Restaurant review: Frank

Oh my heck, y'all. I really wanted to like Frank. Like, saving-our-first-trip-there-for-my-hot-dog-loving-brother's-visit like.

Maybe my wanting to like it is why I was unimpressed with Frank.

Photos to come later, but here's the rundown.

The Husband, Little Brother and I went on a Monday afternoon, well after your typical lunchtime. We walked in and got a table (#12!) with no wait.

The restaurant conversion (from Starlite) isn't totally completed yet, so there's an unfinished feel to the interior. Personally, I think they rushed the opening and, with plenty of bills to pay (I imagine), who could blame them?

We ordered our meals (two hot dogs with spicy mustard and relish, one jackalope and two beer-soaked brats with spicy mustard and kraut) and proceeded to wait. And wait. And wait.

We weren't in a hurry, per se, but we all were so. very. hungry. And the wait seemed a tid long considering what we ordered and that we were the only paying customers in the place.

Then the food arrived. It was fine. Really. Not mind-blowing and not "omg, I have to come back here asap." With the exception of the day-glo green relish (what the heck *was* that stuff?), it all tasted perfectly fine.

I suppose, if you're in the area and in need of a hot dog or brat, go ahead and stop by while they're open. I really can't put this on my "you must eat here" list, which is so sad because I really, really, really wanted to do so. Boo.

Homepage.
Menu.
Drinks.

The prodigals return to NOLA- day one

After an eventful arrival and a few hours without our luggage, the Husband acquiesced and gave the control of our first day to me. Oh, the joy, the glee, the fabulousness of being in control! Hai, welcome to my bloggy-blog, I am a control freak as you shall learn when you stick around.

Yay, very-good-hubby!

Naturally, the first thing a gal wants when she returns to the Crescent City are beignets. And the bestest beignets come from Cafe du Monde. Naturally.

::ahem:: Blogspot, 'sup? Let me upload my peeectures, darn it. Grrrr...

Okay. Maybe we're back. Maybe we even have pictures.

We do! We do have pictures! Hurrah! Hello, Husband. Also, Cafe du Monde.
We skipped the line using an old trick I learned as a college student. The place was packed, as per usual, but I found a table for us right away. Good thing, too, because *someone* told me later that he was prepared to put his foot down if we had to wait in that line. But I won't say who.

Definitely not this guy. Nuh-uh. Look how happy he is with our wee plate of beignets and his orange juice. How can you not love that face?

And, speaking of happy... Cafe au lait: check. Hot beignets: check. Copious amounts of powdered sugar: check. Empty belly: not for long!

Verra happy Ashley-cita: check, checkity-check.

Next up in our series: the French Market, a silver guy and mas!

Restaurant Review: FINO

I chose this restaurant for the Husband's birthday dinner based on a great review from my boss. She has fabulous taste, so I knew that it wouldn't disappoint. And, after making the reservation, the Austin Chronicle named FINO one of the best restaurants in Austin! (2nd best only to Uchi which, believe me, is definitely deserving of the #1 spot.)

FINO from the outside.

Amuse bouche with an aperitif. The aperitif was very herbal tasting, but light and rather complementary to the cool pepper and zucchini/squash salad.

Our first small plate appetizer: fried goat cheese (in a tempura batter) with honey and an red onion relish. Also pictured: un pequito botella de vino. Fab.

Our second small plate: crab and avocado bruchetta. Cool, creamy... what's not to love?

The Husband chose the lamb for his entree. Delicioso! It was served with a roasted red pepper sauce, green beans and feta.

And, I had the roasted chicken breast served over cous-cous with a lemony yogurt sauce. Oh em gee. So good.

We finished off our meal with the much lauded meyer lemon tart, served with fresh blackberries and a blackberry and basil sorbet.

FINO: four very enthusiastic thumbs up.

Snow's BBQ (pictures and review)

Last week, I promised a review and pictures. You know what happens when you put all your pictures on your husband's computer? It takes you another week before you get them onto your flash drive and onto your blog, that's what happens.

Anyway. The Great BBQ Hunt of 2009 started with this little magazine:

This little magazine told us that Snow's BBQ in Lexington, TX was/is the best BBQ in the whole state of Texas. Quite a statement, huh?

Naturally, we had to go check it out.

The Husband outside Snow's.

Ashley-cita outside Snow's. Do not let my glaring whiteness blind you. Also, please note the smile even though A) it's before 9:00am and B) I have not had any coffee.

This lady, Tootsie, gets up at lord knows what hour and gets the fire going in the pits by 3:00am. Three o'clock AM, people. That is dedication.

Hello, yummy, delicious, fantastical BBQ.


Hello, handsome. Please note the two people in front of The Husband. We arrived around 7:45am, and they were already there and waiting.

This door opened at 8:00am on the dot and we gathered up our BBQ (3 lbs of brisket, 1 lb of pork butt, 2 half chickens, 1 pint of potato salad and a cup of coleslaw).


Grumpy face because I had to smell that delicious smoked meat all the way home?! Boo.

The goods all bagged up, but home. Finally.

The feast with the magazine that started it all. See that water bottle? Yeah. That's Snow's BBQ sauce, all bottled up.

See?

A Southern girl knows that the only way to eat BBQ pork is on a white roll with coleslaw and a generous amount of sauce. Yummmmm!
Also pictured: brisket, chicken and potato salad.

To sum, if you're in the area, make a drive out to Lexington and pick up some Snow's BBQ. It's totally worth the early wake-up, honest.

#82: Visit one new restaurant during Austin's Restaurant Week

Completed: 03-04-09

So it's been awhile since I checked off any of my 101 items. I think part of that is due to my workload at this time of year and part of it is due to the ::dun, dun, dun-dun:: economy. The Husband and I are fine, really, just preparing ourselves for what could be a rather protracted recession.

Moving on.

The Austin Restaurant Week menus were released around February 13th, and by the following week, I had made reservations at two restaurants. I finally chose Aquarelle and told The Husband that we had a date. On a Wednesday night. At 8:00pm.

Saying he was shocked would be an understatement as our usual routine is gym, home, dinner, bed by 10pm. Don't be jealous.

We arrived at Aquarelle around 7:30pm, a bit earlier than our reservations. The host said it was not a problem and cleared a table for us right away. After we sat down, I had to explain to The Husband what Austin Restaurant Week is and how the menus work. He was definitely game and intrigued by the concept.

We looked over the menus and I noticed that they were not what had been listed on the restaurant week site. Not a big deal, since the new menu looked just as delicious.

The Husband ordered the salmon tartare (appetizer), scallops (dinner) and profiterole (dessert). I ordered the cauliflower soup (appetizer), sea bass (dinner) and, uh, some cake thing (dessert).

The original menu listed creme brulee as a dessert option, which I love. Seriously. One day I will teach myself to make creme brulee and then The Husband will have to learn to love his fat wife, because that is how much I love this stuff.

Anyway. I asked our server if they had taken it off the menu (durrr) and picked the cake thing as my dessert.

The service at Aquarelle is top notch. From the moment you enter their door to the moment you leave, they are attentive without being overbearing and knowledgeable without being pretentious.

The food. Oh, my lord, the food. The Husband's salmon tartare was so fresh and subtle in flavor. My cauliflower soup was silky with a bit of spice and topped with crispy onions. The scallops were so meaty and dressed with a cream sauce and potato straws. My sea bass was tender and accented with sweet caramelized onions and creamy polenta.

The portions, alone, look a bit small. But, when we left, I felt a bit stuffed and The Husband said that he was perfectly full, not overfull and not still hungry. From the amuse bouche to the dessert, it adds up and is more than sufficiently filling.

Speaking of dessert... When we had finished our entrees, our server came by the table and said, "I spoke to the chef and he said that he could do a creme brulee for you, if you would like."

Would I like?! Does a fish like water?

So, in the end, I got my creme brulee. It was a chocolate creme brulee (I know!) and it was delicious. The custard was soft and velvety. The sugar crust was crisp. Perfect.

Aquarelle is doing some happy hour thing (Tues-Sat, 5-7) on their patio wine bar and a dinner/wine for two for $50, as well. The Husband was so impressed with this restaurant (which, believe me, does not happen often) that he said we should come back and try their happy hour.

I think this means that #82 and my little surprise date was a success. ;-)

#77: Eat at The Salt Lick

Completed 08/30/08

Don't you just love it when you've written a nice, long, well-composed entry and then your husband kills the power to your laptop? No, you don't? Well, I'll never.

Anyway, here's the short version:

1. About three years ago, we stumbled upon The Salt Lick's BBQ sauce in the grocery. It was super-fab and I knew that we'd have to visit the restaurant.

2. The restaurant is in Driftwood, Texas, about 45 minutes to an hour from our home in Austin.

3. It's located in a dry county. Yes, we like our liquor that much, thank you.

4. My parents were coming to visit, so I used the opportunity to drag everyone out of the house at 10:30am with a cooler full of beer for a BBQ feast.

It. Was. Awesome.

I'd supply some photos of my own, except my mother has yet to share with me. It's a rustic little house with a big ol' bar-b-que pit in the front/side and a large dining room in the middle. The brisket was perfectly seasoned and tender. It even beat out the ribs as my favorite part of the plate. Visiting The Salt Lick is totally worth the drive, 100%. It's really truly in the middle of the sticks and we're planning to go back again when The Husband's brother visits next week.

The Salt Lick

Update: 10/29/08
As I wrote above, we did go back to The Salt Lick when V, The Husband's brother, came to visit. It's still awesome and here's some photos: