Dine in Grand Style at Austin’s Green Pastures

Dubbed the “Grande Dame of Austin Restaurants" by the Austin Chronicle, Green Pastures offers a majestic dining experience on the grounds of a restored southern mansion in South Austin. Dining rooms are decorated with elegance, featuring antiques and fine china. You can enjoy a picturesque view of the grounds including stately live oaks, and peacocks that roam the property. The menu offers elegant French-inspired entrees with a southern twist, like pecan salmon with lobster bread pudding.  

Sunday Brunch at Green Pastures is a step into a better, more elegant world. Be sure to try their milk punch, which tastes like spiked vanilla ice cream. White linen service is friendly and top-notch, with customers swearing that the food is just as good as the atmosphere. This is THE place for an elegant special occasion meal — be sure to make a reservations.

Green Pastures
811 W. Live Oak Street
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 444-4747
www.yelp.com/biz/green-pastures-restaurant-austin

Regal Ravioli: Fit For a King

Don’t let the food truck fool you — South Austin's Regal Ravioli is fit for a king.

It serves homemade ravioli and gnocchi made with fresh, locally sourced ingredients.  The small menu is packed with flavor, like roasted beet caramelized onion and orange zest ravioli, or spicy sausage and bell peppers ravioli.  Their sauces won’t let you down either; lamb bolognese, pecan pesto … it's all fresh, it's all good. The individual raviolis are huge, but they're so good that you'll be left wanting more!  Food is made to order — even the ravioli stuffing — so the wait might be a bit longer than a typical food truck. But it's worth it. Oh, it's worth it.

Note: Regal Ravioli only serves dinner. And it does so well.

Regal Ravioli
504 West Oltorf Street
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 364-9752
www.yelp.com/biz/regal-ravioli-austin

Holy Cacao Is For Chocolate Lovers

Holy Cacao is Austin's sweetest food truck, a chocolate lover’s dream featuring cake balls, shakes and chocolate drinks. Their version of cake balls are unique; the fresh cake is crumbled and mixed with frosting shaped into a ball and is then dipped into chocolate to form a shell.  There are several flavors to choose from including red velvet and carrot cake. The trailer also serves cake shakes that whirl their cake into traditional vanilla or chocolate shakes.  Holy Cocao is also known for their flavorful chocolate drinks – either hot or frozen – made with 65% chocolate for a creamy and rich treat. Their Mexican Chocolate is pleasantly spiced with ancho chile, cinnamon and cayenne. If you're a chocolate lover, or need a gift for someone who is, head to Holy Cocao for a sweet treat. 

Holy Cacao (in South Austin Trailer Park & Eatery)
1311 S. 1st Street
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 851-2253
www.yelp.com/biz/holy-cacao-austin

El Mesón: Savor Exceptional Mexican Cuisine

With an accessible menu of authentic and traditional Mexican dishes, El Mesón is a great spot to dine out without breaking the bank. The food here is as authentic as it comes, with many of the dishes springing from old family recipes. Incredible incarnations of classic Mexican dishes like moles and fajitas are lovingly prepared and sent out in very filling portions. If you're coming in hungry, make sure that you start out with some chips and the unbelievable guacamole. Of course, any regular will also tell you that El Mesón will make you one of the best breakfast tacos you've ever had. El Mesón is one of those places where any time is the right time to come. Make sure that you try the food of this incredible gem, and experience its amazing Mexican creations for yourself.

El Mesón
5808 Burleson Road
Austin, TX 78744
(512) 416-0749
http://www.yelp.com/biz/el-meson-austin

Austin’s Best for Japanese Food: Uchi and Uchiko

Don’t let the quaint cottage exterior of Uchi fool you. This contemporary Japanese dining and sushi restaurant is anything but quaint. The interior of this popular restaurant—with chef Tyson Cole at the helm—is striking, with bright red patterned wallpaper, and crisp, wooden lanterns hanging from a reflective ceiling. Enjoy the freshest of ingredients available—seafood is flown in daily from the Tsukiji market in Tokyo—while enjoying local tastes; the restaurant uses local seasonal ingredients and keeps a close relationship with local farmers. Open seven days a week beginning at 5 p.m., Uchi accepts a limited number of reservations each night.

And don't miss Uchi's newer sister restaurant, Uchiko, a warm, charming take on Japanese cuisine, set in a rustic farmhouse. This follow up eatery to Uchi also serves the freshest in Japanese cuisine, and plenty of seating capacity—Uchiko accepts both reservations and walk-ins alike.

Uchi
801 South Lamar
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 916-4808

Uchiko
4200 North Lamar
Austin, TX  78756
(512) 916-4808

It’s Always Taco Time at El Taquito

Head to South Austin's El Taquito for amazing tacos. Regulars rave that this little taqueria is one of the best in town. The meats are moist and well-seasoned, and the salsas are perfectly spiced. The menu is mostly tacos and enchiladas, but there are some breakfast options as well.  The Barbacoa and Al Pastor tacos are big favorites. The salsa bar provides many options to top your meal — make sure to give the roasted red pepper salsa a try. El Taquito offers authentic mexican beverages too, like La Fresca and Horchata, a cinnamon rice milk. They're open well past midnight every night so you can enjoy tasty tacos after a night on the town. Just don’t expect fast service — this place is quite laid back.
 

El Taquito
1713 E Riverside Dr
Austin, TX 78741
(512) 851-8226
www.yelp.com/biz/el-taquito-austin

Burgers and Beer at Hopdoddy Burger Bar

After less than three years in business, Hopdoddy Burger Bar is already an Austin institution. Their simple menu features burgers, salads, beer, and other adult beverages. Burgers are reasonably priced and made from top quality ingredients. Hormone and antibiotic-free black angus beef is ground in house and grilled to perfection. Buns are baked from scratch twice daily, and they even cut their own fries.

In addition to several beef burgers on the menu, Hopdoddy offers turkey, lamb, tuna and veggie burgers. Be sure to top your patty with their homemade chipotle ketchup. Staff will guide you through their ordering process, which starts with bar items first — including many craft and local beer options in addition to mixed drinks — before placing your food order. This place is busy, so be prepared for a line out the door. Excited customers and tight seating make for a boisterous atmosphere, so it’s best suited to a night out with friends.   
 

Hopdoddy Burger Bar
1400 S Congress Ave
Ste A190
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 243-7505
www.yelp.com/biz/hopdoddy-burger-bar-austin

Carmelo’s: From Sicily To Texas

This top-flight Italian eatery has been dazzling Austinites for years, and one bite of Chef Carmelo Mauro’s spectacular cuisine will make you a convert as well. Mauro opened the first Carmelo’s in Houston in 1978 and expanded to Austin in 1985. In the three decades he’s been in the restaurant business he has assembled a legion of devoted fans who claim that his place offers the best Italian in Texas, hands down. For appetizers, the beefsteak tomatoes topped with fresh mozzarella and fresh basil can’t be beat, as well as the mussels, flavorful and simmered in garlic white wine broth. Entrees that garner special attention are the chicken Parmesan, which is lush and delicious, as well as signature dishes like the tender Ossobucco and fettucine carbonara, which is cooked tableside. In general, the seafood here is beyond reproach, with tender, perfectly-cooked salmon a highlight. Carmelo’s also has an excellent wine selection. For dessert, the lemon cake, served from an old-school three-tiered dessert cart, is some of the best in town.

Carmelo’s
504 E 5th St
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 477-7497

Beets Living Foods Café: Refresh with Raw Creations

Beets Living Foods Café is a vegan, raw food establishment that makes food that will impress any diner. Passion and creativity are at work in the kitchen to create healthy and good tasting meals. These dishes aren't your typical, bland sort of health food fare. Inventive items like the raw reuben and an eggplant B.L.T. are all over the menu, as are an impressive selection of side and entree salads. There's also an array of refreshing fruit and vegetable smoothies. Beets also regularly offers classes on raw cooking, and can be rented out for events at extremely great rates. Relax in the spacious dining room and enjoy a nice meal or a quick refresher. Whatever you do, be sure not to miss Beets Living Foods Café. You'll be amazed that so much flavor can come out of raw cooking, and your body will thank you for it!

Beets Living Foods Café
1611 W. 5th Street
Suite 165
Austin, TX 78703
(512) 477-2338
http://www.yelp.com/biz/beets-living-foods-cafe-austin
 

Gourmands: Sandwiches with Personality

Do you want a sandwich? Then there’s one place in Austin that you need to try: Gourmands, opened in 2011, has earned a reputation for seriously great food at fair prices. Located in an old bar that’s been thoroughly remodeled, the atmosphere is quirky and overflowing with character, from the checkerboard tile on the walls to the slight lean to the building. That character comes through in the food as well. These aren’t your ordinary deli sandwiches – each of them has real personality. The menu is extensive, and just about everything is great, but some favorites include the Second Deadly Sin (smoked turkey, bacon, Swiss cheese, sprouts and fried avocado) and the Cool Hand Luke (house-made egg salad, celery and caramelized onions). One of the best things about Gourmands is the house-made potato chips that come with every sandwich. Fresh from the fryer, they’re perfectly crispy and salty and will leave you craving more.

Gourmands
2316 Webberville Road
Austin, TX 78702
(512) 610-2031
http://www.yelp.com/biz/gourmands-austin-2

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