Two words: Hippie Church. Every Austinite has either gone to this because an out-of-town visitor gleefully insisted, or they still go almost devoutly every Sunday to dance in non-denominational ecstasy to live gospel music. It is a sight to behold and truly one of the most authentically South-Austin experiences around.
It’s fitting that this spectacle takes place at María’s Taco Xpress, which is one of Austin’s homegrown hits with humble origins. (It’s a fairly common story, actually: a restaurant was begun with only a few hundred bucks, then it slowly took off, and now everyone is living happily ever after.) It’s embedded in our collective consciousness: when the giant María’s statue went missing a few years ago, it was the talk of the town; everyone swore they knew someone who knew someone related to the responsible parties. But when María’s moved to its bigger and better space (still on South Lamar),… [More]
9.4 City Market
9.4 Smitty’s Market
9.3 Fino
9.3 Jeffrey’s
9.3 Snow’s Bar-B-Q
9.3 Louie Mueller BBQ
9.2 Olivia
9.2 Asti
9.2 Musashino
Top Ice cream: [More]
It’s easy to be cynical about Olivia, an angular masterpiece of smooth wood, glass, and metal that has already become an architectural landmark for the city. The space—flanked by a car dealership and a taxidermist—could hardly be any more beautiful, especially around sunset, when the changing light plays all kinds of tricks with shadows and mood. Booths and tables seem to flow organically from the kitchen, to commune with each other and with their guests, to melt into the expanse of windows, wood-and-metal lattices, and soaring ceilings.
Yet there is substance to the flash. The garden outside doesn’t just play for visual effect; whatever vegetables don’t come from local farms are harvested right here. The food and wine programs show a concern not just for using independent, artisanal producers, but also, crucially, about introducing customers to new taste experiences. For instance: lamb’s tongue fricassée with grilled pears, honey, and “mustard pan… [More]
Britain’s Sun recently reported that supermarket giant Tesco sold two bottles of counterfeit Louis Jadot Pouilly-Fuissé, distributed by Hatch Mansfield, to a customer named Danny McGowan of Clacton, Essex, who described the fake bottle as having a label that “looked photocopied.” Apparently, the bottle was on sale for £5, down from a usual £14.49. (As of this writing, the Pouilly-Fuissé was on the price list at the Tesco website for £12.99.)
The Sun article, which was sent my way by the illustrious wine-counterfeiting scholar/economist Günter Schamel (whose work I’ve previously discussed here), has the amusing title “You Plonkers” and an equally amusing photo of a nonplussed McGowan.
The most unusual thing about this story is that while has been much discussion of counterfeit wine in the high-end rare and fine wine market—Jefferson bottles… [More]
