Austin, you have outdone yourself

We rolled into town still in the a.m. hours, which meant we had a big glorious day ahead. First we met up with Jesse and his new dog Max - really the cutest little edible munchkin I've ever seen (I'll insert a photo later - I have a ton).

After saying out goodbyes to Max we headed out and into the scorching city. First stop - sustenance. Jesse brought us to a crepere that, although taking their sweet time creating these french burritos, was utterly delicious. In trying to save room for the BBQ feast that was to come, R & I only spilt a crepe and regretted it the moment we bit into the succulent savory packages. But enough about crepes.

Without waiting the prerequisite 30 minutes for digestion, we made our way to Barton Springs, this amazing water hole in the middle of downtown Austin. It stays 68 degrees all year round and considering the thick humid August air, it was the perfect temperature. We frolicked, floated, slipped on the mossy floor and baked in the sun.

Sufficiently soaked, Jesse then took us to his neighborhood where antique and vintage stores are only outnumbered by the tattooed pedestrians that walk in and out of them. To start us off properly we all split a red velvet cupcake from Hey Cupcake! The second airstream outdoor eatery stop in our 12 hour stay. It was moist and sweet and delicious. With sugar amping us up we took in the neighborhood, the people, and the cute boutiques.

Though the sightseeing was nice, dinner loomed over us. It was only 4 pm by the time we made it down and around the streets, but we decided that we had to get serious and serious meant getting ourselves out to this BBQ place I had heard so much about - The Salt Lick. To further prove it's righteousness in the ways of Texas BBQ it was a little out of the way and only accessible by rush-hour clogged super highways. We had to suffer a little, of course, before we got there. An off duty sheriff greeted us at the parking lot and three more languidly showed us to a spot. We were pretty early for a Friday night meal so we didn't have to wait for a table - a little out of the norm, as I understand it.

The moment you step into the dark mess hall of a restaurant you are confronted by the sweet smokey smell of BBQ. We sat, grunted our order (4 family style - the only way to go) and were presented with a feast of kings within minutes.

It was, dare I say, the best meal I have ever had. Ribs, brisket, some sausage (though it paled in comparison to its meaty friends), cole slaw, potatoes and other things that I couldn't really notice over my saucy hands. Oh did we consume. The meat just fell right off the bone and the moment we seemed to be getting low on any of the options, the heaving plate was replenished with barely a wave of the hand. It's a BYOB restaurant but who can pay attention to wine when you have such a presentation? To top off the meat and sides there was their signature Habanero sauce that had the perfect mixture of heat and sweet. I had to have it.

We payed for our meal and squeezed our satiated selves out of the long wooden benched seats. On the way out I looked around at the cashier desk for the sauce that still lingered in my mouth and found, to my utter surprise that it was called "Lauren's Spicy Recipe Bar-B-Que Sauce." Can you even believe it! We had been to so many truck stops and souvenier venues that I just assumed they personalized all of their sauce bottles like a sticker, pencil, or zipper pull for added toursit value. But, no. This was the name and I knew it was true love.

It's hard to follow a gestational activity like that but we made our way back to Austin and had a drink at a very sheek modern design friendly hotel. And just when I thought I had really consumed all that I could in the city, we came across Amy's ice Cream and how could I say no? I had Mexican vanilla and dark chocolate, R had Mexican vanilla and strawberry - it was phenomenal!

After that there was really nothing else to do but go home and digest, watch a little of the Olympics and pass out every so happily.

We were up with the dawn and heading East to New Orleans. I am very excited about this next destination. More awesome food, some music and who knows what else. I don't know if anything can beat my meal at the Salt Lick but I'm certainly willing to give it a try.

Because I talked it up so much, let me share a photo of the meatfest that was The Salt Lick*

*This blog is not responsible for any technical malfunctions that may occur as a result of uncontrolled drooling