Sushi Zushi

If you've been reading these here pages, you know that I recently went to Beets Raw Foods Cafe in the relatively new 5th Street Commons building, between Mopac and Lamar. At the time, I was more concerned about figuring out parking that I didn't really notice the western-most tenant (as in, the business you past first, as you're headed eastbound on 5th) Sushi Zushi. So when a group of friends suggested meeting there for happy hour, I at least knew where the building was, and where to park! (There is a little bit of street parking right in front, but fortunately, there's ample parking, much of it indoors, behind the building. And if you park in the indoor garage, most of the retail businesses have an entrance from the garage and street sides.)

Never really having heard of Sushi Zushi,  I checked out their website before our happy hour. They appear to be a Texas-based chain, with 4 locations in San Antonio, 1 in Dallas, and 2 here; the other Austin locale is up north at the Domain. Their website says it best: "Sushi Zushi is all about variety. With an ever-growing menu of delightful sushi, as well as cooked items, there is something for everyone." And I must say: their menu is massive. Almost overwhelming, because there are so many choices. If you click on the menu link on their website, you'll open a seven-page PDF file. So if you don't like raw fish, there's noodles, grilled skewers, and little fried things, to name a few.

And, for happy hour, they have GREAT prices! They have a variety of food items that are nicely priced, and I believe all of their signature cocktails are $5. It's a big list of Asian-influenced cocktails, like a lycheetini and a basil yuzu drink (below). Unfortunately, neither their happy hour menu nor the cocktail menu are posted on line (boo!), so I can't remember the names of everything we had!

House seafood udon noodle bowl with salmon. Very nice dashi broth, hearty noodles.

Roll with tempura shrimp; the shrimp were nice and crisp with a light batter, and not greasy.

Bacon-wrapped asparagus on the left, and a roll that I am blanking on completely...We also had edamame and one of the yakimeshi stir-fried rice bowls.

For dessert, mochi ice cream (vanilla, chocolate, and mango) and tempura fried bananas with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce. 

The layout is flowing, I'd say curvi-linear, with clean lines; also a private dining room for large groups. Our waitress attentive but not obtrusive. And I particularly liked the zori shoes (the wooden clogs that were the precursor to flip flops) hung on the bathroom doors indicating W or M -- just a fun touch! I do wish their expansive menu would have a bit more definition or description of what certain category of dishes are, and even more specifics within the line items too, like what is Tampa Bay sauce? 

Overall, the quality of our food was quite good, especially for the volume they are producing. It's certainly no Uchi/ko, or even Yanagi, but it was tasty, and a fun/affordable place for a gathering. 

Franklin BBQ

You'd think that a Thursday at 11:30 am would be a good time to meet friends for lunch. Get in, get out, without getting too caught up in the lunch crowd. In essence, that's a good plan, unless you are going to Franklin BBQ for that lunch. This was the line when I arrived at 11:30 am.....

 ...snaking around the front of the building. (And I know, you can hardly tell from this picture how the line was, but TRUST ME, it was a line.) Fortunately, there's shade most of the way, until the last brutal 10 minutes as we waited to get the last 10 feet into the building.  All told, it took a little over an hour from when we got in line to when we sat down with our plates.

Was it worth the wait? Yes. Though I'd say some meats were better than others. Upon arriving at 11:45, two other friends decided not to stick around, so it was just two of us, me and my trusty eating buddy, M.  She had the bright idea that we each get a two-meat plate, and that way, we'd cover all four of the meats on the menu.

My plate had the brisket and the pork ribs, along with potato salad and beans.

Hers had pulled pork and sausage, with potato salad and cole slaw.

The ribs were incredible. The meat fell off the bone instantly, and was even easy to extract from the cartilage bits. They had a very thin crust on the outer portion, and a little bit of a pinkish smoke ring, after being smoked for 6 hours. A touch greasy, but full of porky goodness flavor.

The brisket was extremely good too. These are smoked on oak for 18 hours, and they do ask you if you want lean or fatty when you order (we went fatty!). Great char on the outside, but not as crispy as it could have been. What's the name for those crispy, burnt ends of brisket? When I had previously visited their now-defunct trailer about a year and a half ago, they gave me a bite of that crispy goodness. Franklin's brisket is considered by many some of the finest in the region.

The sausage was a nice medium grind, and had good snap to the casing, and a bit of black pepper flavor, but could have benefited from some jalapeno peppers.

The pulled pork was kind of lacking in flavor, sad to say. Very tender, but this particular pig didn't have a whole lot going on. Franklin makes 3 different BBQ sauces which are in glass bottles on the tables, and the pulled pork definitely needed something to help it along.

Of the sides, I think the cole slaw had the best flavor. The red cabbage was very crisp, with a light mayo-vinegar dressing. Clean and bright. The potato salad I thought needed a bit of salt; I looked around for some at the condiment area and didn't see any, so it's a good thing I carry a bit in my purse! The beans were fairly bland too; they may not be using any pork in them.

I will say, as we waited outside in line, a guy kept coming out, checking on people, asking if they needed water or other drink while they waited. And of course, he was gauging the line to know how much more food they could serve out. But it was a nice customer service touch on a hot day. This is the sign we faced as we approached the door...

...but customers were still arriving at 1:15 pm with the sign still up, and only having to wait about ten minutes. So you can get there early (apparently people start lining up at 10:30am) and wait, or get there later and chance it that Franklin will still have food. I would certainly go back, and have heard their smoked turkey is fantastic; they were out when we got to the counter, or else we would have gotten a small piece to try. However, I think I'd be inclined to get meat only, no sides. And a beer would be good.

Oh, and make note that they still haven't updated their website to reflect their brick and mortar location; it's 900 E. 11th Street. The web has their old, now defunct trailer address, but clearly, the lack of proper info isn't hurting their business any.

Bits and Bites

-- From the makers of Dripping Springs Vodka, comes ROXOR Artisan Gin, the first Texas gin and first spirit created by a chef. 

-- Monument Cafe in Georgetown has opened Monument Market, an organic, local, and seasonal market which is open daily. (Too bad I don't live north, or I'd go check it out! But GO Georgetown!) 

-- Some delicious sounding chef dinners coming up at Olivia.
-- 24 Diner named one of the best "destination diners' (as in, upscale) by Bon Appetit magazine.

-- International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) is holding their annual conference at the Hilton downtown this week. I'll be volunteering there on Saturday, and a meeting was held Tuesday evening for the volunteers. Upon leaving the Hilton, I briefly met and chatted with Dorie Greenspan, who was trying to finalize her notes for one of the panels she was on. She was super-pleasant and was worried about what she was going to wear! 

-- The annual Cupcake Riot 3.0 is this Saturday; it's a mash up of technology, beer, and cupcakes, with proceeds going to Texas Craft Brewers Guild and Keep Austin Dog Friendly. Competitive eater Hungry Todd Rungy will also be attempting to eat 6 sugar-free cupcakes in under 58 seconds to promote diabetes awareness.

Hunger is Unacceptable

If you've been reading regularly, you know that as a member of the Austin Food Bloggers Alliance, I've been participating in a project with the Capital Area Food Bank. We've been trying to come up with cost-effective, nutritious recipes that a person who receives SNAP (food stamps/Lone Star Card in Texas) benefits could make to maximize their dollars.

Behold the power of the black bean! Ideally, you've budgeted not only your money, but your time to cook up a pot of beans from scratch. Dry beans, water, a little salt, and you have a great-protein filled dish. If you can add an inexpensive ham hock or salt pork, you can add more flavor. Heck even an onion adds more flavor to the pot!

But black beans on their own aren't as interesting as they are when you start adding things to them. This black bean salad is a staple for me. And it's easy. And you can use whatever vegetables (in whatever quantity you like) you have on hand. For this, I have used one 14-15 oz. can black beans (drained and rinsed; no I did not budget my time well so I could cook dry beans from scratch!), various bell peppers, diced, a jalapeno, diced, corn (fresh, frozen or canned is fine; you can also toast it lightly in a skillet), red onion and jicama, diced, cilantro, minced. I like a simple mixture of a little ground cumin, lime juice, and olive oil to just add a little punch of Latin flavor. Salt and pepper to taste, and you're done. Nice side dish, and plus if you make a big batch, it will last a few days in the fridge. Or you can make this into a salsa, by adding some fresh or canned diced tomatoes.

Next option, take this black bean salad, and add cooked quinoa and stretch it that much further. Quinoa? What? Quinoa is technically a seed that hails from the Incan civilization; it's a cousin to beets and spinach, which may explain why it is so nutritious. A portion of quinoa has a serving of protein, as well as your daily amino acids, something that rice or couscous can't offer. It's cooked like rice too, basically two parts water to one part quinoa; I add a little salt or sometimes some broth for flavor, and it's ready in about 15-20 minutes. It's great on it's own, but because it's flavor is mild, it's a nice healthy addition to dishes. A pound of quinoa from a grocery store's bulk foods department runs about $2, and that makes a LOT of quinoa. It's a cheap thrill fill. So here's the black bean salad with quinoa added.

From here, you could change it up from one night to the next, and make these into black bean and quinoa burgers. I've added two eggs, about 1/4 cup of flour (both for binding; I've tried it with only one egg, and it really needs both), about a cup of shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Mix it well, and heat a skillet over medium heat with about a tablespoon of oil. With your hands, form a ball (about a tennis ball sized) of mixture, place into the skillet, and then press down to form a patty. I have found this works better than trying to form a patty by hand. Repeat with remaining mixture. Cook about 3 - 4 minutes per side, until they are golden and crispy. Remove from heat and serve. Great with a salad or side of roast veggies. If you make a big batch, they reheat pretty well in the microwave.

I had followed a recipe for these at one time, and now I sort of wing it. But here's what I think is the latest version! Enjoy, and happy eating!

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Black Bean + Quinoa Burgers

Makes about 8

1/4 cup green onion (scallions), sliced OR red onion, diced

1/2 - 3/4 cup bell peppers of choice, diced

1 ear corn, kernels removed from cob (or 1/2 cup frozen or canned)

1 jalapeno, minced

1 can (14 - 15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained (or 2 cups beans, prepared from dry beans)

2 cups cooked & cooled quinoa

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 Tbsp. lime juice

3 Tbsp. olive oil, plus additional for cooking

1 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

2 eggs, beaten

1/4 cup flour

Salt and pepper to taste

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-- Combine onion, bell peppers, corn, jalapeno and black beans in a large bowl.*

-- Add quinoa, and toss to combine.

-- In a small bowl, whisk together the cumin, a pinch of salt, and lime juice; add olive oil and pour over mixture.

-- Add cheese, eggs, and flour, and toss.

-- Heat skillet over medium heat; add about 1 tablespoon of oil.

-- With your hands, made about a tennis ball-sized ball and place in skillet; flatten with hands and repeat, to fill skillet.

-- Cook 3 – 4 minutes per side, until golden and crispy.

-- Place on wire rack in low temp oven to keep warm while finishing cooking.

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*If desired, vegetables can be sauteed in skillet with a little olive oil to soften before adding to beans.