Bar Food Gone Classy: Max's Wine Dive Coming Soon!

Max's Wine Dive, which originated in Houston, TX, was "named one of the "Hot 10" Wine Bars in the country," according to Bon Appetit in October 2008, and it's coming to Austin next month! Its home away from home will be located at 207 San Jacinto, and is currently under construction.

I scoped out the menu online, and it seems to be one-of-a-kind...not following traditional trends of mixing bar food with beer, but rather putting a classy twist on casual bar food, and pairing it with wine. You'll find creative comfort (bar) food menu options, such as Gulf-spacho (cold vegetable and seafood soup), Buffalo Sliders, Gator Bites, Max&Cheese with an added twist of truffle oil, Kobe Beef Burgers, the Texas "Haute" Dog, and even The Tree Hugger (a focaccia sandwhich with veggies). There are also some healthy options, including Salmon, Sea Bass, and a variety of fresh salads.

Just a heads up, don't confuse this bar food with $5 chicken wings, or a cheap order of fries. I describe it as classy casual...the "classy" referring to the higher price range, and the "casual" describes their inspiration for the menu. In fact, the cheapest wine-by-the-glass I saw was a $8.75 Malbec, but, in this town, they're bound to have happy hour specials!

Group Entertainment Spot/Restaurant Coming Soon: Max's Wine Dive at 207 San Jacinto in Downtown Austin, opening May 2009. FYI, they also have lunch and brunch (this looks delicious, and the most reasonable of all of their menus).

Maria's Taco Xpress!

*Photo courtesty of http://www.tacoxpress.com/

As much as I'd like to say that I come up with all of my "Rebeccammendations," you loyal followers should know that I often receive rec's from many valuable sources (and I will give credit where it's due, but not reveal the top secret ones:)). Several of my friendly advisors suggested we hold the 2nd Austin Breakfast Club meeting at Maria's Taco Xpress on South LAMAR...(I misdirected the group to S. 1st and take full responsibility for anyone who never arrived as a result). Rule #1 for entertaining: pick the right location, and if you've never been there, ask questions and make a plan for entertaining a large group there (do you need reservations? is there outdoor seating that's first-come, first-serve? are Sunday's busy?). This is where I learned my lesson. You see, Maria's Taco Xpress is not just a little cafe hidden off of S. Lamar that draws visitors only by it's visible-from-the-street sign of Maria inviting guests with her open arms. It is a large operation. There must have been at least 150 hungry and loyal visitors, between the inside and the outside patio. This Sunday happened to be a particularly busy Sunday for Maria's, as there was a line out the door for those waiting to order their authentic breakfast and lunch tacos. Despite the challenge for gathering up enough chairs to seat our group, and getting everyone through the long line and to finally receive their tacos, it was a great location! Bottom line--it's Austiny, it's fun, it has an outdoor patio, and indoor seating, it has breakfast tacos, spicy salsa, and there's something about the anticipation of waiting for your order number to be called that makes the delicious tortillas filled to the brim worth waiting for!

*Entertainment tip: If you're headed there with a group, make sure to arrive ahead of time to secure a table while your guests get in line to order. It get's packed, but a healthy sign of a hoppin' business and tasty food!

Breakfast/Lunch/Mexican Restaurant Recommendation: Maria's Taco Xpress on S. Lamar. Also, check out Taste No Evil Muffins, housed in an old trolley (or Austin's Dillo) in the parking lot out front, if you're looking for a local sweet treat, freshly made by Karisa Prestera . Flavors range from Cran Bran Breakfast Bonanza, to Chocolate Sinsation, and even gluten-free flavors that include Chocolate-Almond. MMMMmm...

Icing on the Cake!

*Photos by Rebecca (Allyson and I with instructor Summer Pruett left)

Yesterday was the day Allyson and I had been waiting for...the day we were taking the hands-on cake decorating class at the Whole Foods Culinary Center on 6th and Lamar. I unfortunately miscalculated the start time, so we missed the first 20 minutes, but we caught up quickly and jumped right in, cutting, layering, and frosting our individual cakes to decorate. We learned frosting techniques and how to create several icing detail designs as we worked with the buttercream frosting. Summer Pruett, of Stardust Pastry, her very own local Austin "pastry boutique specializing in wedding cakes," and the Texas Culinary Academy, instructed the class of about 15. Her steady hand demonstrated how to ice the cake so well, her final coat was as smooth as fondant. And, she successfully taught all of us how to create a decorative rose out of frosting, complete with leaves and vines. Notice my final work of culinary art that I made for the Austin Breakfast Club which held it's 2nd meeting today! It was a big hit!

My favorite moment during the class, was when Allyson had icing trouble, and actually took her hand, and grabbed the 2-inch less-than-perfect frosting rose, and threw it off of her cake in frustration. But, she got through it (with messy hands), and with Summer's patience and expertise with cake disaster recovery, and the end result didn't show any traces of the struggles Al had just minutes before.

If you're looking for culinary fun, Summer is also teaching a Pastry Workshop on April 9th, a Couture Cupcakes class on April 11th, and a few sushi classes too!

Culinary/Arts, Weekend or Evening Activity Recommendation: Take a cooking class at the Whole Foods Culinary Center! Some are demonstration-based, with tasting, of course, and others, like this one, are hands-on. Take a look at the schedule here (updated monthly). Sign up if you find a class you'd like to take because they fill up fast!

P.S. I also put this under the Green Entertaining category because Whole Foods is based on environmentally-friendly and socially-responsible practices and products.

Go Nuts!

So, I'm allergic to nuts, but that doesn't mean you won't find me at the Spring 2009 Old Pecan Street Festival on May 2-3. The festival is held every Fall and Spring downtown on 6th Street (formerly known as Pecan Street), and features over 250 arts/crafts vendors, food, and live entertainment.

Jules will be here that weekend, so I'm sure we'll take a stroll down Old Pecan Street. Let me know if you want to join in!

Event Alert! This is also the same weekend as the Peter Max art collection at Russell Collection, and the May Austin Breakfast Club meeting.

"What's your flava...tell me what's your flava"

*Photo from designld.com

When it comes to flavor and good taste, whether with botanical design, or creative s'mores, La-Dee-Dah and Treat know how to do it right. This weekend, I was entertaining Jason, a special family friend, during his first trip to the ATX. It was undebatable that we had to show him the quirky Austin trailors, with a stop at Torchy's Tacos at the South Austin Trailor Park & Eatery on S. 1st. As we were waiting for our tacos, I stepped inside the La-Dee-Dah trailor that I had heard so much about. Inside, I was surprised to find such unique botanical creations by Lauren Dolinksy of LD Design Studio made of succulents, colorful rocks, and even branches arranged in such a way that I was drawn to them, admiring every detail. (For those of you who aren't familiar, succulents are plants that retain water, and are therefore eco-friendly, which makes these fall under my Green Entertaining Rebeccamendation category). After talking to the expert working there, I learned that these are "plants for people who kill plants," meaning, they require very little water, mostly misting every few days, and that the only risk is too much watering, not too little. I immediately thought this "botanical couture" (as described on the designld.com website) would be a unique gift for a housewarming party, or really a gift for any occasion, where these living works of art could serve as a conversation-starter centerpiece, or a piece of art to decorate a living space and catch the eye of visiting guests. La-Dee-Dah also houses hand-made headbands, home accessories, cards, gifts, and even "Chai Ya'll" and "Chai Fidelity" specially-designed American Apparel t-shirts.

I also learned that Treat, the flavored "designer" s'mores station at the end of the trailor will be relocating to it's very own airstream trailor home at the South Austin Trailor Park & Eatery near the 2nd week of April. I can't wait to try this spin on the classic outdoor dessert, with flavored marshmallows that range from Raspberry, to Chocomint, to Lavender Lemon. There is even a private campfire for roasting if you visit this tasty trailor.

Entertaining Decor Recommendation: Botanical art by Lauren (LD Design Studio) at La-Dee-Dah

Dessert Entertainment Activity any time: Treat's flavored marshmallow s'mores at the new airstream trailor coming soon this April.

Breakfast Taco/Lunch Recommendation: Torchy's Tacos at the S. Austin Trailor & Eatery, S. 1st.

Hustle Over to Russell's Bakery

My friend Batami belongs in Europe. At least when it comes to dessert and coffee. These are two things she can't live without, no matter the time of day, and despite her love for sugary indulgance, she always looks great! She was visiting this past weekend, and she requested that we escape into the quickly-passing morning, as time always flies with good friends, to a coffee shop for her breakfast of choice...coffee and a pastry. So, I used this opportunity to try out Russell's Bakery, which I saw as a high ranker on an Austin360.com poll for the best bakery in Austin. After researching it, I realized their original location is up North, but their newest location is in Jefferson Sqaure on Kerby Lane (right off of 38th) and almost next door to Kerby Lane Cafe.

Coffee and Breakfast Recommendation: Russell's Bakery. If you're not feelin' the wait at the original Kerby Lane Cafe, hop next door for a delicious cup of coffee and a pastry, baked fresh daily. They also have a simple lunch menu with fresh salads, soups, and sandwiches. Download a buy one, get one 1/2 off sandwich coupon here. This Jefferson location has a cozy, European cafe feel, with a spacious patio outside for those sunny Sunday mornings or for a leisurely mid-day meal. They will be introducing their Brunch menu on April 12th (Easter Sunday), and I'm definitely adding this to our list for a future Austin Breakfast Club meeting location. And, rumor has it, a dinner menu will be debuted on April 14th!

Beef & Pie &...Coffee, a Lovely Combination!

About three weeks ago, Jen and I were tasked with a creative project at our technology consulting workplace (not usually creative) with our assignment being, "Go make a video." Jen was given a very large budget, and a small amount of time, to find a video production company and begin our promotional video for a presentation that we soon found out would be held only about 3 weeks later. And, this wasn't supposed to be a cheesy commercial. We work with large government technology contracts, and to say the least, the stakes were high, very high. Through one of our partners, we were lucky enough to have Beef & Pie land in our laps and work with us day and night for about 10 days to produce the final product. It was an incredible experience! They were so fun to work with, and the resulting video was just what we needed, funny, yet emotional enough to be persuasive (somewhat like the title of their company...it's pretty funny when you first hear it, but when it comes down to it, most people don't joke about serious food like good meat and decadent dessert). Not only is their creative work dazzling, but their secret motivation and the fuel that keeps them charismatic is their very own Beef& Pie coffee! We had the privilege of tasting a few cups as we edited the final product, and we were sold!

Local Coffee Recommendation: Next time you're at Whole Foods on 6th and Lamar, and are thinking about stopping by the Starbucks across the street, take the elevator 1 floor up to the Pure Austin gym to endulge in a cup of freshly brewed Beef&Pie coffee!

We Love Breakfast!

Austin Breakfast Club Meetings. This club was just recently started to provide new friends and true friends with a time and place to share breakfast one Sunday each month in different locations around Austin. For non-Austinite followers, feel free to start a chapter wherever you are--let's go global!