Thursday, February 17, 2005

Austin Restaurant Guide for TLAers

The Texas Library Association conference is here in Austin this year for the first time since Johnson was president (Lyndon, not Andrew) and I've been getting requests for restaurant advice. So, here's a quick and dirty guide to Austin restaurants. All are within walking distance or a quick cab ride of the Convention Center and convention hotels (in no particular order):

Best Places to go on an Expense Account:

Driskill Grill (One of Austin's best, in the recently restored Driskill Hotel)
Cafe at Four Seasons (Very good, best place to rub shoulders with celebrities [Lovett, Bullock, etc.])
(Note: The Driskill Grill and the Cafe are typically Austin's highest rated restaurants)
Bitter End Bistro and Brewery (Good beer, good food, recommended for carnivores)
Vespaio (High end Italian. I don't know if they take reservations, though, so you should be there at 5:30 or be prepared to wait)
Louie's 106 (Mediterranean, in the historic Littlefield Building)
Truluck's (seafood, in the heart of the Warehouse District)
Jeffrey's (the Bushes' favorite; tables are a little close together, though)
Zoot (high end American)
Fonda San Miguel (Interior Mexican, a bit of a hike from downtown)

Japanese/Sushi:

Uchi (Sushi, but with a twist)
Kyoto (on Congress Avenue, with a tatami room)
Musashino (also a bit of a hike, but worth it)

Vegetarian:

Mother's
West Lynn Cafe

High End Chains:

Roy's (Asian fusion)
Sullivan's (steak)

Other Downtown/Near Downtown Restaurants:

Roaring Fork (New, in the Stephen F. Austin Hotel, a little loud)
Restaurant at the Mansion on Judge's Hill(in boutique hotel in newly restored mansion)
Manuel's (Mexican upscale)
La Traviata (Italian)
Z Tejas (new Southwestern)
East Side Cafe (they grow their own vegetables)

Funky Austin Places (inexpensive):

Magnolia Cafe
Kerbey Lane Cafe
Hyde Park Bar and Grill (look for the fork in the road)
Guero's (Tex Mex)
Katz's New York Deli
County Line (barbecue, but a little outlying)
Iron Works (barbecue)
Stubb's (barbecue)
Hoover's (southern home cooking. And barbecue)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hi,

I found your blog through Google and it having very good information on Restaurant guide, I am found too much things in your Restaurant Guide like online dining & restaurant guide that committed to Houston Restaurant worldwide.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...