A blustery, cold January night -- one of the few we've had in Austin this winter -- was the night that one of my best foodie friends and I ventured downtown. We were rather windblown when we arrived a bit past 5:30 pm at Chef David Bull's 2nd Bar + Kitchen in the Austonian building at 2nd and Congress. Since we were there for an early dinner, we had no problem getting a table, and were seated in a corner booth spot, facing the bar.
Studying the drink menu, I was reminded of a cocktail I had there once before for a social media tasting, a couple months after they opened. Gin and Jam -- Citadelle gin on the rocks with a spoonful of housemade raspberry jam. What's on the current menu is different -- Monopolowa Gin with a cranberry jam. I had never been a gin fan before that first gin and jam cocktail, and our server assured me that this version was equally good if not better with the Austrian Monopolowa. He turned out to be quite correct, as it was very smooth with a touch of sweet and tart from the jam.
We started with Bacon + Eggs, which is some very nicely crisped pork belly, a poached egg, frisee, a touch of orange (juice? zest? not sure what form it took), and a maple gastrique. It was really quite delicious. The pork belly had great texture, and I am starting to like eggs with runny yolks! The maple added just the small bit of sweetness needed for a contrast, and the orange addition did make it reminiscent of eating bacon, eggs and orange juice for breakfast. This is considered one of their Small Plates, and at $12, certainly worth it.
We were both excited about the charcuterie plate from the Snack portion of the menu, and got a chuckle out of the description "appropriate condiments." I realize in retrospect, we should have asked what was on the day's plate, as I expected there to be some cured meats, like a sausage or cured ham, but it was all pates and rillettes, so everything was fairly similar texturally. The offerings were all good, but again, a bit more variety would have been nice. From the back left: rabbit rillette with a Dijon-style mustard and chicken pate, and in the front, pork and beef pate, and pork rillette in the cup. The appropriate condiments were a grainy mustard and cornichons and pickled vegetables. I think the two rillettes were my favorites.
We split one large plate, the pappardelle with truffled ricotta, shaved fennel, roasted mushrooms, and added the veal meatballs. The meatballs were a disappointment in both size and taste. There were five very small meatballs, about and inch in diameter, and they were a bit dried out. Looking carefully now at the picture, I think they sat under the salamander broiler for too long. You can see how some of the cheese as well as some of the pasta got a toasted, and the small size of the meatballs suffered from the extra heat. The rest of the dish was good, a mild truffle flavor, and very wide ribbons of pasta; the fennel added an extra layer of flavor which complimented everything well. It was a good dish but not outstanding.
For dessert, we had the Lemon Curd Brulee with "jalapeno caramel and cornbread ice cream." I wonder if the menu description was totally accurate, because what was presented was a cornmeal tartlet with lemon curd, bruleed on top, with salted caramel, and a red jalapeno jam. I wouldn't say the ice cream was cornbready at all. The whole thing was tasty, but not as the menu would lead you to believe.
They also have "bites" on the dessert menu, and I was debating between chocolate brownie and pudding pops. I let the waiter talk me into the pudding pops, though I think I should have gone with my gut, and picked the brownie. The graham cracker crunch was lacking in the crunch part, so there wasn't enough textural contrast.
Apart from the hostess, the other staff we saw all looked a bit scruffy. Jeans and long sleeve t-shirts seem to be the norm there for waiter dress code, but some of them looked like they rolled out of bed from an upstairs apartment in the Austonian. I think we were both surprised by the casualness. 2nd B + K shares its kitchen with Congress, the upscale establishment with prix-fixe three or seven course menus. I have heard that Congress is sheer perfection, so I wonder if the kitchen gives that side of the house their extra attention. Nothing came up totally short in our meal, but I would say there's room for some improvements.
Swift's Attic has been on the "hot" list since it opened earlier this year, and the people who I know who have been have raved about it. So it was finally time to go check it out, and I went with a group of eight foodies. However the food overall did not blow me away, though I think one contributing factor was being with a large group and there was so much chatter going on, it was harder to concentrate on the food.
I loved
the decor and the feel of the place; for those of you who have been in
Austin a while, Swift's occupies the former Kyoto, above the Elephant
Room at 315 Congress Avenue. It's a
long, narrow space; both these pictures were taken from the lounge/bar.
We were seated for dinner at the opposite end. Not sure what the light
fixtures below were made from (some type of basket?) but I liked the
look and effect.
It's a bit dark in the restaurant so in many ways, I am "seeing" my food for the first time in looking at these pictures (thank goodness for flash photography!). It also got very loud, not because we were a group (we were seated at a booth at the back), but because they really jacked the overhead music up. There was no way to hear the conversations at the other end of the table. So here's the food that we had, with a little bit of commentary on it. I WOULD like to go back to Swift's with maybe just a couple people to see if being able to focus more on the food would elevate their standing in my book.
Cocktails in the lounge started with The Reunited -- fresh peach, herbed simple syrup, Remy Martin V (cognac-esque), Cointreau, and lemon juice. This went down very easy!
Tempura "frickles" (fried pickles)
Blistered shishito peppers with Garroxta cheese and Banyuls vinegar... From the online menu, I knew this was with Garroxta (aged Spanish goat's milk cheese) and Banyuls (French vinegar from grenache grapes). From the printed menu at the restaurant, all it reads is "Shishito peppers, GBE." Garroxta Banyuls Emulsion? No idea what GBE stands for, and if I hadn't previously looked online, I really wouldn't have had a clue as to what this was. And this is one of my criticisms of their (and other establishments) menus -- why is it so lacking in information and details about the dish? Are you supposed to ask your server about every little thing? Why can't a menu be printed with more info???? Grrrrrr.
Charred edamame with chili oil and pop rocks; there was something else in the small bowl closest to you other than pop rocks, but I couldn't tell you what for sure, though now looking at it, I think it's salt and pepper. The middle bowl was for the empty edamame pods.
Raw red kale Caesar salad with crispy sardine; the whole sardine (underneath the kale) was a bit of a surprise!
Fried oysters on horseback with root vegetable puree, crispy serrano ham. The ham was good, but I have no distinct memory of what the other components tasted like.
Squid fries with garlic aioli.... a little on the limp side, bit disappointing.
Goaty Cheesy Poufs with braised goat, crimini mushrooms and basil puree. You know the Brazilian pao de quejo cheese balls? This is what this was, with stuff on top. The cheese balls were very chewy and a bit tough. I think they're sort of lost under the meat and mushrooms.
Tater Tot "Swiftine" with smoked ham hock, queso fresco, and gravy. The meat had good flavor, but there's supposed to be queso fresco in here? Where? Maybe the tater tots are made with it? The tots themselves weren't as crisp as the picture suggests the should be.
Idaho Rainbow trout in a leek and radish broth with sun-dried tomato tapende. Quite tasty, very nice broth.
Fried chicken meatballs with pickled ginger and nori sauce. I've never had a battered and fried meatball, but these were good! Actually fairly light.
Evening special: wild caught striped sea bass with sunchokes, sauteed butternut squash ribbons, ramp butter and pistou sauce -- I think I have the description right! I had the waitress repeat it once the plate came so I could write it down. Best dish of the evening, by far! The sea bass was seared, and the skin was amazingly crisp, and the fish tender and moist. A wonderful flavor combination when you got a bite with all components -- velvety butter sauce, the al dente squash with it's sweetness, the crispness of the skin with the light sea taste from the fish. Divine.
Desserts: Popcorn and a Movie.... tasty but a bit too minimalist to be truly satisfying. Kind of like caramel popcorn with Kit Kats.
Fried brie, apple compote, pomegranate gel, pine nut crunch ice cream. This was probably my second favorite dish of the evening. The brie and apple combo was yummy and the pomegranate a nice, bright flavor contrast.
Our lead waitress was quite knowledgeable about the dishes and patient with a group. The staff was a little too efficient in trying to clear plates and drink glasses that maybe hadn't quite been finished yet (like my cocktail).
So, if you've been to Swift's, what dishes did you enjoy (or not) and why? What should I try when I go back?
