Austin's Food Scene - South Congress and Rainey Street
The next morning after my San Antonio excursion, I wanted to keep exploring downtown Austin. I started off at Mozart's for breakfast again and I got a vegetable empanada with some hibiscus mint iced tea.
After checking my emails and maps, I ventured down south to the South Congress shopping strip. This is one cool shopping street, and you can see the actual city congress building:
Most building on this street are boutiques, eateries, churches, and some hotels, and if you wander down the side streets, you'll find tiny antique shops and tucked-away food trailers. I stopped for a bite to eat at the restaurant at what seemed like the end of the strip, Magnolia Cafe South.
Most building on this street are boutiques, eateries, churches, and some hotels, and if you wander down the side streets, you'll find tiny antique shops and tucked-away food trailers. I stopped for a bite to eat at the restaurant at what seemed like the end of the strip, Magnolia Cafe South.
I ordered garlic bread and nachos with avocado and a fried egg. Everything was delicious and the atmosphere was friendly and welcoming. The decor in here made me nostalgic for the PaperMoon Diner in Baltimore!
My nachos:
This is nacho' cleanest food to eat... Ha!
* * *
Rainey Street, located here,
I sought out G'Raj Mahal, which is the famous Austin Indian outpost:
Inside, I got a table for one and ordered a snack:
This is the coconut paratha, which is an Indian flatbread, flecked with dried coconut. On the side, I got the raita (yogurt dipping sauce) and the pickled mango. Both were EXCELLENT and when combined, made an incredible creamy, tangy bite. (They were also nice the following morning for breakfast!)
This is the outdoor seating area - all tables were reserved since it was Valentine's Day!
Down Rainey Street, you'll pass these restaurants or bars, which were built as bungalow-style residences and converted later into food destinations.
This is NO VA:
This is NO VA:
This is the Parlor Room:
Container Bar! (Can you guess what it's made out of?)
I stopped at Half Step for a cocktail during happy hour. Good thing that's what they specialize in! It's cozy inside, with a stage and space for live music.
I got a Gin Fizz, which was cool and refreshing with the lemon wedge.
Here's a little behind the scenes photo of the shot above!
A last taste of Rainey Street - Little Lucy's mini doughnuts. I ordered two mini batches (of 6 each) the Nutella (chocolate hazelnut) and Cinanmon and Sugar flavors.
These mini doughnuts are extruded into hot oil, flipped, and then tossed with the flavored sugars.
This little spoon man was holding menus :-)
Left: cinnamon and sugar Right: chocolate hazelnut
On my first night in Austin, my friend took me to Via 313, the hidden pizza spot behind Craft Pride Bar on Rainey. Read about it on my first Texas post!
Comments