The Best Austin Map Ever

The fine folks at Holstee are putting out a map of Austin. It is so cute! And there's a Willie Nelson quote on it to boot. Definitely putting this on my wish list.

 (Images via Holstee)

Snacking On: Tiny's Tiny Pies Texas Two-Step Pie

In.gredients is now carrying individual Tiny's Tiny Pies in teeny glass jars, and I couldn't resist buying one the other day. So good! I got the Texas Two-Step, but they are carrying both sweet and savory kinds right now.

Pre-baked but still delicious looking

A Year in Photos: 2013

2013 will go down as: The Year We Got Married (!!!); The Year I, As a Gigantic Buffy Fan, Got to Meet Joss Whedon (And FREAK OUT); and The Year We Honeymooned for a Magical Few Days in Turks and Caicos.

Below, month by month photo highlights like last year. 

January (hiking at Enchanted Rock)

 February (bridal shower)

March (with Joss Whedon at SXSW)

April (wedding at Mercury Hall)

May (honeymoon in Turks and Caicos)

 June (512 Brewing Company tour)

July (at a cabin in Concan with family and friends)

August (at Krause Springs)

September (my birthday at Bufalina)

October (Oktoberfest in Blanco)

 November (Wurstfest in New Braunfels)

December (holidays with the family)

Odd Duck

A few photos from our first trip to Odd Duck (or Barley Swine Junior, as I like to call it), Bryce Gilmore's newest restaurant. We will definitely be back again.

 Glasses of Barbera

 Boudin grits and pickled shrimp, sadly eaten before captured by film

Chicken fried chicken egg

Spiced redfish

HBD Dinner at Bufalina

This last weekend was my birthday, and a group of friends and I headed to Bufalina for some delicious Neopolitan-style pizzas. Chris and I got the fresca with prosciutto, arugula, cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and parmesan, and also the margherita. (We excitedly over-ordered for the two of us and ended up taking almost half of each home.) The restaurant has a sort of low-key, modern vibe to it with its communal picnic tables and white wood-fired oven and was definitely a great place to bring a bunch of friends for a cozy b-day dinner. Definitely putting this place on my Revisit List. 

Bufalina // 1519 East Cesar Chavez // ATX, 78702

 Fresca pizza

Cab franc

InstaMax photos

Dinner at Barlata

When I lived in Brooklyn, there was this sort of divey tapas place two blocks from my apartment that was perfect for an after-work drink and snack. They had exceptional cocktails and delicious chorizo. So I was excited when Barlata opened in Austin a few months ago, and we finally had time to eat there last night. It's not as divey as my favorite Brooklyn tapas place (and by divey, I mean an old building, comfy chairs, you could sit there for hours and no one would care), but the food was pretty amazing. Chris and I shared the shrimp with garlic and adobo sauce, Catalan toast with serrano ham, and the paella Barlata with saffron rice, chicken chorizo, mussels, and shrimp. I also got to add two more wines to our Spanish wine map we've been keeping: whites from Rias Baixas and Somontano.

School House Pub on Manor

School House Pub has finally arrived! Our entire neighborhood has been excited for this place to open up for over a year; I think partly because, since Red House closed, there hasn't been a place you could feel comfortable getting just a drink at. (Yes, I realize there are other places on Manor to get a drink. But usually most people there are studying or eating dinner. Or they don't have proper cocktails.)

It was ridiculously busy last night, but once everything calms down, we will be back again. And probably again. And again. (Hey, we only live a block away.) Some snaps of our first experience there:

Cocktail menu

Physics (a whiskey cocktail)

Shakespeare at Winedale

Three years ago when we first started dating, Chris and I drove out east to Winedale, a tiny Texas town, where the University of Texas English department hosts their summer Shakespeare program. This year, we went back for one of our monthversary dates. We saw The Comedy of Errors peering through the rafters from up in the balcony of a converted nineteenth-century barn.

Day trip success

(Side note: Our GPS was acting completely insane on the way out there, so if you decide to go, snag the directions from their website so you don't end up on the narrow, gravel, bumpety-bump road that leads you past many, many farms like we did.)

Day trip details

Where: Winedale, about an hour and a half outside of Austin

When: The summer schedule runs from July to August.

Why: Because you love Shakespeare? And cute little towns? And are awesome?

Also, food: Bring a picnic or stop at Royers Round Top Cafe for dinner and some delicious pie.

Foreign & Domestic's Oyster Night

Two-dollar beers and dollar oysters are basically all this girl needs to get her ass out of her desk chair and into the car heading to Hyde Park for F & D's Oyster Night. (And it's good beer, not gross beer. We had cans from Austin Beerworks and Hops & Grain Brewery.) (Also, I love that the Hops & Grain beer Chris is drinking below is called The One They Call Zoe. Maybe one of the best beer names ever? You decide.)

Please note the lack of actual oyster pictures below because we ate them too fast to actually stop and document them. Sorry/not sorry! Definitely the most delicious Tuesday night deal Chris and I have stumbled upon in Austin.

The deals are on the smaller menu to the left.

The One They Call Chris

 Bacon and Chorizo Arancini Hush Puppies

House Corn Bread and Butter

Fourth of July Pie

Just picked up this gorgeous cherry and blueberry pie from Tiny's Tiny Pies. I hope everyone has a lovely Fourth of July holiday weekend! XO

Antonelli's Pop-up Picnic

A little fun from our weekend:

The picnic, er, actually, PIGnic, was at Laguna Gloria on Saturday. Just another reason to love Austin.

This and That

What Jane saw.

I cried at the end of this Modern Love.

Fourth of July printables.

Love: Charles Eames proposal letter.

Cronut, anyone?

Excited about this restaurant opening.

(Image via Pinterest)

Roasted Soy Bean Soft Serve at Daruma Ramen

Got the roasted soy bean soft serve special at Daruma Ramen last night and it was lovely! Had to share:

Date Night: Freedmen's, Whisler's, Weather Up

After a couple of days of being on Aunt and Uncle Duty, Chris and I decided to date-night-it up like the childless and free couple we are on Friday night. We started at Freedmen's. They have a Whiskey Wall! I was basically sold at that point. Their pit chili was my fave, and Chris loved the brisket. And we both tried their Whiskey of the Month, Angel's Envy, which basically tasted like golden liquid victory on ice.

 Whiskey Wall!

Brisket

Close-up of the pit chili. You're welcome.

Then we headed over to Whisler's on the east side before ending up at Weather Up, one of the best cocktail bars I have ever been to, where we sipped on perfectly made Manhattans. Lovely night in Texas, y'all.