Who Says You Can’t Go Home?

Well, Bon Jovi and Sugarland, I’ll tell you who (technically ‘what’): the city of Austin.

More specifically, the overabundance of places to go, people to see, coffee (and perhaps other things) to drink, and, most importantly, food to eat. I have been running around and trying to soak in all that Austin has to offer, and, honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

In case you haven’t noticed, there hasn’t been a whole lot of cooking being done in this supposed Smart Kitchen lately. I think y’all can forgive me though, no? After all, I am at least trying to maintain the witty rapport (can you call it rapport if you are talking to yourself?) you love so much, even if I’m talking about food other people made (or the carrots I pulled out of a bag). And trust me…the electronic Post-Its (yes there are multiple) of foods to try, recipes to create, and, because I believe in honesty, potential post titles (I now pronounce you…Queen of the BloggerNerds!) is becoming a little overwhelming.

However, although Bon Jovi was wrong about being able to go home, he also reminds me that “It’s my life, and it’s now or never”* so I guess you’ll be OK with me living a little (preferably on a prayer).

*PS-The actor in that music video is totally JJ from American Dreams, the best, sadly under-appreciated, family drama of 2005. [NBC, are you EVER going to issue Season 2 on DVD?]

Yesterday morning I got to meet my friend Shannon for round three (or four….or twelve?) of Sarah’s Quest to Find the Quintessential Coffee Shop in Austin. [Have you noticed the name of this exploration keeps changing?] Today’s stop: Bennu Coffee.
How did we end up there? Well, I’d like to say it was on recommendation, and it was, but even more interestingly, Shannon actually had a dream that we met there. Clearly, that was a sign.

Our coffee “catch up” (no, not the tomato-based kind…I might like weird food, but I’m not crazy) lasted for a good two hours, which was wonderful. In fact, Bennu is a 24-hour establishment, meaning we could have literally talked all day, and through the night. Should you ever find yourself awake at 3 in the morning and need a cup of coffee to, well, stay awake, you know where to go.

I was served my large house blend in a beer mug. I added the straw myself. I figured, if I’m already incongruously drinking coffee from a glass mug, I might as well also sip it through a straw.
The decor is like being in a professor’s study (yes, that was a chess table we set our drinks on), and the electrical cords that hang from the ceiling blend in like student-centric chandeliers.
There is also chalk in the bathroom.
I figured that the random Barney-esque dinosaur head already on the wall would potentially attract the kind of blog readers I was after (read: the type of people who would not be offended by the fact that I just made a reference to Barney and also, perhaps, sang a little “I love you, you love me” in their heads just then…)

At some point in the day, I ate this delicious salad (well, except that I think the queso fresco is starting to turn a wee bit…so every now and then I’d get a bite that made me go “hmmm”) while watching Top Chef (at least I squeezed that in, but how sad was I about losing the snide, monotone remarks of Tamesha?):
That was a triptych of Romaine topped with mushrooms, red bell pepper, cucumber, carrots, and chopped up sugar snap peas. All covered with a scoop of my aunt Elizabeth’s bean salad and some of that questionable queso fresco. I sprinkled the whole thing with cumin and a little red wine vinegar. I also sampled a generous portion of the pancake-esque Spelt & Brown Rice (Club) Soda Bread I created yesterday, and ate a whole lot of melon. (Sue me for my melon obsession.)

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Last night, I was honored to be able to attend the Opening Party at a new restaurant here in Austin: La Sombra Bar & Grill. Despite the fact that I told a number of people that la sombra means rug in Spanish, and I was confused as to why one would name a restaurant that, la sombra actually means the shadow. [Rug = alfombra]
It’s actually an ill-fitting moniker, as the food was fresh and light, and the restaurant/bar itself is quite bright and lively (but perhaps they just hadn’t set the mood lighting for us).

The restaurant is Central and South American, meaning I was naturally going to love it (seeing as how I am a one-woman crusader for regional obsession south of the Equator), and its specialty is…oh get ready for this folks….CEVICHE! You know how I love ceviche. (Love really being a much milder term than I would use.)

We sampled ceviche de hongas (mushrooms) that was served on top of a truffle-tomatillo salsa and accented with freshly shaved corn, as well as a simple pescado ceviche with hominy and crispy toasted corn.

(Sorry for the pictures being so horrible. I tried.)

The best thing about the white fish ceviche was the sweet potatoes (yams?) on the side. They were said to be garnish, but I certainly ate enough of them to make a full meal. No joke. It was so bad that the waitress/attendant (lovely girl) told me there was a tray left with just sweets left on it and she almost brought it to me. Yeah. I know.

We also sampled Venezuelan guacamole (it becomes Venezuelan when you add vinegar instead of citrus juice…who knew?) and purple corn sorbet (for which I had to chase down the waiter).
The specialty of the bar is a pisco sour, made with pisco (um, obviously, Sarah), which I learned is a liquor made from grapes. Upon entering the fiesta, I was greeted by a dashing waiter with a tray of both the Peruvian and the Chilean piscos. The difference? Peruvian is made with lime, and the Chilean with lemon. Lime was the obvious choice. Clearly.
As someone who really doesn’t drink a lot (despite what it might seem like these past few days…), this was an incredible drink! It had egg whites in it (gotta love a drink that packs a protein punch), and that red splotch is bitters, apparently. I had to ask. I still don’t really know what that means. (Can you tell I’m not a mixed drink girl?)

A glorious evening for all!

Sharon, Me (hopefully you know that by now), Mariah, and Teddy (rockin’ that scarf)

Just when you thought the night was over…this former “turned into a pumpkin at 10 PM” redhead went off to Book Club, where Cara served up a yummy gnocchi in champagne peach sauce and a green salad with blueberries, dates, and walnuts (great combo). And Ximena made s’mores with, well, something more (thanks Kathleen for that witticism): peaches and blueberries! [Intriguing, no? Clearly I know how to pick friends.]