Quick Look: Wrigleyville ATX

New food trailer Wrigleyville South Dogs + Beef reached out to me and asked if I would like to come by and try one of their hot dogs. Yes, please!  {The dog was complimentary, I was not compensated monetarily, and opinions are always my own.}

While they specialize in Chicago dogs, I opted for a Rodeo dog, a Vienna beef dog with grilled onions, sport peppers, barbecue sauce, cheese all on a poppy seed bun. (There's something about that bright green relish on a Chicago dog that scares me just a bit! 😉) Verdict on the Rodeo dog? Delicious! And messy. The bun split down it's seam a couple of bites in, but it was still worth it. Loaded up with all the toppings, there was no skimping here. I wish the bun was more toasted, but I also know it can be hard to open up hot dog buns to toast without compromising the seam.

Owners Brian and Teri are following their passion! The trailer is located at the Genie Car Wash at 1311 S. Lamar Blvd, open Wed - Sun 11 am - 6 pm (5pm on Sun). And they are good about keeping their social media updated! Facebook and Instagram. So if you need a good hot dog, here is the place to go!

April's Eats

Apart from my last post on the new Lunar pizza trailer, what else have I been eating?

The month started with Easter brunch with friends at Chicon.

Chicon -- eggs benny with pulled pork

The Asian food game is getting stronger in Austin, though I continue to wish there were more places down south! I visited Teahaus 101 (Airport and Lamar Blvd) with blogger buddies Girl Eats World and Foodie is the New Forty for a complimentary media tasting. We had a LOT of food! I think my favorites were the bulgogi tater tots, the chicken wings, and the noodles with black bean sauce.

Teahaus 101 -- Asian smorgasborg!

While it was a long drive from South Austin 😉 up to the new H Mart Asian grocery in Cedar Park, I am glad I finally made it. On a weekday, the store was virtually empty and there were no lines at the food court. The KJ chicken and onion rings at Sunday Bird were yummy, and they reheated (as in crispy!) really well in my air fryer for dinner. Don't know what they did to the onion rings (MSG? twice fried?) but they were worth the drive.

Sunday Bird at H Mart 

I revisited ATX Cocina with a group of family friends, and once again I was impressed.  We had a variety of plates that we all shared, and our server was spot on with recommendations.

ATX Cocina -- snapper crudo

ATX Cocina -- fish of the day, branzino with red and green sauce, along with a jicama slaw and fresh corn tortillas

ATX Cocina -- chicken with white mole sauce

ATX Cocina -- carne asada

Frontier Airlines now has a nonstop Austin to Albuquerque flight (something Southwest hasn't had in years), which makes visiting my parents a bit easier. And they offered super-cheap introductory rates, which I took advantage of.  I hadn't flown them before, and yes, they do nickel and dime you, but the $130 I paid for a round trip ticket including a checked bag was well worth it. Fortunately, my parents appreciate good food too. My first full day there, we had lunch at neighborhood spot Piatanzi.

Piatanzi's Ottavio salad with golden beets, goat cheese, pistachios, dried cranberries and balsamic dressing.  Good pizza too.

After checking out the Leonardo DaVinci exhibit at the Natural History Museum, we went to Mary and Tito's for lunch. This true mom and pop spot has been around since 1963, and were recognized as a James Beard award winner in 2010. New Mexican food at its finest!

Mary + Tito's, on the left the carne adovada omelette and on the right, crispy taco, a tamale smothered in Christmas chile sauce (both red and green chile) and a carne adovada flauta. I wish there was good New Mexican food here in Austin!

Frenchish is probably my parents' favorite place, as they have followed chef/owner Jennifer James from place to place over the years (also a James Beard semifinalist for best chef in the southwest). The food here never disappoints, and it turned out that our lunchtime waiter from Mary + Tito's the day before (and grandson of the namesakes) was our waiter at Frenchish. Small world.

Frenchish -- blue crab salad

Frenchish -- pork belly with carrot chutney

Frenchish -- lamb bolognese that just melted in your mouth

Frenchish -- risotto jardinere with pork three ways

Up in Santa Fe, we had another fine New Mexican foods meal at La Choza. We've dined at sister restaurant The Shed (just off the main plaza downtown) for years, but La Choza is a relatively new discovery for us even though it has been around since 1983.

La Choza -- blue corn soft taco (not that you can see it) smothered in red and green chile, with a magnificent side of posole with pork.  Who's got a good recipe for posole??

I treated myself to a spa package and a night at Ten Thousand Waves Spa, where the in-house restaurant is the award-winning Japanese izakaya Izanami.

Izanami -- jamon serrano wrapped asparagus. wagyu beef, chicken meatball, and onigiri rice.

Izanami -- cucumber and wakame (seaweed) salad

After returning from my trip, I caught up with friends for lunch at TLC Austin, where I hadn't been since their media tasting in January, and also still impresses.

TLC Austin -- the Enlightenment, a vegetarian sandwich for me believe it or not!

TLC Austin -- snow crab legs seafood boil

TLC Austin -- 04 Goodness Sake

Finally, lunch at Pho with Us in Southpark Meadows.

Pho with Us -- bun bowl with grilled pork and eggroll and a VERY strong Vietnamese coffee

What have you been eating lately that I should know about? Don't want to wait for a monthly recap? Check out my more up to date Instagram page! 😊

First Look: Lunar Pizza (It's Outta This World!)

Editor's Note: Closed, fall 2019

Lunar Pizza has landed! While established as a mobile lunar rover, this new food trailer has planted it's pizza flag next to its sister Regal Ravioli at 1502 South First Street, across from Elizabeth Street Cafe. Earthlings rejoice!

The Lunar, aka cheese pizza

I was invited to try Lunar by owner Zach, who knows I have loved his ravioli trailer for years; previous post here. (Cheese ravioli with pecan pesto? Yes please! But don't overlook the sweet potato gnocchi with bolognese sauce.) So let's get this part out of the way, I was not monetarily compensated for this blog post and all opinions are purely my own.  I *dragged* two friends along with me, and we enjoyed a pleasant spring evening dining al fresco with our adult beverages we brought with us. And independently, we reached the same conclusion about Lunar Pizza: we loved it.

This is New Jersey-style pizza, which is known for a thinner and crispier crust and a little more sauce than its New York cousin. To me, the crust was the best part of the Lunar pizzas, and like a good apple pie, the crust MAKES a (pizza) pie.  Lunar's dough is thin, but not cracker thin, with a little bit of a chew to it, but not a doughy mouthful. It's unique and I dig it.

The deck oven in the trailer heats to 525 degrees. For a classic cheese pie, Zach spreads cheese over the dough and bakes for about 2 minutes, then adds sauce and more cheese before returning to the oven. This process helps the crust to bake to perfection. He recommends not putting too many toppings on the pizzas as it will overload the thin crust.

Zach, making pizza

There are a couple pies on the specialty menu, and Zach also brought us the Super Moon, a white pizza with garlic, olive oil, cheese, prosciutto, roasted red peppers and broccolini. A few red pepper flakes added a bit of zip, and this pie was outstanding. I always love a white pie, and as the song goes "When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore." And for times when you don't want a whole pizza, you can also order by the slice.

The Super Moon pie

1502 S. 1st Street

Pro tips:

• Go directly to the Regal Ravioli trailer to order. All the orders and pick up is done from Regal and the Lunar trailer does all the prep and cooking.
• BYOB
• Order via Favor if you can't make it in person. (Not sure how well the crispness of the crust holds up.)
• Reheat your leftovers in the oven or toaster oven, don't make a soggy mess of the crust by putting it in the microwave.
• Monday - Saturday, noon - 10 pm; Sundays 3 - 10 pm

First Look: Loro -- The Offspring of Two Austin Legends

What happens when Tyson Cole of Uchi and Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue (both James Beard award-winning chefs) come together? Loro, the Asian/smoked meats eatery that is currently in soft opening stages. Trust me, it's going to be HUUUGE!

Located at 2115 South Lamar Boulevard at Oltorf Street, Loro is a new build-out, just south of the Office Depot. Plenty of parking onsite, and with a huge covered outdoor area, the Michael Hsu designed building is gorgeous inside and out. Starting April 4th, they will operate seven days a week for lunch and dinner. No reservations taken.

I got to attend a soft opening last Friday. You go inside and order at the counter and they bring the food out to you. Local beers on tap, a few cocktails and wines offered too. Here's the rundown of what we sampled (food was 50% off, so we figured we should try a lot!).

Corn fritters

Garlic rice noodles with pineapple, currants + cashews

Chicken karaage with jalapeno aioli *

Green papaya salad

Oak smoked salmon in a cucumber yuzu broth

Smoked brisket with sweet chili sauce and Thai herbs *

Char siew pork shoulder bowl

Aaron + Tyson 

 * = favorites on the evening. We also had the wonton chips with Thai green salsa and a sambal peanut dip that were also outstanding.

Throughout the evening, we saw both Aaron and Tyson running food, chatting with people, and in general looking relaxed. You would have thought they were just regular guys working a shift, as any "big chef egos" were clearly checked at the door. This unique mashup of food styles is sure to be a hit, and I believe Loro will be popular for a very long time.

Cannon + Belle: Texas Food for Everyone

Cannon + Belle, the main restaurant at the Hilton Austin downtown invited Michelle of Foodie is the New Forty to a media dinner, and she invited me to accompany her! A big thanks to Cannon + Belle for having us, and to our waitress Lindsay who was fantastic. I was not monetarily compensated for this blog post and all opinions are my own.

Calling their style "Texas fresh: chef-crafted flavors in living room style comfort," Cannon + Belle has an extensive number of local farms and purveyors that they work with. Open daily from 6:30 am - 10 pm, with brunch on Sundays as well. They will be offering an Easter brunch special on April 1st, 11 am - 3 pm. Here's the rundown of what we tried.

Cocktails to start! The Metabolic Mule and Angelina's Punch are just a few options from their creative bar program.

The white pizza with fresh oregano leaves. This was SUPER cheesy and also loaded with garlic, yum yum!

The Honey + Black Garlic chicken wings with a white barbecue sauce. These were outstanding!

The Sweet Pea Cake, their version of a veggie burger. Attractive presentation with a savory yogurt sauce and rainbow veggies, but a bit tough and salty overall.

Beautifully seared scallops in a brown butter sauce, these were cooked to perfection, as were the green beans, which still had a snap to them. And honestly, for $27, not badly priced for a hotel restaurant.

Peach and blueberry crisp, with a nice amount of crumble on top.

The salted caramel chocolate stack cake, the decadent and amazing finale to our meal! This is a good size piece of cake, and we couldn't finish it. Layers of chocolatey goodness and buttercream frosting with salted caramel on top. Pure bliss for the chocolate lover.

So whether you're a local Austinite looking for a fun place or a visitor staying at the Hilton, Cannon + Belle has plenty of Texas comfort food for everyone.