t a k o y a k i . o r g

Living in Austin, TX

Mariko and I moved to Austin in late 1998. Here are some things about life here in the Texas capitol city.

Links

Austin Sushi News - Find out about sushi restaurants around town
Austin Citysearch - Local events
Austin360 - News and happenings
Austin Groups at Google - Messageboards about Austin (Food, Music, For Sale, etc)
Craigslist, Austin - The famous classifieds list, now serving Austin
Austin Index - Index of bloggers in Austin

Eats

Austin has some great restaurants, you can usually find any type of food here if you look hard enough. Here are some of my favorites:

Japanese

Musashino - Their sushi is great, and the style of the restaurant reminds me of an izakaya. They play Japanese music which varies from jpop to enka. The hostess always seems kind of bitchy, but the sushi chefs are really nice.

Mikado - I like this restaurant. For being Chinese owned, they serve good Japanese food. The sushi was yummy, and they had some interesting appetizers.

Sushi Saké - The sushi is pretty good here, but the rest of the Japanese food isn't that great. Stick to the sushi and beer.

Chinese

Din Ho - I like Din Ho because it is like the Cantonese food I enjoyed a lot in Monterey Park.

Mandarin - This is probably my favorite Chinese restaurant, though. Their crab and tofu dish is the best!

T & S Seafood - We have only had dim sum here, but it is yummy! We also like to order their jalapeno shrimp, which may or may not be on the menu.

Tea House - This is our new favorite dim sum place. The food is good, the wait staff is very nice, and the restaurant is kid friendly (not so crowded, and the staff likes kids).

Coco's Café - Best bubble tea in town! I like the peanut milk tea with pearl and also the taro milk tea.

BBQ

Salt Lick - This restaurant is a little outside Austin, in Dripping Springs, but is definitely worth the drive. You can either dine inside, or out on the picnic tables. They often have live music playing, and their bbq is cooked in a pit. It's my favorite bbq in Austin.

County Line - This was the first bbq place I went to in Austin, and it is still one of my favorites. I love their bread too.

Rudy's - I like their picnic-style eating area. It's kind of fun to eat on paper as a plate.

Bill Miller BBQ - This chain is all around Texas, and has some pretty good bbq, at a nice price if they are having a special. I like their brisket a lot. A great alternative to KFC!

Other Favorites

Clay Pit - This Indian restaurant is fantastic. I had the mixed grill plate, and everything on it was great. A little pricey, but nice to go every once in a while.

Chuy's - This is some pretty good Tex-Mex. I always seem to end up getting the Elvis Presley Memorial Combo plate. They serve two salsas with the chips. The good one is spicy and garlicky, the other tastes like ketchup (good for kids, I guess).

La Fonda San Miguel - Sunday brunch here was incredible. Some of the best Mexican food I have ever tasted. We aren't talking enchiladas and tacos here, this is gourmet. Recommended by Billy 'n Sarah.

Olé Taco - Ok, now we are talking tacos. Saturdays we sometimes go here for breakfast tacos. Some of my favorites are Carne Guisada w/ Egg, Carnitas, Migas, Puffy Taco. And cheap too, usually $1 - 1.50 for a good sized taco. We get stuffed for under ten bucks.

Tan Tan - A good phô restaurant, always crowded at lunch. I don't like phô so much, so I usually get the fried rice which is very good.

Sunflower - Vietnamese food which is so good! We get the beef with lemon pepper dipping sauce and also pan-fried whole fish.

Java Noodles - Indonesian buffet down south. The meat dishes are the best, and hard boiled eggs are good there too.

Shopping

Central Market

Central Market - There is a market here in Austin called "Central Market" which has lots of good stuff. Their meat and fish selection is really good; this is one of the only places in town that will cut meat paper thin for sukiyaki or shabu shabu.

They also have a nice selection of fresh veggies, lots of different kinds of coffee from around the world, and a nice wine section. And usually they have some good beer on sale. Just remember that you cannot buy alcohol before noon on Sundays...

This is their very artistic sign at the front entrance. The artwork is all done with plain chalk. It was amazing!

Central Market is definitely a great grocery store, but it is a little more expensive that your regular supermarket. They are building another one up north, closer to where we live, so we are stoked.

Asahi Japanese Market - Mariko and I go here every couple weeks to buy Japanese food and treats. They also order a magazine for Mariko called Orange Page. It's a cooking magazine. Mariko says it reminds her of an old store in the countryside where she grew up.