Austin nightlife is far superior with downtown having a number of different areas with different vibes depending on your mood. It does feel like Portland with the trees and general attitude of the city. Toss in things like the LBJ museum and history of UT campus. Plus there is Lady Bird lake, and Lake Travis, along with some cool swimming holes and awesome hikes. That's not even to get into the BBQ (LA BBQ is my personal favorite, Franklin has the name and is good but you'll spend 3 hours in line and have to get there as the sun rises, Black's is great dino beef rib and pretty solid on everything else, while Salt Lick is 40 minute drive but has the best atmosphere and laid back vibe while walking past the open pit as you walk in.) That said the Tex-Mex food is average in Austin (and don't dare call it true Mexican food or people around here will fight you.) San Antonio is alright, the Riverwalk is cool for the boat/architecture tour but the restaurants are almost all of the chain and boring variety. The rest of downtown is pretty non-descript outside a couple cool churches to look at and the Alamo will be much smaller than you think. I actually preferred doing the hop on/off trolley tour of the other missions around the city over the Alamo. It's worth seeing but sad that all around it is just tourist trap garbage. I will say if you're going to do Austin, you might as well hit up SA as well and there are some cool spots inbetween and it's only 80 miles from one downtown to the other. Gruene (pronounced Green) is a tiny town right off I35 that has an iconic music hall and some good restaurants sitting right on a river. Plus it's the same exit as Bucee's ... maybe the most Texas thing of all time. Basically the biggest convenience store you'll ever experience. It's loud, brash, oversized but has almost anything you could ever want from a pit stop and the cleanest bathrooms you'll find at any highway stop.
Man, thanks for that! Duly c&pasted! Fronklin's is on my bucket list, but not to that extent. We'll definitely hit up some night life in Austin. The museum sounds cool. Funny you should mention Bucee's. They're building one of thos in Murfreesboro, TN (where I live) and it's supposed to be the largest in the nation. I'm hearing 240 pumps, but I could be wrong. I've also heard that they don't allow trucks. As large as they are, that seems strange to me as there would be a significant amount of lost profit opportunities in that regard.
Yea Bucees is a thing to behold ... the one at that exit between Austin/SA is currently the largest one in their chain and I think has 120 gas pumps, so 240 is quite the jump! I will say the Tex-Mex in SA is better than Austin but Austin does have some decent spots. I always had more luck in East Austin, where you get more of the hole in the wall joints, plus that's where Franklins/LA is as well.
Did that trip with some buddies close to 15 years ago. Started in DC/Balt, then to AC, Philly, Cooperstown, Springfield, Boston and finally NYC. It was a great baseball trip with a ton of good food mixed in. Did the Pats/Ginos double header while in Philly and it was delicious but we were only there for the day.
We did a similar baseball trip right after my HS graduation. Starting in DC/Baltimore, Philly, both NY teams, then Boston to finish it off. What a blast that was.
Breakfast tacos are the thing to get in Austin too. In town, there are several spots that are good. https://www.bonappetit.com/story/best-breakfast-taco-in-austin I went here. Its a little out of the way but its worth it. https://www.valentinastexmexbbq.com/ I hit up the tourist trap restaurants too. Matt's Famous El Rancho and Magnolia Cafe. Matts was pretty good, a bit chain-y. I really liked the Migas (chips and eggs) at Magnolia, and its right on South Congress Street.
I make a little dish, not sure what to call it. It's never the same ingredients. However, the concept is consistent. Usually involves leftovers. I'm making it this evening. Tonight, will be leftover smoked chicken breasts. (Could be cooked beef, pork, seafood, whatever). I cut those up unto bite-sized pieces. These were well seasoned when smoked, so don't need to add anymore spices. If I wanted, I could add a bit of cumin and chii powder, or ?? when cooking the veggies. I usually use a large cast iron skillet. I begin by stir-frying any vegetables I have on hand. Tonight will be some chopped yellow onion, minced garlic, diced jalapeno, small broccoli flowerettes, and mushroom slices. Once at the al dente stage, I add the chicken and come cooked rice until all is sufficiently heated through. I then throw cheddar/jack over all of that, slap the skillet into a 350 oven until the cheese is thoroughly melted. Pull it out and serve with tortilla chips, guac, salsa, and sour cream. The idea is to scoop the meat/cheese/rice mixure with a large chip, then top with any of the cold ingredients. It's pretty tasty.
Lying sack of shit, nothing but nothing can touch Texas BBQ and Austin has some of the best. Other than the Gorge, Multnomah Falls, Crown Point, Hwy 101, all the green trees and great drinking water, steel head and salmon and variety of natural beauty what does Oregon have?
Well that seems like a really aggressive response and I'm not even sure why I was quoted but I guess you do you sir!
Lanny means well. He's tops in my book. Take those last reprimands of his with a grain of Eastern Oregon wheat. I'm pretty certain that's the way it was meant.
Only thing I can think of is he thought I was comparing Austin/SA to Portland/Oregon but it's a thread about Vacation Plans ... so whatever. Not the first time he's come after something I've posted and hopefully won't be the last.
Looks cold back in Portland. We are in Charleston right now visiting some family. It's warm and sunny. Probably going to have a pool day.
Made it to Florence. Airline lost our luggage so that is fun. Spent the first part of the first day shopping for stuff we need. Had some good wine and pasta last night can't complain about that. So many people here also and it appears Europe is done with the masks everywhere. No one wears them here except a very few and some service staff.
Damn man, great recommendation! Just got back from there and it was crazy good. The bread was a little harder than I expected but still great. I got the Favalosa and inferno, ate inferno and am saving the Favalosa for later. Probably could have been smarter than going there for Easter as the line was 45 minutes even with three All’Antico Vinaio shop fronts, but I get the feeling there is always a line. In other news our hotel/apt over looks the Duomo square so we got the watch the Easter cart explosion from the best seat in the house, which was a lot of fun. We didn't even know that's what they did for Easter. It was a great show.
