SabrinaP
Pearl Clutcher
Busy Teacher Pea
Posts: 4,350 
Location: Dallas Texas
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Post by SabrinaP on Jul 11, 2014 19:04:19 GMT
We are leaving tomorrow on a short vacation to Austin and San Antonio. We have a few plans, but just thought I would check and see if anyone has a must not miss in either city.
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Post by annaintx on Jul 11, 2014 19:26:10 GMT
What kind of food are you in the mood for? Here in SA we've become a foodie town, I think because we now have a branch of the Culinary Institute of America here.  |
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SabrinaP
Pearl Clutcher
Busy Teacher Pea
Posts: 4,350
Location: Dallas Texas
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Post by SabrinaP on Jul 11, 2014 19:37:06 GMT
What kind of food are you in the mood for? Here in SA we've become a foodie town, I think because we now have a branch of the Culinary Institute of America here. We will have our kids, 5 and 9, so something family friendly. We will definitely be on the hunt for some good Mexican in San Antonio and good barbecue in Austin, but other than that we are open. |
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Post by KikiPea on Jul 11, 2014 19:48:05 GMT
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Post by annaintx on Jul 11, 2014 20:03:27 GMT
Austin--I second the Kerby Lane recommendation. I also would recommend Magnolia Cafe in Austin--great breakfast. As for BBQ in Austin, I can't help you there. It's been years since I lived there. A quick look on Yelp or Urban Spoon would be a great place to start. In San Antonio: Touristy, family friendly Tex-Mex--if you are going downtown, Mi Tierra at the Marketplace is pretty standard. La Gloria is very good, considered Mexican street food. It's at the Pearl Brewery complex, and you can walk along the river before/after dinner. It's quite nice in the evenings if it's not too hot. Los Barrios is family-run (they won against Bobby Flay in a Puffy Taco Challenge)--they have 3 locations. Two of their locations--Ventanas and the Hacidena de los Barrios--apparently have outdoor playscapes for the kids. We go to the original one on Blanco Rd, no playscape for kiddos there. La Paloma Blanca is nice--it's a little more "upscale" in my opinion but is very good. Margaritas here are excellent. We also have Chuy's, but that is a chain (but it's still good Tex-Mex). Ask for the jalapeno ranch dip when they bring your chips and salsa. The decor in Chuy's is really fun--they are also in Austin and Houston. Rosario's is really good, too, and a San Antonio institution. Hopefully that gives you enough to choose from. If you need info on a specific part of town, let me know. Mi TierraLa GloriaLos Barrios
La Paloma BlancaChuy's
Rosario's |
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Laura
Full Member
Ruby Slippered Pea
Posts: 139
Jun 25, 2014 19:55:02 GMT
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Post by Laura on Jul 11, 2014 20:12:58 GMT
In Austin there is a burger joint called Hopdoddy. It's got a pretty big reputation among the college crowd and my son loves that place. When my husband went down there to pick my son up to bring him home after the semester was over, they packed up but went there for lunch before they headed out and my husband said it was the best hamburger he ever ate. We will be going back in a couple of weeks (already!) to take him back to school and we will definitely eat there while we are there.
In San Antonio, any place you eat along the Riverwalk is a beautiful place simply because of the atmosphere. Eat outside and watch the people walking by. So fun!
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Post by workingclassdog on Jul 11, 2014 20:23:39 GMT
It's a chain place but we don't have one here and we loved it called Longhorn Steakhouse.. It was awesome.. (I just found out that they are building one here soon.. yippee)
Gotta do the boat ride on the Riverwalk...
If your kids are into planes you can go down the highway by the Air Force base and you can see some of the BIG planes.. it's pretty cool!
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Post by KikiPea on Jul 11, 2014 20:38:38 GMT
We also like Threadgills in Austin. It's home cookin'.
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Post by boxermom73 on Jul 11, 2014 21:27:18 GMT
Following planning a trip now!
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ghostie
Shy Member
PeaNut 106,366 September 2003 Posts: 3,104
Posts: 44
Location: Midwest
Jul 2, 2014 4:04:17 GMT
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Post by ghostie on Jul 11, 2014 21:29:24 GMT
Try Jacala in San Antonio for some good Mexican food. (I really liked the puffy tacos.) |
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SabrinaP
Pearl Clutcher
Busy Teacher Pea
Posts: 4,350
Location: Dallas Texas
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Post by SabrinaP on Jul 11, 2014 21:42:17 GMT
Thanks so much! I'm checking reviews on Yelp now!
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DaisyDoodles
Full Member
Posts: 449
Jun 25, 2014 20:32:07 GMT
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Post by DaisyDoodles on Jul 11, 2014 22:00:50 GMT
If you are looking for BBQ in Austin the top places at the moment are La Barbecue and Franklin BBQ ( Be prepared, people get in line and wait up to 2 hrs before opening for these places!). I have been to neither because I refuse to wait that long for food, but my SIL has been to Franklin and tells me it is worth the wait. Everyone will say "Go to Salt Lick", but it isn't in Austin proper , it is in Driftwood which is outside Austin about 20-30 minutes. I am really picky about my BBQ and don't like Salt Lick but I grew up on BBQ from Southside Market in Elgin Another good family friendly BBQ place is Green Mesquite near Barton Springs Pool. You could spend the morning at the pool (which is lovely!) and then have a late lunch of BBQ. Also near Barton Springs is a Chuy's location and another neat place called Shady Grove. If I had to pick between Kirby Lane and Magnolia Cafe, I would pick Kirby. Mexican and TexMex you have a lot of options, but since CHuy's started in town it is a fun place to go and is family friendly. We are also fans of Tres Amigos, La Condesa and El Patio ( a dive really, but it is a favorite from when we were in college and lived near the UT campus ). I know someone mentioned HopDaddy's for burgers, but honestly, I wasn't impressed and the lines are very long there. There are several great burger joints in town, but spread all over. Our favorite places at Top Notch (it was featured in the movie Dazed and Confused ) and Frisco's but those are more in the Northwest part of town. DH and I are both native Austinites so we tend to stick with long time and local places. |
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Post by travelscrapper on Jul 11, 2014 22:02:08 GMT
I am a breakfast person and when we were in San Antonio we ate at the Gunther House.
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Post by agengr2004 on Jul 11, 2014 22:08:13 GMT
Try Jacala in San Antonio for some good Mexican food. (I really liked the puffy tacos.) Jacala is our favorite! |
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Post by agengr2004 on Jul 11, 2014 22:09:17 GMT
Kind of in between but The Gristmill in Gruene is really good.
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