We had just landed in Austin and the first to arrive. After checking into our hotel, we decided to walk a few blocks to find a quick bite to eat while waiting for everyone else to land. We saw a cute restaurant while on the Lyft called Corinne and decided on a whim we wanted to give it a try!
The place had a super cute outdoorsy bar with adorable chairs and tables and green decor. There was a nice breeze flowing through. There were also green plants hanging all around too! It felt like we were at beach side.
Oysters. mignonette, cocktail sauce, lemon. Vince wanted oysters so we ordered half a dozen. We forgot where these oysters were from but they were definitely sweet and refreshing. I love the cute added touch of the miniature tobasco hot sauce! We’ve decided that we only appreciate the more expensive oysters now. $1 happy hour oysters aren’t as good, more big and doesn’t taste as light as the others. Quality over quantity. We had 3 each and were more than happy.
Spicy Tuna Bruschetta. clementine, avocado, pistachio. This was a very refreshing and light toast. There was a generous amount of tuna on top. I love the added touch of pistachio. The avocado spread was a healthy touch. This was a colorful bruschetta too.
Crab Croquettes. pommes puree, lemon, chive, citrus aioli. These were like soft pillows of heaven! They were so delicate, hot and filled with crab! These were definitely our favorite. Very hot and smooth on the inside with a very thin crispy shell on the outside.
Old Dog, New Tricks (left). Brush Creek Vodka, Grapefruit Juice, Lemon Juice, Aperol, Simple Syrup, Peychaud’s Bitters. I like this drink! It was very easy to drink and I could definitely taste the grapefruit. Very light and fruity drink! It wasn’t overly sweet or sour either.
The Bee Keeper (right). Old Forester 100 Proof Rye Whiskey, Blueberry and Honey Reduction, Lemon Juice, Aquafaba. This drink was pretty good but slightly on the more boozy side for me. Vince ended up claiming this drink. It was certainly a pretty drink but I wasn’t feeling the added sour from the lemon juice.
It was good timing that in the one hour, everyone else has arrived at the same time. We met back in the hotel and walked less than a block to eat the best fried chicken in Austin called Gus’ World Famous Hot & Spicy Fried Chicken. And you know what? The name does not disappoint. It was really good fried chicken! The chicken was extremely moist and flavorful. The crispy skin outside was thin. I would say this is way better than Popeyes too! And I love Popeyes!
We also ordered a few sides that were recommended. I personally was sad there were no mash potatoes and gravy.
Fried Okra was recommended but most of us did not like the okra. I think you have to already like okra to like this.
Fried Green Tomatoes was surprisingly good that we ordered a second serving of it. It was just so good. The crispy skin outside was a thick solid layer of crunch. I really don’t know how to describe the green tomato fried but it was moist?
Fries were a solid.
Mac n cheese was super cheesy and reminded me of childhood.
Our first bar we hopped to was called The Lost Lei. It was a speakeasy bar hidden downstairs that looked like a basement from outside. We had to walk downstairs to below ground level from the sidewalk.
SATURN (left). Gin, passion fruit, orgeat, falernum, lemon. My drink is the one on the left. It was super sweet and fruity. I couldn’t even tell there was alcohol in it. I loved it! Not too sour and very sweet. Just how I like it! The one on the right was Vince’s Mai Tai, which I was not interested in because it tasted gross.
Then we hopped to Dumont’s Down Low Bar, which is another cool bar downstairs also. They had very interesting and pretty drinks. Vince and I got the Clarified Fruit Punch. The vessel that they we’re served in was thin and delicate. I wasn’t a big fan of this fruit punch because of the banana liquor in it. But the airless ice cube was very beautiful and enticing. This was Vince’s favorite cocktail and bar.
Everyone else’s favorite bar that we hopped to last was call The Roosevelt Room. The decor of this place is really classy and fit the name definitely! The decor was like back in that day in history. The owner also owns The Eleanor next door for private parties. Drinks are classy and high end and so aesthetic all around.
Silver Meadows. Tequila Ocho Plata, Caravedo Torontel Pisco, Junmai Sake, Foie-gras washed St-Germain, clarified lime & grapefruit, maguey sap, sweetgrass tincture, grapefruit oils. My first drink and everyone’s favorite drink. Can’t go wrong with the St Germain and the combination of all these ingredients makes for such a light simple drink with a sweet aftertaste.
Cigar Box. Del Maguey Vida Mezcal, smoked black tea syrup, RR lavender bitters, tobacco essence, served on an ashtray with a flamed cinnamon stick. This drink was grossly strong. It was Vince’s of course.
Chicken Liver Mousse Crostini. housemade puréed chicken liver mousse on toasted baguette with marasca cherry jus. Looked and sounded cool on the menu but from an Asian’s standpoint, it was just okay. We’ve had better pate haha.
Garlic Hummus. Warm Housemade Hummus with Garlic Olive Oil, Roasted Red Bell Peppers, Cucumbers, Carrots, and Toasted Pita Bread (v, vg, gf without bread). This was surprisingly good! I really appreciated warm pita bread. The hummus was so delicious with the bell peppers. I couldn’t grab a picture because it was too far and by the time I saw someone order it it was too late 🙁
Chrysanthemum. 1916, NEW YORK. Dolin Dry Vermouth, Lustau Manzanilla Sherry, Bénédictine, Kubler Absinthe, acid lactart, salt tincture, lemon oils. I really wanted to try this drink for the flower but I didn’t like it at all. It was really earthy and didn’t hide the alcohol taste.
Corpse Reviver #2. 1920s, LONDON. Citadelle Dry Gin, RR Triple Sec, Cocchi Americano, lemon, flamed absinthe. Vince’s next drink which was pretty good but got pretty strong in the end. Somehow I missed Vince’s drink picture.. Oh well..
Elmond ordered a cup of olives for the table as a night cap snack. The saltiness was the perfect ending to all of the alcohol drinks that we’ve had. They were covered in olive oil and lightly salted. Perfect!!
None of us were even hungry, but Vince had the crazy drunchies for pizza ever since we saw pizza right after landing in the Austin airport terminal. Elmond found a window in the wall pizza joint outdoors. It was on the side walk and many people would walk by to buy pizza. These street slices are gooooood. Oh man they were good 🙂 There were a variety of slices and it just happens to be whatever was in the window at the time. We plan on getting pizza every night now!
