Erin's Western Adventure, Part 1: Eating in Austin

One of the best ways to shake off the airport funk is to head straight to a bar after landing. My good brother Alex knows this. And so began the great western food adventure- day one in Austin, TX. We were welcomed home at Lustre Pearl, a super fun bar patio, lying in wait for the inevitable descending masses of SXSW. And yes, there were hula hoops.

I do love that my brother will try anything- As he has gotten older, the choices become more unexpected. Who knew that this time there would be a juicer in the mix?

We made, (or should I say, he made) the most gorgeous juices. They were the first thing I thought about when I woke up each morning in Texas. Apple, kale, ginger, beet? How about pure grapefruit? Citrus is cheap in Texas. All I know is that I felt like superman after drinking one.

No food adventure would be complete without a trip to the local farmers market, of which Austin has plenty. We went to the Wednesday farmers market at the Triangle. Most of the markets are managed by the Sustainable Food Center- a most amazing place. (We were so impressed with their work that we went to their offices the next day- more on that later.)

Alex and I wanted to have a pizza party that night, so we focused on picking out toppings and sides for pizza at the market. Roasted garlic, three kinds of mushrooms, hydroponic tomatoes, and spring onions made for interesting individual pizzas, though most people wanted some of everything. Alex cooked the pizzas in his grill- which was really a smoker. Pure fire power.

I am not going to lie- I am envious of the sheer volume of food trucks in Austin. There is no telling when you will wind up at one. A food truck at every bar- that is my kind of town.

Obviously this taking pictures of your food thing runs in our family.

At midnight the next night, we got to have martinis and milkshakes at 24- a diner that sources everything locally. Well, maybe not the martinis.

Many thanks to sweet Al and the lovely Miranda for hosting my first trip to Austin. May there be many more! xo

P.S. George Michael rules the microwaves.