought we’d try Zushi Sushi next to Mean Eyed Cat. Pirhana:P Terry’s::Zushi:McD’s. In other words if you are looking for downtown sushi, skip Zushi and head to Pirhana which is an all around better experience.

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September 26, 2009

Public Service Announcement: Max's Wine Dive

We went to Max’s to try to their new “lunch” yesterday and found out its not lunch at all, but rather their regular dinner menu. Their prices are high to begin with and especially for lunch when everyone else in town has a separate lunch menu. Don’t be fooled.

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September 25, 2009
Homemade, healthy fish & chips Panko crusted cod with sweet potato fries. See, we do cook!

Homemade, healthy fish & chips

Panko crusted cod with sweet potato fries. See, we do cook!

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August 30, 2009
Counter Cafe The recent Texas Monthly hype over Counter’s burger (they rank it #2 on the top 50 list) has made it even more difficult to snag a table at this tiny Lamar diner. Neverthess, it’s a fun place for lunch/ brunch when you’re not in a hurry. We haven’t tried the burger yet, but Nick’s parents did and loved it. They recommend the wheat bun and to definitely go for sweet potato fries as the side. Their endorsement is good enough for us and we’ll be trying the burger soon since we are already fans of the pimiento cheese sandwich. Our one complaint is that the the cafe’s tagline, “Local Food, Global Love,” doesn’t exactly apply to the loveless, bare bones service…par for the course in Austin though.

Counter Cafe

The recent Texas Monthly hype over Counter’s burger (they rank it #2 on the top 50 list) has made it even more difficult to snag a table at this tiny Lamar diner. Neverthess, it’s a fun place for lunch/ brunch when you’re not in a hurry. We haven’t tried the burger yet, but Nick’s parents did and loved it. They recommend the wheat bun and to definitely go for sweet potato fries as the side. Their endorsement is good enough for us and we’ll be trying the burger soon since we are already fans of the pimiento cheese sandwich. Our one complaint is that the the cafe’s tagline, “Local Food, Global Love,” doesn’t exactly apply to the loveless, bare bones service…par for the course in Austin though.

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August 29, 2009
Thai Fresh We tried Thai Fresh located in the heart of 78704 on South Fifth for lunch yesterday and were quite pleased. They only serve prepared foods from a case, think Whole Foods, but exclusively thai cuisine. The pricing options perplexed us so we tried both ways. One is by number of entrees/sides and the other is per pound. We each had 3 dishes, 1 protein and 2 sides. By the pound, it was $8.50 and the “choose 3” was $10.29, a curious price. All 6 dishes were very well done and even reheated tasted great (they nuke the dishes for you). They source all of their ingredients locally though the sriracha is straight from Thailand, and better than the famous green capped Huy Fong, made in LA. He says: Hippy meets Hua Hin at this Southeast Asian Southside Austin no frills high flavor establishment. She says: The flavors were satisfying allowing you to eat less but be fulfilled.

Thai Fresh

We tried Thai Fresh located in the heart of 78704 on South Fifth for lunch yesterday and were quite pleased. They only serve prepared foods from a case, think Whole Foods, but exclusively thai cuisine. The pricing options perplexed us so we tried both ways. One is by number of entrees/sides and the other is per pound. We each had 3 dishes, 1 protein and 2 sides. By the pound, it was $8.50 and the “choose 3” was $10.29, a curious price.

All 6 dishes were very well done and even reheated tasted great (they nuke the dishes for you). They source all of their ingredients locally though the sriracha is straight from Thailand, and better than the famous green capped Huy Fong, made in LA.

He says: Hippy meets Hua Hin at this Southeast Asian Southside Austin no frills high flavor establishment.

She says: The flavors were satisfying allowing you to eat less but be fulfilled.

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August 22, 2009
Bennu Looking for a 24 hour coffee shop near dowtown? Bennu is located on East MLK a mile or so east of the UT ballpark. It has pizza from Hoboken Pies and other tasty snacks from various local purveyors. Their ‘bennu iced coffee’ roasted with pecans is delish.

Bennu

Looking for a 24 hour coffee shop near dowtown? Bennu is located on East MLK a mile or so east of the UT ballpark. It has pizza from Hoboken Pies and other tasty snacks from various local purveyors. Their ‘bennu iced coffee’ roasted with pecans is delish.

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August 21, 2009

Frank Bruni Interview

Big thanks to Mike Sutter (Austin American-Statesman food critic) for asking Frank Bruni (New York Times food critic) a question for us in a recent interview.

Mike Sutter: We asked readers through Twitter if they had questions for you. Here’s one: ‘I would love to know what unique characteristics are common among great restaurants. What makes what might be an otherwise “good” restaurant “great”?’

Frank Bruni: This isn’t a particularly original answer. But the characteristic that is most common to great restaurants is they approach every dinner service and they approach every order they get as a chance at perfection. They set the bar really high.

Check out the full Q&A here: http://www.austin360.com/food_drink/content/food_drink/stories/2009/08/0819bruni.html

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August 20, 2009
Piranha Killer Sushi We tried Piranha for lunch today which opened recently next to Max’s Wine Dive. (1) I must say, best fish I have had in a long time. At least as good, if not better, than Uchi. Don’t get me wrong: I am not talking about decor (which is quite nice), service (which was quite average in absolute terms but better than average in Austin) or the rest of the menu, but strictly the sashimi, which was transcendent. The escolar, salmon and tuna literally melts in your mouth. The $12.95 sashimi bento was worth it because of the proteins but the “daily salads” (one of which the waiter forgot to bring, but offered a dessert on the house after the fact) and the california roll (imitation crab!! and poorly rolled) were ho-hum. That being said, I think this is the best sushi in downtown Austin - leagues above Maiko, Kenichi and Kyoto (duh) and a little better but more affordable than Yu Sushi Izagaya. (1) Max’s mini review: good for happy hour but not much else.

Piranha Killer Sushi

We tried Piranha for lunch today which opened recently next to Max’s Wine Dive. (1) I must say, best fish I have had in a long time. At least as good, if not better, than Uchi. Don’t get me wrong: I am not talking about decor (which is quite nice), service (which was quite average in absolute terms but better than average in Austin) or the rest of the menu, but strictly the sashimi, which was transcendent. The escolar, salmon and tuna literally melts in your mouth. The $12.95 sashimi bento was worth it because of the proteins but the “daily salads” (one of which the waiter forgot to bring, but offered a dessert on the house after the fact) and the california roll (imitation crab!! and poorly rolled) were ho-hum. That being said, I think this is the best sushi in downtown Austin - leagues above Maiko, Kenichi and Kyoto (duh) and a little better but more affordable than Yu Sushi Izagaya.

(1) Max’s mini review: good for happy hour but not much else.

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August 19, 2009
Trip to Lockhart with the Parents We recently were convinced by Nick’s parents to make the quick juant from Austin to Kruez Market in Lockhart. It took a little nudging since we love the bbq joint that’s two steps from our place, Iron Works, and can’t get enough of their two bbq sauces and brontosaurus ribs. The verdict is in though and Kreuz is well worth the trip. One can go without sauce when the meat is salted properly. The tender pork ribs and spicy jalapeño cheese sausage are stand outs. The sides lack vibrancy though, so we recommend sticking with the meat. A few last tips: 1) make sure to dress lightly or bring a friend to fetch your meat for you…you order and pick up that meat at unbearably hot bbq pits (pictured above) and 2) BYOP…P for plastic silverware if you don’t want your fingers to smell smoky for a good few days. He says: Best pork ribs I’ve ever had - loved the peppercorn crust - save the trip and stay in Austin for brisket. She says: It’s the perfect cure for sleep deprivation. After eating, I immediately passed out for two hours. There’s got to be something dangerous in that dry rub!

Trip to Lockhart with the Parents

We recently were convinced by Nick’s parents to make the quick juant from Austin to Kruez Market in Lockhart. It took a little nudging since we love the bbq joint that’s two steps from our place, Iron Works, and can’t get enough of their two bbq sauces and brontosaurus ribs.

The verdict is in though and Kreuz is well worth the trip. One can go without sauce when the meat is salted properly. The tender pork ribs and spicy jalapeño cheese sausage are stand outs. The sides lack vibrancy though, so we recommend sticking with the meat. A few last tips: 1) make sure to dress lightly or bring a friend to fetch your meat for you…you order and pick up that meat at unbearably hot bbq pits (pictured above) and 2) BYOP…P for plastic silverware if you don’t want your fingers to smell smoky for a good few days.

He says: Best pork ribs I’ve ever had - loved the peppercorn crust - save the trip and stay in Austin for brisket.

She says: It’s the perfect cure for sleep deprivation. After eating, I immediately passed out for two hours. There’s got to be something dangerous in that dry rub!

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