Copper

Austin Cake Ball has recently converted their shop at the Domain (by Macy's and Zara) into Copper, a full-service restaurant and dessert lounge, open for lunch and dinner with a great cocktail listing to boot! I was recently invited to stop by and try their new menu, so I took my North Austin friend, Epicuriosities along with me. 

I had not been in the place when it was operating as Austin Cake Ball so I am not entirely sure what the decor was like, but I loved the feel of Cooper. Even on an overcast day, the huge front windows bathed the shop in natural light, and also highlighted the impressive glass counters with loads of cake balls to choose from. White, light blue, and of course, copper give it a modern and sophisticated color scheme.

As you head towards the back of the space, there's a divider wall which was entirely done in pennies, as was the floor of the restroom and the entire back splash of the bar, giving the decor a nice sparkle when the light hit the shiny pennies.

We began our lunch with the aforementioned cocktails, Epicuriosities having the Candy Girl (cotton candy vodka and bubbly) and myself the Cosmo-naut (acai liqueur, vodka, cointreau, blood orange and cranberry juices), along with the fried goat cheese balls, which were presented beautifully with an orchid. Perfectly fried, and with a teeny bit of local honey to contrast the creamy goatiness, they were lovely, especially with the drinks. From their website: "Our kitchen combines farm-to-table produce, house-made breads and artisan meats with an emphasis on simple, clean flavors with seasonal ingredients." Always a bonus to be at a restaurant that espouses this philosophy!

When studying the menu, I wanted to be sure we didn't order both the crab cake AND pork belly sliders or the pork belly sliders and the pork belly flatbread, but I should have paid more attention to not getting so many items with white bread! {Perhaps some multigrain menu options would be warranted.} From the left, we went with the crab cake sliders, the pork belly and goat cheese flatbread at the top, and the classic grilled cheese and tomato soup. The crab cake had nice flavor, though it was on a denser bun than what I would call a brioche bun. The flatbread (okay, pizza) and a real nice pop of color from the arugula, though being a pork lover, I of course, would have loved to have had more pork belly present! The grilled cheese fingers were a fun, grown-up twist on the kid favorite, with smoked cheddar, havarti, muenster, and fontina cheeses in the sandwich, and the soup being tomato and roasted red pepper bisque.

We asked our server to pick a couple cake balls for us, and she brought us, from the left: red velvet, tiramisu, salted caramel, and German chocolate -- great choices! The German chocolate was my favorite, as it combines coconut with chocolatey goodness! They use Callebaut chocolate, a Belgian line that is a favorite among pastry chefs for good reason. Copper also offers other desserts like a heavenly sounding peanut butter pie or the hot mess brownie; with their liquor selection or even a cappuccino, it would be the perfect spot for dessert or a break from a day of shopping. And that, is what I am sure the owners of Austin Cake Ball were banking on with their transition to Copper.

There was only one person working the front of the house; Ryan said she had only been there about ten days, but she was the consummate professional -- friendly, present yet unobtrusive. Copper is open daily for lunch and dinner, with happy hour everyday from 4 - 7 pm, including all day on Sundays, all night Tuesdays and reverse happy hour on Saturdays after 9 pm. I think the hot mess brownie and a glass of port have my name on them when I return!

The Carillon

Not that one needs an excuse to visit a fine dining establishment, but it helps when you're in the company of fellow food bloggers, and when one of them is a regular and knows the chefs. Such was the stage, or rather, table, as I joined Epicuriosities, From Maggie's Farm, Girl Gone Grits and Tequila Tracker at The Carillon (at the AT+T Conference Center on the University of Texas campus) to celebrate the birthdays of two of our foodie crew. 

Through September, the Carillon was offering a $29 three course prix fixe menu from 5:30 - 6:30 pm, and they are continuing it in October, with a different menu. We decided on a 6 pm reservation to take advantage of this special. And we would have been fine with this menu alone, but Patrick Jones, the Beverage Manager took good care of us. He selected a bottle of Domaine du Piaugier Gigondas 2009 from the southern Rhone Valley, a Grenache-based wine that complemented every dish extremely well.

The food started with an amuse bouche, a corn soup that was so smooth and buttery, we all wanted to stick our fingers inside the glasses to get to the bottom.

The first course was the seared scallop, with jazz apple, fennel jam, goat cheese. That's a fennel chip standing up in some goat cheese in the back. The sweetness from the sauteed fennel "jam" and the goat cheese were perfect with the large scallop, which was seared nicely, but not overdone, leaving the sweet ocean flavor intact.

The next course was a complete surprise -- a complimentary course from the kitchen! -- and one that we all swooned over: foie gras with whiskied cherries, mushrooms and toast points. Totally divine. A perfect size, perfectly seared, and sheer perfection with the sweet/tart of the cherries to cut the fat/creaminess. (The Carillon offers one of the best deals in town off their bar menu -- a hamburger with a nice piece of foie for $12 -- shhhhh, don't tell!)

The main was pork jowl croquettes with sauteed jazz apples, fried lobster mushrooms, and the little creamy dots are pawpaw pudding. What is a pawpaw? It's a fruit native to the eastern US, including east Texas, with flavors of mild banana and mango. It has an interesting flavor, not bad at all, though I don't know if it lent a great deal to the dish.

The dessert on the prix fixe menu was a feta cheesecake. However, since we were celebrating birthdays, they switched it up. On the right is a pannacotta and on the left a browine/cake concoction with a fruit sauce with chipotles, I believe. Totally elegant.

It's always a trip going out to eat with fellow food bloggers, because we all sit there and photograph everything! I feel like I get better food shots because we're all doing the same thing; I am not rushing a photo because others are waiting on me to take my pics so they can eat! So with apologizes to my other friends, I need to be more patient like this for future endeavors, because I am happy with how all these photos came out. I don't think I will ever be one who carries a tripod or my own light source, but being able to shoot a few frames from different angles was really helpful. Otherwise, we had such a good time talking and eating that I have forgotten the details of what all was on the dessert plate!

Again, a wonderful evening, and thank you to Patrick and the chefs for serving up a delicious meal!

Travaasa Spa

I hadn't intended to write about my stay at Travaasa Spa when I went last week for the first time. But it was such a wonderful experience, I feel that everyone should know what a great place it is! Mostly, I'll let the pictures speak for themselves....these are all from my camera phone, as I didn't take my real camera.

My food blogger friend Christy, of Epicuriosities won an overnight stay for four people through a contest on Mix 94.7 -- thank you Mix! Each person received a $125 spa credit, and we had all of Travaasa's daily classes available to us, as well as the pool, hot tub, and sauna. So Christy, her friend PJ, our food blogger friend Kristina of Girl Gone Grits, and myself had about 24 hours to indulge at Travaasa. Formerly known as The Crossings, Travaasa has new ownership, and will celebrate their first full year in May. (To get to Travaasa (map), take 2222 west of 620, where it turns into Bullick Hollow; this dead ends into FM 2769, go right, and it's about a quarter mile on the left.)

For me, it started with a 50 minute hot rocks massage at the spa. This is the first stone massage I've had, and this one is designed to balance your chakras. A nice and relaxing way to get away from it all! The spa does facials, massages, and body treatments; I think next time, I will try the avocado body wrap! The radio station hosted a happy hour in our honor, so we were treated to Gruet sparkling wine and some healthy appetizers, mushroom caps and lettuce "tacos" with a mushroom saute inside. 

Travaasa's general manager, Tim, chatted with us on the patio with a gorgeous view overlooking Lake Travis -- nice to see some water in it! He said that most of the visitors are people from within driving distance -- Austin, San Antonio, and Houston, but they are working to get the word out. They are currently rated the number one spa in Austin by Trip Advisor, no small feat, given the fame of Lake Austin Spa nearby, so congrats! Granted our time at the spa was comped, but I feel the prices for Travaasa are more affordable than that of Lake Austin. And Kristina put it very well, Travaasa has the feel of an intimate bed and breakfast. All of the staff we encountered were so genuinely friendly and welcoming!

We checked into our rooms which had great canyon views, and luxurious beds and linens! Our rooms were in the Longhorn building, to the left of the main check in.

The restaurant, known as Jean's Kitchen, is a great big huge room with an open grill and prep area at one end, and a lounge (where we had happy hour) at the other. I started with a mixed green salad. We had a bottle of Matsu Tempranillo, and nice big red, that complemented everything extremely well.

For my main, I had the antelope scallopini, my first foray into antelope, and it was delicious! It was pounded thin, and served with a bit of goat cheese and pecans, and served with mashed sweet potatoes. I would SO eat that again!

Kristina had the grilled mahi over kale, both cooked perfectly, and Christy and PJ each had the ribeye, which was a little fatty and smoky, but beautifully grilled, and good flavor.

For dessert, we had the chocolate chipotle tarte.... this was my fave of the three -- it was a perfect chocolate and spicy balance, and the flavors even more enhanced by the tempranillo.

 ... the blackberry pie.... the top crust had been baked as a separate piece, and then added -- smart!

And the pound cake with soft fruit (on the inside).

Hearing we were "food people," the food and beverage director, Edward, sent over glasses of port to go with dessert. Turns out, it's a Bogle Petit Syrah port, that none of us were familiar with, and it was extremely tasty, though a touch sweet.

After dinner we took advantage of the hot tub, sauna, and pool, and chatted with some of the other guests who were doing the same. In the morning, various classes were available (yoga, challenge course, horseback riding, cooking class...), and Kristina and I went to the chakra meditation, which was held in a beautiful building with huge wooden doors, medieval chandelier, and a calming garden outside.

Then to breakfast, which was good, but not as good as dinner. My fritatta with mushrooms, potatoes and turkey sausage were all well prepared; the polenta French toast could have been crispier. Did have a bite of an apricot scone which was exceptional!

I wish I could have had some time by the pool, but it was then time for a shower, and gathering my stuff up. Hard to leave this lovely place! And now that my chakras have been (apparently!) balanced and mediated upon, I need to find out what that all means! Very excited to come back later this year, as -- *lo and behold*-- there was a coupon on Travelzoo for Travaasa this past week, so I am already plotting my return trip to this little bit of paradise a mere 20 miles from home.