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SquareRut Kava Bar on South Congress
I’m all about trying new things and learning from unique cultural experiences. So when the only kava bar in Texas invited me to stop by, I was intrigued and excited.
Sure, I had never heard of kava before and had no idea what it was. But when has that stopped me before?
Before my visit, a perusal of SquareRut Kava Bar’s website was extremely informative. I learned that kava is a Pacific Island drink made from [Read more…]
Texas Hill Country Olive Company in Dripping Springs, TX
The end of 2008 found John Gambini sitting in a doctor’s office, reading an article in Texas Co-op Power Magazine about the fledgling olive oil industry in Texas. John loved the romance of the Texas Hill Country and had already decided that he wanted to plant firm roots in the area (pun intended).
But more than putting a stake in the ground, John wanted to do some pioneering, accomplishing something that would stand out from other Hill Country offerings. After reading the article, he realized that he could be one of the early pioneers in the olive oil industry in Texas.
So John set out with a dream: to create a destination-class olive oil business here in Texas.
And that’s exactly what he did. [Read more…]
In 2002, Matthew Lee quit his high tech job to open a gelato and espresso shop in Central Austin called Teo Espresso, Gelato & Bella Vita. In the beginning, there were naysayers who doubted that Lee would be successful. “What do you know about gelato?” he remembers hearing.
But the truth is, he did know something about gelato, even then. Lee trained in Italy with renowned gelato makers, like Antonio Lisciandro, considered the best gelato maker in Florence. His knowledge and skill has continued to grow over the past decade of Teo’s existence. Today, he can effortlessly spout off [Read more…]
Cute little fat ninjas love ramen
Everyone has gotten excited about the ramen excursions I’ve been doing for the Austinot. As a result, my ramen posse has expanded quite a bit. When Annie told me that the EIGHT people coming to Daruma might be difficult to accommodate, I didn’t realize how right she was.
If Daruma Ramen is the sister to Kome Sushi House, it is the LITTLE sister. Their space holds a grand total of 29 people, at two long tables and two high bars. Daruma can be found with a magnifying glass at 612-B East 6th St.
To Daruma’s credit, they fit our big party, even though we took up pretty much a whole table at primo lunch hour. [Read more…]
Creative, handmade seating adds unique Austin feel to the spacious patio
I set out on my Sunday adventure to discover a house-turned-watering-hole in way south Austin, Moontower Saloon.
The founding duo behind the spry and still young concept is visionary Josh Bumb and Richard Veregge, hands-on building and bio planner and marketing wiz.
The idea for this neighborhood destination, located at 10212 Manchaca Road, stemmed from a conversation which began two and a half years ago. The friends were chatting at Weirdo’s, and Bumb voiced his interest in creating “something even better.” Far surpassing their initial expectations, the team’s first collaborative concept came to life with Moontower Saloon. [Read more…]
Austin Food and Wine Festival at Butler Park
A foodie and wine lovers paradise, the Austin Food and Wine Festival gathers the top chefs in the country to participate in food competitions and cooking demonstrations.
Combine this with live music, countless food samples that make you melt, and the most exquisite wines and spirits and you have one hell of a party. [Read more…]
Rogness Brewing Company celebrated its one-year anniversary on May 12, 2013.
The brewery kicked off this intro to a new year in the traditional Austin way: with a party.
Vendors and artisans from across the Austin area showed up to congratulate the once-tiny brewery…and it wasn’t just any party. [Read more…]
An earlier prototype of Mug Muscles
This guest blog post is by George Hillhouse.
Growing up in Alabama, one of my favorite sayings was, “Hold my beer and watch this.” In fact, if that’s not the State Motto, it ought to be. Beer, or the consumption thereof, has inspired many otherwise rational people to do things they would never have thought possible. Sometimes subsequent hospital trips confirm they were right in the first place.
But do we demonize beer after one of these episodes? Hardly. Beer gets a pass, a get out of jail free card, even when we know we won’t get out of jail free for things we did on a beer binge. Beer may be unique in this regard. No one says, “Hold my meth pipe and watch this!” thinking that subsequent events will be explained away and forgiven. It takes a beer, or two, to get that kind of a pass. [Read more…]
Raising a glass to Groovy Sunday at South Austin Brewing Company
This guest blog post is by Edgar Barguiarena.
Sometimes Friday and Saturday don’t give you enough time to take full advantage of the weekend. You’re left wanting more for your Sunday, but you want to try something different. After you go to brunch and get started with a few mimosas, you want to enjoy the last few hours of freedom you have left. If you’re still jonesing for live music and great beer, South Austin Brewing Company has your solution.
South Austin Brewing Company got their start in late 2010 with two signature brews that are still selling strong today: the Belgian Style Golden Ale and their Saison D’Austin. Each brew is featured in a hand-corked 750-ml bottle that looks almost as good as it tastes. Sound familiar? You may have seen these beers at your local grocery store or liquor shop.
South Austin Brewing has done an impressive [Read more…]
Not a straight ramen joint
In the interest of being hungry fair in my assessment of Austin’s Ramen Offerings™, I’m trying places that don’t necessarily specialize in ONLY ramen.
So for my next foray in the Yummin’ Austin Ramen series, I checked out Kome Sushi Kitchen, located at 4917 Airport Boulevard.
Kome is mostly famous for their fresh, delicious, sushi. With the surge in ramen popularity, however, they opened up a ramen-only “sister” restaurant called Daruma this year (review forthcoming). [Read more…]