Lunch: We were going to Costco, so we decided to try the P. Terry's Burger Stand (4228 W William Cannon Dr., Austin, TX‎ - (512) 358-0380) just across the street from the Costco shopping complex. I ordered "The Double" (2 100% all natural black angus beef pattys, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, special sauce) with fries and a drink. I had the burger with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and pickles. When my order arrived it was all wrapped up.

Once I unwrapped it, I found that it looked remarkably like an In-N-Out burger, so I got my hopes up. Unfortunately, it wasn't as tasty as I had hoped. The meat patty was actually quite bland - applying salt helped quite a bit. We tasted each other's burgers and felt that neither one had patties that were browned enough to bring out that extra beefy flavor we look for. Tina examined her patty and saw coarsely ground bits of white and black all over the patty. It didn't look like it was just black pepper (plus we couldn't taste pepper or any other discernible spice) so we wondered what it was. I looked up to see if anyone was not busy so I could ask, and noticed that the guy manning the flattop was grilling a whole lot of burger patties and then stacking them to one side of the flattop. I pointed it out to Tina and we both wondered if the burgers were cooked to order or precooked and allowed to sit there. So, we watched and waited. We finished our burgers and there was still a small tower of hamburger patties next to the flattop. I grabbed my camera and decided to take a picture.

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What I Ate: October 10, 2009 (P. Terry's Burger Stand, Nordstrom's Cafe Bistro)

Dinner: Tina and I headed over to South Congress to try eating at Vespaio Enoteca again (tonight was pretty chilly and Tina was wearing long pants so we thought the change of mosquitoes was minimized). However, they were packed, so we walked up and down South Congress trying to decide where to eat. Finally, we decided on Southside Flying Pizza (2206 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 442-4246‎) which received a good review from the Fearless Critic. Usually, we agree with the Fearless Critic, but there are some times where they're a bit off. This is one of those times - the pizza was good, but not as good as they made it sound.

We ordered a half Southsider (chopped pepperoni, canadian bacon, sausage, red onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms) and half Margherita Pizza (Roma tomatoes, basil, garlic, olive oil, romano and mozzarella cheeses). The Fearless Critic review compared Southside Flying Pizza directly to Home Slice Pizza (futher north on South Congress) and pointed out that the crust was more flavorful at Southside. This was NOT the case for us. We found the crust undersalted and not worth eating with out a bowl of marinara sauce for dipping. The portions of the pizza that were topped were fine - the margherita had a decent amount of garlic flavor which makes up for the fact that there was a lot of shredded mozzarella and no sliced mozzarella.

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What I Ate: October 9, 2009 (Southside Flying Pizza)

Dinner: Tina and I tried several tacos from Torchy's Tacos (2801 Guadalupe St, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 494-8226‎) in the UT area for dinner. Most were pretty good, but our favorite was the Green Chili Pork Taco followed by the Trailer Park Taco.

Green Chili Pork Taco Roasted pork carnitas, green chilis, queso fresco, cilantro, onions, lime, green sauce ($3.25)

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What I Ate: October 8, 2009 (Torchy's Tacos)

Lunch: Leftovers! I had potstickers which I reheated in a convection oven.

Dinner: We went to a dim sum happy hour at Fortune Chinese Seafood Restaurant (10901 N Lamar Blvd # D, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 835-8889‎) sponsored by Bacardi. They served Cantonese-style dim sum we tasted was better than what we had at Shanghai Chinese Restaurant (which is supposed to be the best dim sum in Austin). Some of the dishes (salt and pepper squid) were a bit overly salted, but most were decent to good. The egg custards (dan ta) weren't any good (the crust was more like shortbread instead of the light and flaky crust dan ta is supposed to have). Tina and I plan on going back - probably in a month when my parent's come to town to visit us.

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What I Ate: October 7, 2009 (Fortune Chinese Seafood Restaurant)

Dinner: We went to Vespaio Enoteca for dinner, but mosquitoes inside the restaurant started eating Tina alive. She got six bites within the fifteen minutes we were there and managed to kill one (filled with blood). Tina has allergic reactions to mosquitoes and instead of the typical itchy bump, she gets these half dollar to silver dollar sized bumps that itch like crazy. After we realized she was getting bitten inside the restaurant (instead of on the way into the restaurant), we decided that it was time to go. We had ordered fried calamari as an appetizer and it arrived just as we were asking about leaving. We had that boxed (which we ate in the car driving home), paid the check, and fled. Too bad, we were really looking forward to eating there. We'll have to wait until the mosquitoes die down.

I cooked some aglio e olio with capelli d'angelo, served it with a poached egg, and Tina sauteed some spinach for dinner.

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What I Ate: October 6, 2009

Lunch: Tina and I went to a press and blogger invite lunch to taste the food of the soon to be opened Zoë's Kitchen or Zoës Kitchen (their website and promo materials seem to alternate between the two - doing a look up on the USPTO website for the trademark lists both Zoë's Kitchen and Zoës Kitchen as trademarks AND company names). Zoë's Kitchen is a chain of twenty or so "fast food" restaurants which specialize in what I would describe as fresh, "healthful" Mediterranean-inspired fare. It started in Birmingham, Alabama, and Austin's first location will open on Wednesday, October 7, 2009 in the Arboretum (10000 Research Boulevard, Austin, TX - (512) 372-9080) in the same lot as the Renaissance Hotel.

We tried the steak roll-up with rice pilaf, chicken roll-up with grilled vegetables, and the hummus salad plate (Hummus with pita chips and a Greek salad). The roll-ups where light and tasty while hot. Once cold, they aren't as crispy and the cheese isn't as pleasant, so eat them immediately and don't sit around chatting like we did. The rice pilaf looked a little bland when I got it, but I was pleasantly surprised at how flavorful it was. Unfortunately, the batch that I got was also a little over-salted, but after chatting with Hasoum, the owner and operating partner of the Austin Zoë's Kitchen, he acknowledged a little overzealous salting may have occurred and that should not be a problem in the future. The grilled vegetables were excellent - they tasted fresh, were nicely browned on the grill imparting a nice flavor, and cooked just enough to soften but still hold a little crunch. The hummus was decent as was the Greek salad when enough of the salad dressing (found on every table) was applied.

As an alternative to the typical burger or fried chicken fast food, Zoë's Kitchen is definitely something to keep in mind if you're in Northwest Austin. If you do happen to live in Austin, I've got a few coupons to try a free sandwich or entree at Zoë's Kitchen - just leave a comment (make sure you either register or leave me your email so I can contact you) saying you want a coupon.
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What I Ate: October 5, 2009 (Zoe's Kitchen)

Lunch: We ate lunch at the new Asia Cafe (8650 Spicewood Springs Rd Suite 114A, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 331-5788) which is just next door to where they used to be. The new bigger location is very nice, but our food wasn't as well prepared as in the past.

Twice Cooked Pork with Garlic Sprouts

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What I Ate: October 4, 2009 (Asia Cafe)

Lunch: After a few hours of appliance shopping, we were starving and dropped in on the closest food dispenser - in this case Cici's Pizza (a low cost pizza buffet chain). There was a McDonald's and a Subway nearby as well, but we didn't feel like either. The pizza at Cici's tastes like a really good frozen pizza, the soup tasted like a bouillon cube with fun twisty tube noodles and reconstituted chicken cubes (like in a Cup O'Noodles / Cup Noodles). For around $6-7 per person, it was not too bad, but I wouldn't go again for quite some time.

Dinner: At around 10:30pm, we completed our appliance purchasing (victoriously!) but were starving. I decided to reward my long day with a relaxing dinner at Twin Peaks where I enjoyed a full rack (of ribs) and a girl-sized glass of 99 cent beer. The ribs were cooked until soft and falling apart - so soft that the cartilage needed no effort to chew through. Many people don't like ribs cooked this way, but I enjoy it once in a while (I do prefer ribs that offer a bit more resistance and stick to the bone slightly a bit more, but sometimes I miss the texture of ribs that dissolve in your mouth). It's probably been a couple years since I've had ribs cooked in this style, so it was nice.

Lunch: Leftovers - wild mushroom pasta from South Congress Cafe and left over angel hair pasta with Italian meatballs.

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What I Ate: October 2, 2009 (Los Vega Restaurante)

Dinner: Since this week is GO TEXAN Restaurant Round-Up, I decided to make a reservation for a restaurant that everyone seemed to be going to: TRIO (98 San Jacinto Blvd, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 685-8300‎) in the Four Seasons Austin. A portion of the proceeds from the GO TEXAN menu at TRIO would be donated to Caritas of Austin, a non-profit food bank. The food on the menu is supposed to highlight Texan ingredients. The meals cost $39 per person and come with appetizer, main, two sides to be shared, and dessert. We tried everything except the Tomato Watermelon Salad and the Richardson's Farm Ribeye Filet.

Appetizers
English Pea Ravioli ricotta, corn puree, smoked maitake This dish was a failure. It was bland overall - the raviolis barely had any flavor and were tough and chewy. The maitake mushrooms (normally a very meaty and flavorful mushroom) tasted watered down and had no discernible smokiness.

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What I Ate: October 1, 2009 (Steak 'N Shake, TRIO)