My First Blog. (Since Xanga).

This is my first official blog, although arguably I blogged incessantly throughout middle school on xanga. Oh my, those were the days. I've been having lots of half-cracked ideas running through my head lately; they especially like to ambush me when I lay down for bed at night. It's like I'm put into an accidental trance... I'm so exhausted that I can't move, yet my mind races. Can't move, can't sleep. I'm hoping that starting this blog will cut down on those situations, since I really am quite a fan of sleep :).




Random picture of Dixie looking innocent. Haha. ;)


I've recently decided to get out of my "Chili's" routine every time I go out to dinner. It's my fall-back restaurant, and it's starting to get boring (especially with so many local places around). So it has become my new mission to slowly but surely try out a list of restaurants in Austin. I emphasize SLOWLY, because I usually go out to eat less than twice a month.

Here is the list:
1. Threadgill's
2. Chuy's
3. Guero's
4. Alamo Drafthouse
5. Opal Divine's
6. Kerby Lane
7. Salvation Pizza
8. Magnolia Cafe
9. The Clay Pit
10. Madam Mam's
11. Cain & Abel's
12. Plucker's
13. Cuatro's
14. The Salt Lick
15. Fogo de Chao (ok, so not local, but I've still been wanting to try it!)
16. Estancia's
17. El Arroyos
18. Iron Cactus
19. South Congress Cafe
20. Roaring Fork
21. EZ's Diner
22. Huts Hamburgers
23. Dan's Hamburgers
24. Fran's Hamburgers -- Dan and Fran were actually married for a few decades, before getting divorced and opening competing hamburger joints!
25. Reds
26. Doc's
27. Stubb's BBQ
28. Spiderhouse
29. Sao Paolo's
30. Hyde Park Bar & Grill
31. Mother's
32. Romeo's
33. Russell's
34. Hula Hut
35. Oasis
36. Torchy's Tacos
37. Bone Daddy's
38. Z Tejas
39. Casino El Camino
40. County Line
41. Cover 3
42. Third Base
43. The Boiling Pot
44. The Mellow Mushroom
45. Home Slice Pizza


Ok, so I fudged the list a little bit. I've actually been to a few of these places (although they're on the list because I definitely want to go at least one more time).

I might as well give a quick review of the places I've already been to. What is this, now? Am I blogging restaurant reviews from now on? Oh well. *shrug

OPAL DIVINE'S: Amazing, amazing, amazing. Okay, so I'm talking about the alcohol selection here. Over 25 imported draught beers. 40+ types of tequila. This place has THE largest drink selection I've seen from a restaurant, ever. I think they boast 100+ beers on tap, but don't quote me on that. I began with the Live Oak Primus (on tap, of course). It was a dark, rich beer. Delicious, but definitely packs a punch to the taste buds. The menu hinted at tastes of "clove and banana". Unfortunately my descriptions of beer lack complexity :(... but I can tell you at 8% alcohol, I definitely felt "happy" after finishing my first one.

Side note: Live oak is a local brewery that is too small to bottle their drinks, but they've acquired land a little further out from the city and have plans to expand in a few years. And from then on, will commence bottling! :D. Overjoyed. I worship the Live Oak company and their mastery of crafting beers.

Kay, back to the restaurant. Has a great atmosphere. I went at night and the inside of the restaurant was fairly dim, which created a sense of intimacy... and a promising place to take a date. Very relaxed and trendy -- two things that typically don't correlate well. I ordered myself a tuna melt -- which was good but somewhat forgettable -- and a side of homestyle macaroni and cheese, which was incredibly awesome. After that, ordered a 512 Pecan Porter (another local company). Although I haven't tried many porters, I was attracted to the promise of local pecan-infused flavor. It was dark and delicious, despite smelling oddly like the Arabic supermarket. Smelled like olives to me for some reason, haha. But tasted like dark chocolate and pecans. It was smoother and easier to drink than the Primus, although the Primus still ranks higher in my opinion.

I ordered apple cobbler, but unfortunately realized I was completely full as soon as it arrived at the table. I had to force myself to take a bite, just to try it fresh, before quickly shoving it into a to-go box.



My decent tuna melt, excellent macaroni, and my 512 Pecan Porter :)



Daniel enjoying his Devil's Backbone Three Ridges Belgian Triple. It's a mouthful (pun intended, har har).



Anyways, moving on....

Reggae fest was awesome this weekend, although I wish I could have spent more time there. A couple hours really wasn't enough for me. But I'm really glad we went ahead and brought those folding chairs... it was nice to have somewhere to sit other than muddy ground! I WOULD have had longer to enjoy it, had I not spent a good portion of my morning waiting for a friend who decided never to show up, without much explanation. And definitely with no apology.

This is a short video I got of a mustached man dancing in the mud. He danced for HOURS. I wish I had the energy that this guy has hahahha. Unfortunately I caught a clip of him when he wasn't as into the dancing as he'd been previously, but at least it gives you an idea of the Reggae Fest atmosphere!