South by South Taco - Austin, TX - Day Five

A final meal choice for our trip this year?

Well, since we had just turned in our only mode of transportation around town (bikes) and needed to get back to our hotel to get our luggage and catch the cab to the airport, we first caught a cab straight to Curra's Grill, where I could comfortably stumble back to our hotel.

We settled on lots of chips and salsa, a bowl of queso, and we shared a chicken mole enchilada. Mole is not my favorite thing in the world, but I know that when it's done right, it's really good. Sometimes really, really good (visit The Rose Cafe for exemplary mole). Curra's mole was outstanding, a perfect balance of chocolatishy, sugary, spiciness. Really, really top-notch, washed down with beers and margaritas. A perfect way to end the trip. Until next year, Austin....adios.

South by South Taco - Austin, TX - Day Four

Breakfast at Guero's Taco Bar. I think it says a lot that a stubborn bastard like me witll go back to a place over and over. But there is very little not to like about Guero's apart from there's too many fucking people that go there. It's cheap, the food is really good, the drinks are outstanding, the chips are fresh and they have a top-notch serve-it-yourself salsa bar. I got Huevos Rancheros to go with my usual SXSW Speedball - cheap and REALLY good, simple food. I loved it. Neither Deb or I could remember what she ordered, which tells you something, not that it was bad, just not memorable (and no pics to jog the memory). We had no trouble remembering the margarita that she ordered because my non-drinker girlfriend requested that we not ride the bikes for an hour or so after she finished it.

The next meal of the day, once again a repeat visit of the trip, was lunch at Izzoz by the creek. Check out these two tacos above. My usual perfect taco is something so unbelievably simple and cheap (check out Santa Barbara's masters at Lily's for examples), but these are a very acceptable subsitute. In fact unbelievably good. Deb ordered the fried avocado taco (check their menu online for the fancy ingredients, and guess what? She's still talking about how good it was today. I got a Slowrider, which combines 3 of the greatest ingredients on the planet - machaca, carmelized onions and cilantro. Out of this world.

South by South Taco - Austin, TX - Day Three

Austin is a town known for tacos and Torchy's is probably the most popular local chain. The one that we usually visit happens to be right up the creek from Izzoz (see SXSTaco posting Day One), at the Trailer Park Eatery on 1st. This is basically a parking lot with a few trailers of food - tacos, a chocolate place and a hot dog place. By far the most popular of these eateries is Torchy's, usually having a healthy line and a healthy wait.

Shown below, we started the eating day off with a Democrat (barbacoa, onions, cilantro, queso and avocado) and a Trailer Park (Fried chicken, chiles, pico de gallo & cheese). They were super tasty, but I have to admit that, now a week later writing this, I had a hard time remembering what we had to eat, a problem I didn't have with Izzoz. The end result is that Torchy's has super bitchin food, but I like Izzoz more, plus they have a better location next to the creek.

We capped off the evening that night with drinks at Curra's Grill, "another local institution' type of place. Curra's also happens to be the closest joint to the hotel that we always stay at, although it was a complete accident/stroke of luck that we landed next to such a high quality joint. Curra's is home to good food(more on that later), and excellent margarita's, including the lovely Avocado Margarita shown below. Lovely way to end the day.

South by South Taco - Austin, TX - Day Two

Guero’s Taco Bar in the heart of South Congress in Austin is very famous and one of those places often referred to as a ‘local institution’, or a ‘must go’ or a ‘best xxxxx (margarita, salsa, blah, blah)’ in town. I generally avoid these places (anyone who knows my feelings about Super Rica knows this…not even remotely worth the price, the time, or the flavor…better choices elsewhere for cheaper and tastier). Guero’s is often the place that every wanker says, “You’ve got to go to Guero’s” and the occasional celebrity is seen dining on the patio (Mischa Barton was eating there when we walked by on Friday afternoon – yeah, umm, she’s not ugly). So with heaps of praise and Hollywood floozies hanging out there it’s easy for a bitter man like me to hate on a place like Guero’s.

But I can’t.

Because the food is really good, really cheap, and they make some of the most hyper-bitchin margaritas you’ll ever get.

Breakfast on day two was at Guero’s. Migas for me (see photo above). Take a look at that plate of food. It was $4.19. No that wasn’t a typo. If it was fucking armadillo roadkill it'd be a bargain, but it was super tasty real food that someone in a kitchen cooked for you. You can’t get a breakfast that doesn’t come in a Happy Meal Box in Santa Barbara for $4.19. Deb had tacos al pastor with pineapple and cilantro, mainly because she was so psyched on the spinning spit of pork they had in the restaurant (see photo below). She’s still talking about how good it was today, a week later.

Now let’s talk about the proper way to wake up at SXSW.

I prefer the way shown in the photo above, a SXSW Speedball: coffee from Jo’s (just down the street), and a delicious Don Margarita at Guero’s. Wash it down with chips and some of the super tasty salsas at the serve-it-yourself bar. I like margaritas but a lot of places get them too much of one thing (sometimes mix, sometimes tequila, sometimes something else) and not enough of the other. Every marg I’ve ever had at Guero’s over several years now (read: a lot) has been perfect. Love the place.

South by South Taco - Austin, TX 2010 - Day one

Note: I meant to do this last year when we went to Austin for SXSW, but I got lazy and didn’t.

I make it no secret that I think that Santa Barbara has the finest Mexican food available in the country. There are few other places that I even give a nod of the head to. I have great affinity for San Francisco (a very close second to SB in my opinion), and if you try hard there’s decent stuff in LA. And then there’s Austin, Texas. Austin is a very cool city, totally unlike the rest of Texas which is basically one gigantic heaving shitpile. And it happens to have great Mexican food, although in a different way than my beloved hometown.

Straight off the bat, let’s get to one of the best things about Austin. Breakfast tacos. Is anyone is Santa Barbara fucking listening to me? I guess it’s possible there’s a taco truck around town that has breakfast tacos, but I haven’t seen it yet, so point me to it.

Izzoz Tacos is a place that we loved so much after they opened up last year that we vowed to keep coming back often. Located in a trailer next to the lightly flowing waters of Bouldin Creek, you order up at the trailer window and wait outside on the grass area at picnic tables. No beer here, but BYOB is not only welcome but encouraged, because after all, we’re in Texas.

The guys that own this place used to run some fancy restaurant somewhere. That doesn’t mean shit now, but it gives you a clue that they probably use good ingredients and are making an effort for good, interesting food. While this could easily come off as pretentious bullshit when it comes to tacos, they pull it off. HUGELY. Everything we’ve ever eaten here is tip-top.

We started off the eating portion of our 2010 Austin trip right here at Izzoz with a few tacos: Migas, The Padre, and an Escobar. They were all terrific. I particularly liked the migas taco, migas being a southwest specialty of eggs, tortilla strips, cheese, and often onions and peppers (more fun with migas in later postings). Deb was falling head over heels with the Padre taco, which was carnitas with avocado, pineapple, and tomatillo salsa. She’s still talking about it today, a week later. The Escobar was the third choice and least favorite. Carne guisada, salsa and cilantro, really good, but not earth shattering like the other two.

More Mexican in Austin tomorrow....

Chino's Rock and Tacos

I can forgive a place that has a hyper stupid name.
I can forgive a place with bad interior design and a poor concept.

What I can't forgive is a place that charges almost eight dollars for a two taco plate comprised of the shittiest tacos I've ever eaten. I'd describe how bad the tacos were (spicy chicken 'Fuego' and asada 'Ranchero'), but it would be a disservice to whatever words I'd use for the description.

Don't go here.

Taco Bell makes WAY better food.

The only way I'd set foot in this place again is if they offered me unlimited free beer and promised that the kitchen would be sealed off behind bank vault sized doors.

La Super Rica

I hadn't entertained the thought of letting anyone else use this blog as a forum for opinions on the food in this town, not because I don't care what anyone else thinks, but because....well, actually it is because I don't care what anyone else thinks. But Micah cleaned out his bank account, hobbled over to Super Rica the other day, and since I can't afford to go there, I asked him to write a guest review of America's most famous taqueria, a place that I once read about as "one of the top ten restaurants in America" (some USA Today article from ten years ago, as I recall), which I always though was funny because it'd end up at the latter half of my top 10 restaurants on friggin Milpas Street. Anyways, here's Micah:

Everyone’s heard of La Super Rica. Fucking everyone. A common tale in the world of food, the taqueria’s rise to fame can be traced back to one enthusiastic review. Now, I’m a chef, and I have nothing but respect for Julia Childs. Her impact on the culinary world was profound. Shit, she’s like the Jack Lalane of cooking for millions of housewives (except she’d argue that sugar is a gift from heaven where Jack seems to think its the devil’s spawn). Her knowledge and ability in the realms of French cuisine were world class. Period. However, it kills me to see her, and to be honest any chef’s, review be the end all for things culinary. C’mon, would you choose an opera based on Snoop Dog’s review? Well, for all I know he’s an expert, but you get the point. Yes, La Super Rica is a choice place to eat. I’d rather eat there every day for the rest of my life than endure another meal at other tourist traps like Longboards or the ever changing shit-hole at Hendry’s Beach, but the never ending line out the door at the house with the aqua marine trim is sort of ridiculous.

Bridget and I are smart. We show up during the lull between late afternoon snackers and dinner rush hour traffic. Right around 5 pm on a Thursday there was, believe it or not, no line at the “worlds greatest taqueria”. We’ve got the flavor lust. That insane craving from deep inside that calls out for spice and grease. Possibly the symptom of some parasite contracted long ago with a corn and pork fetish, the cure is simple - mexican food - and our choice to treat the ailment with a solid dose of La Super Rica is not much different than requesting the name brand from a pharmacist. It was going to be more money for, well, the same thing. Now, I know what you’re thinking. What kind of stingy asshole complains about the prices at a place where many of the menu items cost less than a beer and there’s a small mexican women making tortillas by hand right behind the counter? Well this asshole; who somehow managed to spend $40 bucks on dinner for two (Actually, I didn’t have any cash, so Bridget picked up the tab - another authentic touch).

Fine fine fine. We did order 6 items and two Modelos, but this quantity is sort of necessary if one is to satiate any true craving at a place that serves most of their dishes on a postage stamp sized plate. Yes people, all those $2.75 tacos aren’t very big and there ain’t much meat falling off the sides of those homemade tortillas. I figure a Cucas burrito weighs about 15 times as much as a taco from La Super Rica, and c’mon, how often are you hungry for just a little mexican food? The larger (like 5:1 Cucas ratio) more expensive dishes like they’re specials can be as much as $7.95. That’s how much we pay for the chicken enchiladas, and I’m pretty sure that veggie tamale they’re always pimping is close to that as well, and although tasty, it’s smaller.

The food arrives and we get to work. The classics which I’d recommend to anyone; the Super Rica Special (marinated pork, peppers, cheese over tortillas) and the Pasillas with Cheese (think bubbling mass of sticky spicy goodness) are fantastic as always. The rest of the dishes taste mediocre compared to many of their competitors. Bridget ordered what is more or less the Super Rica Special with steak instead of pork. The dry meat is devoid of flavor, something that simply won’t do. The chicken enchiladas are ok - a good choice for the kids maybe. No spice in that red sauce. Fantasies of Altamarino’s mole enchiladas float through my head as I attempt to solve the situation with additional salsa roja. Its rare that chorizo fails to hit the mark, but like the steak it’s dry and uninteresting. Served alone on a tortilla, I’m anything but inspired by the taco I paid almost 3 dollars for. Lilly’s is already stealing some of the tourist traffic with all the rave reviews they continue to get from local food “authorities” like the Independent, and this dish is a good example of why. And finally, the gordita. Simply put - WTF? I’ve always loved La Super Rica beans. When you order beans at this place they’re served in a marvelous broth filled with bacon and herbs. Its simple brilliance. So I figure those same beans would be nice mashed up inside a tortilla pocket. Unfortunately something terrible happens in the process. The one small gordita’s insides have the texture of old oatmeal and somehow the mash has lost all remnants of bean flavor. This glorified tortilla also cost almost 3 dollars.

I know. I’m being a little hard on poor La Super Rica. Those poor people slaving back there all day while the glutinous gringo bitches about their authentic expression of mexican heritage. You know what? Fuck that. That line out the door is paying way more than the rent and the cost of inexpensive meat. Someone’s making some money here, I promise. And while I’m on a tirade, I’d like to point out something else. That very friendly older gentlemen that’s always working the the cash register - he speaks perfect fucking english! Yeah, no need to fumble through your order attempting to squeeze meaning out of those handful of words you’ve held onto since high school. Look behind you moron. There’s a line out the door! Besides, this practice is fairly similar to addressing a high school student like they’re in pre school. “Oh thats a good little calculus student... lemme help you with that baba.” If you can actually speak Spanish and it gets you off to order in, what may be, the fine gentlemen’s native tongue, have at it! Romanticize the shit out of him. If not, show the guy some fucking respect and use a language that you both understand. Speaking of which, I wonder how Julia Childs placed her order on that fateful day. I have this feeling she stuck to the King’s English ripe with joyous cackles. However, I may have paid extra to hear her order in Spanglish. “Me llamo Julia. Me encanto comida mexican. Yo tango number seven....”