NewYorkTexan

The menu is still evolving, but here is the initial draft: Start with a plated arugula and orange salad with parmesan pecans and black fig vinaigrette. I will top the salad with the incredible micro greens I found at the farmers market. (if you live in Austin, you gotta visit those guys from Bella Verdi Farms at the Westlake market) served with cranberry royales (kinda like kir royales but you know...) on the buffet.... A Smoked Turkey from the Greenbergs (this family run farm in Tyler makes the best smoked turkey, period) A deep fried turkey earl grey tea & lemon gravy roasted and spiced baby carrots fresh cranberry salsa mashed yams with bourbon and marshmallows (boring I know, but need to include to maintain a healthy marriage) roasted broccoli with Ancho butter serving with 2000 Kunin Santa Maria Syrah apple pie biscotti (I will make 2 kinds, raisan hazelnut and cinamon black pepper) another dessert that I have not figured out yet served with a 1997 Tobin James Charisma, a dessert zinfandel from paso robles friends will be bringing stuffing, sweet cranberry sauce and other sides.

I like the plate.. Did you get the blue plate at Fisher Eddies? ← Actually we got these plates at a place in Chicago near Wrigley Field. The plates we usually use are from Fishs Eddy, Oval Manhattan Blue Plate Special plates. We have the entire set including my favorite, the jumbo cups and saucers.

Playing with a new toy, this is my first post on this thread. Grilled Salmon with a spicy dry rub Salmon on the grill. The bacon had nothing to do with dinner, since the grill was going I figured I might as well through some Nueske bacon on the it. On the platter with tots as a side Plated. There was a garlic butter sauce

OK, all this talk about tots got me motivated to go to Sonic for lunch. Even though I have lived in Texas for 7 years and have never been to Sonic before. With great enthusiasm I went to the local drive-in restaurant. Who the hell designed the menu, Boston Scientific ...Guidant.... I ordered the Extreme Tots, a nacho like item that had cheese, ranch dressing, chili, Jalapeños and some other stuff on a bed of tater tots. This had potential! I could not help but wonder how much better this would be with quality ingredients. The cheap cheese and flavorless chili hurt, but at $2.99 how much can I complain. It paired perfectly with a cherry coke. I think this calls for some experimenting this weekend with a Costco bag of tater tots and quality toppings.

I think there has been a noticeable decline in the overall quality of airline food over the past three years as the airlines look to squeeze more costs out of the business. The other day I was bumped from business class on a shanghai to San Francisco flight and experience the most frightening of food experiences. Even in economy you hope to have something that passes for edible eats during this 11 hour flight. First meal service, chicken (at least that was what it was labeled) in a generic brown sauce served on a bed of undercooked rice. This was accompanied by a wilted lettuce salad and a piece overly sweet sheet cake. Second meal service consisted of a bowl of Raman noodles and a green banana. It was surreal to watch the attendants going down the aisles with pitchers of boiling water to fill up your Styrofoam bowl. I have nothing against the raman noodles, but these sucked! third meal service was yogurt and a piece of cardboard masquerading as a danish. It has been a while since I have flown economy class on international flights, but this meal service was unconscionable. On a side note, the economy plus seats on United gives you plenty of leg room. Thankfully I had time before my connecting flight to get a decent breakfast at Lori's Dinner in the international terminal. Good hasbrowns at the airport...what a nice surprise. On the outbound flight, the business class meal service was good, unspectacular but good. Does anyone have experience with the meals available for purchase that several airlines are starting to offer? I have yet to buy one of those meals, but they look like an upgrade over standard meal options on domestic flights.

I think most hotels in Shanghai have Hairy Crabs on their buffets during the short season. Last night I had the buffet in the Westin hotel and they had whole crabs and two other preparations. They are very good, but a lot of work for little meat. The street food options are extensive. More pictures when I get home and can upload the pictures faster. This was one combination that I did not get. It is a picture of a store called Curry & Coffee

WOW, that might be the finest "guest room" I have every seen. I can imagine some guests may never want to leave.

I keep a notebook dedicated to smoking meats. I am still trying to get better at smoking and I find it invaluable to keep track of the details every time I put a hunk of meat on the smoker. This allows me to keep track of the difference in timing and flavor when I change up the woods or preparation methods. I am going hunting in a few weeks and love the fact that I can revisit my notes from last year to tweak and improve the smoked game this time.

I had plans to go the Fair last night, but wimped out because of the rain.

Westlake Farmers market did move from Westlake high school to the parking lot at Burger Stadium. The name has stayed the same. Westlake Farmers Market They have a lot more space and plenty of parking at the new location. I do miss the intimacy of the old location but will not miss the fight for parking.

A few other butcher options: The Chronicle list The Meat Shop on Payton Gin has really good stuff, but it is not cheap. Maybe the only place in town for Wagyu beef. I noticed a vendor at the Westlake Farmers market selling "Kobe" beef for a very good price last week. I will buy some if he is still there when I get back in Austin. If you have not gone already, check out the Saturday Farmers Markets in Westlake and downtown. (Am I the only geek that goes to both?) Regarding Fish mongers, I have yet to find a place that beats Central Market. I do not like Quality Seafood on Airport Blvd. Never been impressed the with freshness or selection. Hope this helps some

I can not add much more than what has already been posted by others, it was a fabulous meal. Service was excellent with everyone being engaging, attentive and having a good sense of humor. I was expecting the restaurant to be noisier, but the buzz of other diners and the music (lot of clash and stones) was reasonable. The portion sizes were very generous for a tasting menu, it was an amazing amount of food. Relying on my memory here… Black Tagliatelle with roasted sweet corn and chives (favorite dish of the night) Ravioli with a smoked cheese Garganelli with Funghi Trifolati (close second for favorite dish) Marco's Pyramids with Passato di Pomodoro (probably the weak link in the meal) Pappardelle Bolognese A cheese course Saffron Panna Cotta with Kumquats and Tangerine Sorbetto They then brought us out a bonus dessert, a “jelly donut” than came with ice cream…..it was very good but I needed more food at this point like I needed a hole in my head ( or more realistically a new hole in my belt).

One of my favorite stores for eclectic glassware and restaurant china is POSH near Wrigley field. You never know what you are going to find there.

There are a lot of excellent restaurants, but I can only think of one unique upscale restaurant in Austin, HUDSON'S ON THE BEND. If you like game, then it is a must go to place. They do great things with all sorts of game in an upscale"Texas" setting. If menu items such as Rattlesnake cakes with a pistachio crust, Wild Boar Schnitzel, and Elk do not excite you, then you might want to pass on the restaurant. The Grill in the Driskill Hotel is doing good things under David Bull, who was recently named one of the 10 best new chefs by Food & Wine. Driskill Grill I think dining experiences that are unique to Austin are great barbecue, Tex-Mex and Mexican. Fonda San Miguel has a wonderful menu featuring interior Mexican cuisine, but I would not call it "upscale". I guess it really depends on your definition of "upscale". I am sure you will have a great time at the ACL Festival

Would y'all consider having it September 13 or 14????? I will be in town and would love to finally lose my Luger's virginity.

Smoked Salmon. Growing up, I was the only one who would not eat it, even now my wife buys it all the time and I can not touch the stuff.

Has anyone been to Cheeves steakhouse in Temple? their site I just noticed they won a wine spectator award. This might be an interesting option along that desolate road called I35 between Dallas and Austin.

Holy crap, 7-11 got serious about food. I finally made it there and was impressed. I had a very good Cuban sandwich. They press it for you on a panini type grill after you purchase it giving the bread the right amount of crunch. It was a classic cuban sandwich with roast pork, ham cheese and pickles. Waiting for my sandwich to leave the grill press, I sampled one of their mini sandwiches. They have several types of sandwiches made on tiny potato rolls. The ham and cheese sandwich was made with quality swiss cheese and ham along with a nice spicy honey mustard. The sandwich was about the size of a white castle and cost $.79 They make a nice snack or get 5-6 of these and you have a respectable meal. All of the sandwiches were clearly marked when they were made/delivered to the store. They seem to emphasize freshness and quality. If 7-11 can maintain this initiative, I think they will be become an attractive alternative to standard fast food fare.

I do the drive between Austin and Dallas often. Usually I try to time my drive so I arrive into Dallas before 8:30am, so my options are limited. A few thoughts on West: Czech American Restaurant II exit 351 254-826-3460 It is open 24 hours day/ days a week and is a pretty good option for breakfast. I have never had anything besides breakfast there. Nemececk Bros. Meat Market 300 N. Main, West Nemececk There are several bakeries on Main street in West, 5 minute drive off of 35. I been to Kolacek’s Bakery, but can not say if it is better or worse than the other bakeries in town. kolacek's I do think it is worth driving into town as compared to the gas stations with bakery counters along I35.

I have taken Air France both as a code-share with continental and a Paris-New Delhi flight and the food was nothing great. That was in Business and Business/first and I can not imagine it would be any better in economy. In other words, do not go hungry expecting a fine meal. That is what traveling to France is for The wine on the international flight was actually pretty good, I do not remember the details of it. As someone who flies about one a week and takes international flights about every 8 weeks, I have given up on airline food. At best it is edible, but never is a truly enjoyable culinary experience. I think first class on British Air is the best right now. Most airports have one or two quality restaurants or vendors who will pack a "to-go" meal that is a good option. For the overnight flights to Europe, all I want is some room to recline, an outlet to plug the laptop into and maybe, just maybe a decent movie to watch before I go to sleep.

I am impressed if someone can complete a stage after having a big Mexican dinner the night before..... The one place that I know about is: Anahuacalli 5th arrondissement 30, rue des Bernardins (Maubert-Mutualité) 014 3261020 I have never been there, but my friend who runs our Paris office likes this place and I trust his opinion.

First let me say how much fun it was to meet you at the book signing in Austin followed by beers & nachos. As far as I could remember growing up in the Northeast, Tex-Mex was never used as a compliment in describing a restaurant. You expected to find Tex-Mex food in airport restaurants, sports bars, etc. Almost always heated in a microwave and served on a paper plate. Do you see the term “Tex-Mex” losing its negative connotation on a national basis? Is it possible for a restaurant serving good honest Tex-Mex food to thrive outside of Texas

A few notes from our recent Milwaukee excursion. Usingers is the ultimate tease. I heard great things about Usingers sausages. Their huge sign painted on the exterior wall, several stories in the sky was a beacon to me as I looked for a lunch destination. Image my disappointment as I entered the store and found that it is only a retail location with no dining facilities. They only sell raw sausages and deli meats. Frustrated and hungry, I stumble across the street to an imposing looking restaurant, Maders. It turns out that Maders opened in 1902 and is one of better known German restaurants in town. The interior is a classic almost stereotypical German restaurant, dark walls, ornate bar, etc. Started with the Sauerkraut Balls. There were ok, not a lot of seasoning. I could have ordered a Usinger sausage, but the Sauerbraten Sandwich seemed interesting. It was sliced roast beef topped with a gingersnap sauce served on toasted rye. Overall the sandwich was good but the "homemade" potato chips were soggy and not very interesting. For under $8, the sandwich was a very good deal. Had a local beer, but I do not remember which one. During Summerfest I went to the Maders booth to finally get my taste of Usingers. I could not resist starting with an order of Rueben Rolls. Corn Beef, Sauerkraut and swiss cheese stuffed in egg roll wrapper and deep fried. It was an incredibly paring with a cold beer....WOW they were good, I was addicted. After a few more Rueben rolls/beer combos, I ordered a a brat. The Usinger bratwurst was very good, but the rolls they were served on were soggy. I imagine a music festival during a brutal rainstorm is not the ideal setting to evaluate their product. Edited to add Kopps' frozen custard. Their custard is excellent, you can taste the quality ingredients. Next time I want to try the Sprecher root beer float.

I appreciate all of the ideas, but business keep me busy the entire trip. Sprüngli had a location at the main train station, so I did not go home completely empty-handed.......

Great report! The timing of this is perfect since I will be in Milwaukee next week. Any suggestions for eating at Summerfest? I assume that there have standard State Fair type of options...... lots of deep fried foods (not that there is anything wrong with that)