For dinner, Tina and I headed over to Tarka Indian Kitchen (5207 Brodie Lane, Sunset Valley, TX‎ - (512) 892-2008‎) which was recommended to me by one of my neighbors (who is Indian). Turns out to be not a good recommendation. We ordered several items to try at the counter after which I realized that the place was the Indian equivalent of Yan Can - sauces are prepared before hand and proteins are mixed in with the sauces (which is the opposite of how many Indian dishes (like the vindaloo we ordered) are prepared with long slow cooked methods that meld the flavors of the protein with the spices and sauce).

We started with Vegetarian Samosas which were not bad. The flavor and texture was fine, but I felt there was some spice or taste that was missing (but I'm not well-versed enough in Indian cooking techniques to identify what was missing). This was the only dish that I would be willing to order and eat again that we had.

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What I Ate: February 6, 2010 (Tarka Indian Kitchen)

Dinner: We ate at Nordstrom's Cafe Bistro before seeing a movie at the AMC in Barton Creek Square. We've had several good meals at Cafe Bistro, but this time and the time before were sub-par.

Chicken Artichoke & Goat Cheese Salad - I thought this salad was pretty decent, but Tina found it too acidic (might have had a few too many vinegar soaked croutons). The salad would have been great if the chicken breast cubes were both more flavorful and more tender.

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What I Ate: February 5, 2010 (Nordstrom Cafe Bistro)

Dinner: We had to get some curtains at Bed Bath & Beyond, so after we were done we went across the street to try La Madeleine Country French Cafe (5493 Brodie Lane, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 287-4081‎). The restaurant is counter style - where you order pre-prepared food from a counter like quiches, other savory pastries, rotisserie chicken (which they were out of), and soups and salads. We tried a couple of soups, pastries, and dessert.

We tried the French Onion Soup which was a bit too salty.

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What I Ate: February 4, 2010 (La Madeleine Country French Cafe)

Dinner: We headed over to Rio's Brazilian Cafe (408 N. Pleasant Valley, Austin, TX - (512) 828-6617) to see their new location and try some of their food. We ate a variety of foods ranging from salgadinhos (Brazilian savory pastries) to "Brazilian Breakfast Pockets" to Pão de queijo (a gluten-free Brazilian cheese bread made of yucca root).

Risoli de Frango (pastries stuffed with chicken and vegetables) and Brazilian Breakfast Pockets (two kinds: pastry filled with bacon, eggs, and cheese and pastry filled with potato, eggs, cheese, bell peppers, and tomatoes)

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What I Ate: February 3, 2010 (Rio's Brazilian Cafe)

Lunch: I ate the leftover chicken and tortillas from El Pollo Rico.

Dinner: I had an Asian Chicken Salad from Red Robin for dinner. The chicken was tender and flavorful (which is usually the exception when it comes to chicken breast), but the salad was a tad overly dressed.

Lunch: We ate reheated slices of Domino's pizza for lunch. I think their using too much cheese now too - it's like there's a slippery layer of goo all over the gummy pizza dough (although I managed to crisp up the bottom in the convection oven). Ugh.

Dinner: I ate both the leftovers from Azul Tequila - the Pescado Veracruzano and the Cabrito al Maguey.

Dinner: Tina and I ate at Azul Tequila (4211 South Lamar Boulevard, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 416-9667‎) where we ordered more food than we could eat. We started with the Ceviche Costeño Precooked fish and shrimp marinated with lime juice, mixed with tomatoes, onions, cilantro, jalapenos, avocado, and spices.

It was a little too acidic for Tina, but exactly what I was looking for. I ate it on the provided saltines as well as tortilla chips (and preferred the tortilla chip).

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What I Ate: January 31, 2010 (Azul Tequila)

Lunch: We decided to order Domino's Pizza to try their new pizza which supposedly has a new crust, new sauce, and new cheese mix. We ordered their Cali Chicken Bacon Ranch and their ExtravaganZZa Feast Pizzas with Hand Tossed crust. We liked both pizzas before, so we were eager to see if they made it better or they screwed it up. When they arrived it was a huge disappointment. Here's what the Cali Chicken Bacon Ranch looked like.

The pizza was soggy with grease and slippery with ranch flavored liquid goo (dressing?). Half the pizza wasn't topped and part of the toppings has slide off the pizza to pool on the side of the box. This wasn't surprising given that the entire cheese layer floated on the Ranch dressing. It was pretty disgusting in flavor - too much Ranch.

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What I Ate: January 30, 2010 (Domino's Pizza, El Pollo Rico)

Lunch: We served smoked short ribs on noodles with some sauteed garlic and collard greens. I don't know if I'll smoke short ribs again - they come out quite dry and a bit chewy (although full of flavor).

Dinner: We ate at Steak 'n Shake where I had a Portabello and Swiss Burger with Onion Rings.

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What I Ate: January 29, 2010 (Steak 'n Shake)

Dinner: We went over to our friends Kent and Larisa's place where they made us ramen. The noodles were from a package, but the pork soup base, pork shoulder, pork belly, and egg were all homemade. The egg was poached in the shell sous vide until perfection with the yolk just firmed up to a creamy custardy consistency. An excellent dinner!

Lunch: I heated some fish sticks in the convection oven and made a tartar sauce for lunch.