Quick Look: Soto South Lamar

Continuing on my unintended Lamar Union restaurant tour, we have Soto, which has expanded from their Cedar Park location.  My neighbors and I recently went for happy hour which we quite enjoyed, but given the very few tables that were filled (early evening on a Tuesday), I do hope Soto will survive. A bottle of Weingut Brundlmayer Gruner Vetliner was perfect with all of our dishes. 

Miso soup (the large spoon didn't really fit into the narrow bowl)

The brought an amouse bouche of edamame mouse, which I wasn't in
love with at first but then I finished the whole thing off! 

Fish + chips, one of their signature dishes, said our waitress. And I can see why! Super thin potato chips with salmon sashimi, lemon aioli and truffle salt. Very addicting.

Chicken karaage without a lick of grease. And loved the plating.

Somewhere under there is hamachi! Beautifully presented plate with scallions, fried jalapenos, ponzu and edible flowers.

Wagyu carpaccio....mmmmm.  These four items were on the happy hour menu and ranged $7 - 14.

Soto South Maki with torched toro; this one was $18

Real California Maki with snow crab for $13

In the later part of our meal, we did order a couple of cocktails, but found the cocktail menu to be overly fussy. It was heavy on sake and whiskey/bourbon drinks, which is not unexpected for a Japanese restaurant, but there were a lot of complicated ingredients even to my friend who is a wine/spirits rep. (I didn't take a picture of the cocktail menu, nor do I see it online, so you'll have to take my word for it.😉) 

I will most certainly go back to Soto! I posted the fish and chips picture on Instagram, and a friend said the tuna tacos on the happy hour menu are fabulous, and there are other things I spy that I am interested in trying. While I still think it's a bit odd that Soto opened just a block from Uchi, it's a much different vibe. And unlike my experience at Mandala (see my previous blog post) directly across the driveway from Soto, our service and food was on point from the moment we walked in. Fingers crossed that Soto can make it in South Austin!

First Look: The Yin and Yang of Mandala

South Lamar's Lamar Union complex has had a hard time keeping restaurants. Cantine, El Burro, VOX Table, Delicious have all cycled in and out in relatively short periods of time. TLC Austin (which I like very much, see this blog post for info on them) appears to be holding its own, Soto has replaced Cantine, Shake Shack and the Highball are still there too. Mandala, with its Thai and Vietnamese influences, opened in March at the old El Burro spot. Let's hope they can make it last!

I met a group of friends there on a weeknight for dinner; ironically, our same group of four had previously eaten at El Burro too. Another foodie friend had told me about a passion fruit cocktail, but it wasn't on the menu this evening. Our waiter, who seemed relatively new, didn't seem to have a full grasp of the liquors available at the bar, because when asked if they had Tito's Vodka he said no, but one of our group went to check with the bartender who confirmed its presence. They did have some half price bottles of wine held over from Mother's Day so we split a bottle of rose.

We started with their mini rice pancakes, which come seven per order. I inquired when we ordered if we could get eight since there were four of us. The waiter said no, but offered no explanation. I understood it when they arrived; they are not pancakes in the flat sense or something that is cooked on a griddle. They are a version of kanon krok, a type of Thai dessert that uses a pan not unlike those for Japanese takoyaki or Danish abelskivers. Anyhow, they were nice, crispy on the bottom from the rice flour, with a savoriness mixed with a sweetness from coconut milk. Could have used a dash of chile or at least one bold flavor.

Red curry with vegetables and shrimp also had good flavor. Lots of veggies and just enough kick in the red curry. (This made an excellent leftover dish the following day; I pan sauteed some red fish, added green beans and poured the remains of the curry over it. On my Instagram!)

These mussels were also done with a red curry sauce, and it was quite tasty. What I am noticing though, the menu online says they are served with garlic toast, and this was served with plain bread. Needed more of it too to sop up that delicious sauce.

I love Thai noodle dishes, and was excited to try the pad kee mao with chicken, especially after our waiter said it was one of his favorites. What arrived was a plate with clumpy, undercooked noodles that were in short little choppy sections. While I wasn't anticipating the rice noodles to be long and slurpy like ramen, I did expect them to be more than two inches in length! I asked for the manager to come over, and when he did, his attitude was more like "yeah, what's up" as opposed to "how can I help you?". I inquired if this dish was normally served this way; I don't recall what his specific words were but he did imply that no it did not look quite right and took it back to the kitchen.

This is the second version (below) of pad kee mao that arrived. You can at least see that some of the noodles are in longer lengths. Taste was okay, but for my likes, it could have used a little more sauce and not to mention flavor. Not much spice, though the menu says "spicy brown sauce." The manager did not come back to check on us.

As you can see, there is some yin and yang at play here. There are some dishes on the menu I really want to try, like the rice pie and the crispy fish with pineapple tamarind sauce. But after the noodle debacle, I am not certain that I would order it again. I know they have only been open about two months but if they are going to survive, especially at Lamar Union, Mandala needs their universes to be in sync.

Have you been to Mandala, and what was your experience with the food and service?

January's Best Bites: From the Tried + True to Brand New

If you've been following my Instagram account (hint, hint!) you may have seen some of the places I have eaten this month. Here's a recap of a few of the stellar things I have had; maybe I'll make this a monthly feature!

This is a special order lamb and prune tajine is from my favorite trailer, The Flying Carpet.  The lamb was incredibly tender and just melted in your mouth. Check their website for items that can be ordered 24 hours in advance; they also have an indoor eating space that will transport you to Morocco!

Here's the Hot Chocolate Gianduja Cake from Red Ash, a chocolate lover's dream! The crunchy bits added a nice textural contrast, along with the ice cream. We also loved the hot bread with garlic, but the burrata and gorgonzola gnocchi left me underwhelmed. But I would certainly go back for this and a nice glass of Italian red wine.

Award-winning Confituras, long a staple at area farmer's markets with their seasonal jams and canned goods, has finally opened their forever-home on Goodrich, off South Lamar.  Get fresh hot biscuits with butter or a rotating jam selection, along with coffee or tea. As a community kitchen, they will soon be offering classes and an expanded menu, stay tuned!

I was invited to the media preview at Fareground (at 111 Congress Avenue) the first urban food hall in Austin, and their opening is a reason for rejoicing. Six purveyors (Easy Tiger, Antonelli's Cheese, Henbit, Contigo, Ni-Kome, and Dai Due) plus a bar all operate seven days a week. Pictured is the wild boar taco al pastor from Dai Due Taqueria  that had amazing flavors and a housemade blue corn tortilla.

Also at Fareground, these chocolate chunk cookies from Henbit (offshoot of Emmer + Rye) were warm and delicious.

Recently opened in Lamar Union, TLC Austin seeks to bring Texas comfort food with a coastal influence to the masses. This vegetarian sandwich called The Enlightenment was just that! Stuffed with watermelon radish, cheddar, carrots, cukes, avocado and pesto, it was held together by a sturdy grainy bread. And only $8. Raw oysters and boils also available.

What have YOU eaten recently that you loved? What do I need to check out? Share in the comments! Happy eating!

El Burro: New Fresh and Casual Mexican in Lamar Union

Editor's note 7/12/2017: El Burro closed in early July. {That didn't last long!}

I met a friend last month at the new El Burro, sibling to VOX Table, both in Lamar Union at 1100 South Lamar Blvd. Having just opened earlier this winter, I was curious to try it and hopefully include them in my guide to the Best Mexican Food in Austin, and they did not disappoint! Plus they recently started a happy hour program, which will certainly encourage my return.

We sat outside on the patio, which did have heaters (and hopefully those will turn into misters as the weather heats up), and fortunately since we were on the driveway side, the noise from the Lamar Blvd. traffic wasn't too bad. Also fun to people watch at this new, hip complex.

I started with a lovely sangria and my friend a classic margarita.

Okay, admittedly it's been a month since I was there, and I didn't write down what my friend had, but I think this is the carnitas taco plate with green salsa. She was rather pleased with it!

Mine is definitely the al pastor! Decent corn tortillas, very nice flavor and tenderness to the pork. I almost always feel that al pastor tacos should have a teeny bit more pineapple than what they come with, but the pickled onions were a nice addition. Now the menu calls this avocado salsa, but it was certainly more of a sauce than salsa. But I would still order them again!

The El Burro website mentions free valet parking, and also has an online ordering feature that's coming soon. So whether you are planning on dining in or getting food to go, you've got options on how to get your El Burro fix!

VOX Table at Lamar Union

I've been hearing the positive accolades for VOX Table since it opened last year. I was finally able to go for a recent Sunday brunch, which turned out to be a bread-lovers dream come true!

Located in the new Lamar Union complex, VOX Table sits just across from the entrance to the Highball and the Alamo Drafthouse. There's free parking in the garage, and free valet parking in the evenings. The restaurant's interior is light-filled, thanks to big windows, and the decor is a very uniform monochromatic gray and white. While that can come across as boring, here it is not; a huge painted wall above the bar keeps it interesting and tied together (not sure if this is considered a mural or just free-form design but it also mirrors the white and gray marble tabletops). Even the restroom and two private dining areas (one open alcove for maybe eight people, and a larger room that could be closed off entirely) are devoid of bright color, but all the neutral decor lends to making the food *pop* even more. There are seats at the bar, and also a few at the counter overlooking the open kitchen; it would be fun to sit here and watch the action!

My friend and I started with the potato churro appetizer, which comes with "VOX Sauce" that turned out to be a nice smoked paprika aioli. The churros were nicely crisp and squishy (the technical term!) at the same time. I can think of a ton of different uses for that sauce!

The appetizer section of the menu features a "bread of the day" with cultured butter. I am never one to refuse good bread, so when my friend suggested getting it, I was thrilled. This was some sort of whole wheat bread, and possibly sourdough... can't remember, but it was delicious!

My friend ordered the French toast, which isn't your ordinary French toast. Ricotta stuffed brioche bread with roasted strawberries and a balsamic drizzle. All it needs is some bacon. Oh my!

I opted for their version of "biscuits and gravy" which had a chicken roulade baked inside this delicious bread, with mushrooms and chicken gravy. I loved every aspect of this dish except the chicken. And the chicken wasn't bad, but I think I wanted it to be more like fried chicken and it wasn't. Texturally it just seemed a bit soft, but not undercooked. But the bread with the silky smooth gravy was divine.

Unfortunately, we did overload on bread, so we didn't leave room for dessert. Which means a return trip is in order! We had a reservation for 11 am, right when they opened, and by the time we left, the place was packed, so I would certainly recommend making one. I would love to go for dinner, and see how different the vibe and lighting is, as we were blessed with a bright sunny day.  VOX has the feel of both a causal and fine dining establishment; there were families with kids, but it was mostly adults of different ages and different styles of dress. As in very Austin. Good service and delicious food, and whoever is in charge of their different breads is amazing! Dinner and a movie anyone?