Musashino Sushi Dokoro

3407 Greystone Dr

Austin, TX 78731

(512) 795-8593

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve posted a new review. It’s been a crazy week. Between recovering from Finals and this week at work (and of course my full social schedule), blogging has found its way to the bottom of my list. That being said, I have a long, long list of places I’ve eaten at recently and have every intention of blogging about. The first of which has been a personal favorite restaurant of mine for over 10 years. Now that I’m back in the dating world and am a tick older, I’ve been noticing dating patterns that I was clueless about when I was a young woman freshly out on my own. 1) Men really do mature slower than women. I’m finally getting to the point where I can date men my own age. The 23 year old boys interested in chasing innocent, leggy, bottle blonds and doing beer bongs off the roof of their parents garage have finally turned into 30 year old men focused on their careers, saving money, and savoring life. 2) That when men (and maybe people in general) lack sufficient personal information about you, they’ll fall back on a standard set of questions. And the questions from man to man are surprisingly similar. My favorite right now, because it seems like every guy I’ve talked to has asked it recently is “What’s your favorite sushi restaurant.” I don’t know if they pulled this out of their ass or if there is some “Dating for Dummies” book out there that has put out a pre-approved set of questions a man should ask every woman (and I just haven’t happened to hear about it yet). I mean these random men probably think they’re really clever. They’re hoping to discern from me a couple of things a) whether I’m a foodie – which seems to have become an important quality among the single 30-something b) whether I’m adventurous enough to eat sushi regularly – because apparently there are STILL some people in this world who don’t eat sushi regularly and c) if my taste in restaurants is appropriate (and sorry for the list format again, I’ve spent too much time at work this week). So what sushi restaurant is my favorite, you ask? You might expect me to say Uchi. And while their Japanese fusion cuisine is rather spectacular (I mean maguro sashimi and goat cheese with cracked pepper, fuji apple and pumpkin seed oil, what’s there not to like??) but to be honest, their regular sushi/sashimi is rather unspectacular. Sure the quality is grade A-, but the price is waaay too much for just grade A- sushi. I can get the same fish at Korea Garden for half the price, now granted, I can’t feel like a glorified hipster at Korea Garden, but at my core I am a cheap bastard. So what sushi restaurant do I keep coming back to time and again over the years? Musashino.

Since I first discovered GOOD sushi in college here in Austin (Illinois isn’t exactly known for their great fresh fish), I’ve migrated back to Musashino regularly to partake of their tasty fish treats. When I first moved to Fort Worth, I had to drive all the way to Dallas to get good sushi. So, when I’d come to Austin to visit the folks, I’d usually always make a stop at Mushashino to get my sushi on. So I was incredibly delighted when my awesome Italian friend Elena decided to have her Birthday dinner there (with our other friend David who happens to have the same Birthday as Elena). I also happened to go a few days later on a date with a cool guy who, though he lives in Austin, is working on a contract in the Virgin Islands, and only comes into town rarely (see you were starting to wonder why I spent so much time talking about dating at the top, he was one of the favorite sushi culprits). He specifically requested we go for sushi because surprisingly the VI isn’t known for their sushi. You’d think on an island with an abundance of fresh fish, they’d be able to figure out sushi, but apparently that hasn’t happened yet. When I go to Mushashino, I generally get the same things, but those things span most of the menu so you’ll get a good flavor of what they have to offer.

So the first think you have to get if you go to Musashino is the Gyu Tataki. Thinly sliced rare (or even raw) fillet mignon in a roasted garlic and soy sauce. It’s served in a martini glass and looks horrible - brown good and raw beef all mixed in with flecks of fried garlic. But the taste is incredible. I love my steak on the rare side, the rarer the better and this appetizer really appeals to me. It’s the perfect starter to a meal that will finish with raw fish (I know it doesn’t sound like it, but the umami factor of the raw beef and soy really makes your mouth happy). After satiating myself on raw beef, I generally move onto sushi and the rolls. I find the sashimi at Musashino is rather pricy, so unless I’m with someone that insists, for my pocketbook’s sake, I choose rolls (remember how I said I was cheap). For the rolls, I find I like the following the Marilyn Mon-Roll, the Evil Knevil Rolls and the Ozzy II. They’re all American rolls with some sort of fish and veggies on the outside and then wrapped and rolled in fish roe. They’re all excellent, tasty, fresh, and extremely eatable. The only other tip I can give you about Musashino is to ALWAYS order the special of the day. Whether it’s the Kona Kampachi (Hawaiian yellowtail), or the salmon trout, always get a few pieces of it. You’ll thank me.. Really.

Musashino is known, for among other things, being traditional. Now the size of their sushi is slightly larger than the truly traditional 100 grain rice ball, but their Maki or skinny rolls are very traditional. There’s some weird stuff on that half of the menu and I have to admit, I haven’t been that adventurous to stray in to that part of the menu. But hey, if pickled burdock with daikon radish or a fermented soybean roll is your thing, go for it. I might even have a bite.

When I went with Laura, Elena and David, we got the Age Dofu appetizer, an asparagus roll, and I tried her seaweed salad. I have to say, those veggie items weren’t that great. Laura and I have had this back and forth conversation about Musashino. She didn’t think it was that good. And from her perspective, I’d have to agree. The veggie items are standard and nothing out of the ordinary. What makes Musashino really spectacular is their fish. It’s quality. Even better quality than Uchi I’d wager. The only time I’ve had better quality sushi was when I was in San Diego. Not even Sam’s Sushi in Seattle, which is known for their fresh, quality sushi, can match Musashino (but it’s damn close, not like I’d turn it down). I don’t know how they do it or who their supplier is, but its quality.

Laura's note: My food was really sub-par. The tofu was uninspiring, the seaweed salad was unmemorable. The asparagus roll was decent, but not great. It would've been fine at half the price but I expected more from a restaurant with this reputation and such an extensive wine list. It just seems like they forgot to pay attention to the details. At least the company was fantastic!

Bottom Line: World class quality fish, traditional style, go there tonight (unless you’re a vegetarian, then save your money)!

Mariah - 10

Laura - 4.5

Mars Restaurant and Bar

Mars Restaurant and Bar
1400 S. Congress
Austin, Texas 78704
http://www.marsaustin.com/

Let me start by telling you how I met Elena.

I got an email from a former Italian coworker of mine asking me to show a new to Austin Italian professor around last fall. The former coworker, Walter, is an easy going fun guy in his fifties, so naturally I assumed that this Italian professor would be around his age.

I was preparing in my mind for activities to take such a person to. It was late October and the whole 6th street on Halloween debacle seemed entirely inappropriate, so I searched my brain and decided that a simple brunch was a good introductory session. This would allow us to size each other up and figure out if a relationship was going to beneficial for friendship, but more likely networking or general about-town knowledge.

The shock came when Elena showed up at my house as a drop dead gorgeous extremely friendly and fashionable grad student of 28. Not at all the powersuited serious 50 something professor I was expecting. I guess something was lost in translation between Walter and me.

The other thing that was lost in translation was that Walter had never actually met Elena.

Flash forward to April. Walter’s time in the US is complete and sadly for us, he is about to go back to Italy. He wants to take a drive down to Austin from DFW to meet and greet his fellow Milano over lunch, and I’m in charge of making arrangements.

It’s a beautiful Texas spring day, the sun is shining and the only requirement I can think of is that I do not want to be stuck indoors. I discuss a few options with Elena and decide on Mars on South Congress. The environment is right and the patio is great. I’ve been there once before and found the food not quite worth all the hype, but decent and I believe it will do for the purpose.

Unfortunately, when Walter shows, we give him the options of Italian, American or Asian and he quickly vetoes Italian and Asian. We convince him to try Mars anyway, marketing it as Asian infused American cuisine, and that if he doesn’t like the menu, we can venture down to South Congress Café.

When we arrive, South Congress Café has an hour long wait, so he reluctantly concedes to Mars. I’m feeling a little guilty at this point, after all the guy did drive 3 hours just to have lunch with us and I’m forcing him to eat a cuisine he despises, but I quickly shrug off the nagging guilt feeling when I spot several items on the limited, but adequate lunch menu that I think will do for even the most staunch Asian food hater.

Walter requests that we eat inside and part of me dies right then and there. I console myself with the reassurance that I have the rest of the afternoon to enjoy the sun.

As we are seated, Lach (my boyfriend for all of you new readers) begins to look around and make running commentary on the décor. He says he’s not sure if he’s in a restaurant, a nightclub or a fetish shop. I see where he’s coming from. The black and red interior comes off as quite gothic, the kind of décor I expected and failed to see at Prague. They are trotting a fine line between stylish and overdone, but somehow seem to pull it off. Perhaps it’s the location, type of cuisine, absence of gargoyles and other cheesy relics, or the accommodating demeanor of the staff that day that seals the deal. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly why it works, but it works.

We order a bottle of white wine and hummus/baba ganough to start. The starter comes with grilled flat bread with bits of red pepper infused. It’s just the slightest bit spicy and goes well with the hummus. The baba ganough, on the other hand, is something I could have done without. It tastes to me a bit slimy. Perhaps from too much oil or maybe overcooked eggplant? We munch as we pick out our courses and request more bread.

I choose the Mizuna and Tatsoi Salad with pickled onions, crispy wontons and creamy sesame garlic dressing. Elena decides on Salmon with soy wasabi aioli, sticky rice and vegetable du jor. Walter avoids too much Asian with Wagyu Steak and Frites, and Lach picks the Marinated Tenderloin Salad with croutons, Thai Basil, mint and kim chee vinaigrette.

Our food arrives within a decent amount of time and the portion sizes are not oversized. My salad is fresh and green and the onions are slightly sweet and not overpowering. The crispy wontons remind me of being a kid and overindulging on foods that are terrible for me, like the wontons provided by cheap and greasy Chinese restaurants. It’s a secret shameful pleasure executed in a non greasy way that accentuates the rest of the salad instead of taking it over. I’m not sure if I would describe the dressing as creamy, but the leaves were lightly tossed in something that was very tasty.

Elena’s salmon looked really nice. I watched her carefully pull the skin off the top before diving in. The sticky rice looked unpalatable to me, but the asparagus accompanying the plate looked delicious. Walter had this same asparagus on his plate as well. The style it was cooked in was the only Asian influences his plate contained. The steak seemed nice, and he did not complain. The frites were curly bits of fried potato that looked mildly unappealing and mostly remained on his plate. Lach enjoyed his salad, but was surprised to find that the tenderloin was presented in skewered chunks as opposed to thinly sliced pieces. He admitted to me that he enjoyed Mars more than he had enjoyed his past experience at South Congress Café.

We were all satiated. Walter (being the typical coffee-snob Italian) did not trust the espresso at Mars and suggested we travel to Starbucks to finish our afternoon. I cringed and proposed Mozart’s instead. Not only did I want to avoid the ever-present Starbucks, I could finally get some time outdoors on a nice patio. He agreed to try it and was actually quite surprised. Although he and Elena recoiled at disgust at the ice cream/gelato, he and Lach gave the espresso two thumbs up.

Overall: Asian influenced American food in trendy dark atmosphere. Although overrated amongst most Austin hipsters, it does pull off a good meal and has a fabulous patio perfectly situated on trendy South Congress.

Laura ~ 8 (8 on food, 9 on atmosphere)

Hai KY

1931 E Oltorf St # B

Austin, TX 78741
(512) 693-2464


A co-worker (Kevin) and I decided to try a different Pho restaurant than Phở 888, on Oltorf. I had read a few reviews before deciding on the place so and based on the reviews, the place was worth a try.

Typically, Vietnamese restaurants that have Phở or Mi on their sign, specialize in soup. So, you shouldn't expect to see Banh Mi, Clay Pot, Bo luc lac, or any other Vietnamese dish on the menu. Typically, when I have Vietnamese, I have Phở, which is why I chose Hai KY. Phở and Mi were on the sign so, I would be judging them on my typical meal at a Phở restaurant: Spring Rolls, Phở Dàc Biêt, and Cà phê sữa đá.

Ok, Hai KY is a pretty small place and I could see that it's popularity outstrips it's seating. We ended up sitting at a bar facing the window, so I had to turn and face Kevin when I wasn't slurping noodles. We shared the bar with 3 other people but, many of the customers were sharing tables with strangers. This is typical for a Phở restaurant. The wait staff was quick and courteous, seating us quickly, getting our orders quickly, serving the appetizer quickly and leaving us just enough time to finish them before the main course was delivered. They even delivered the bill early so people with short lunch breaks (like me and Kevin) could rush back to their jobs.

On to the meal. The Spring Rolls had the right ingredients (pork, shrimp, noodles), were not rubbery or chewy, and the taste was completely obscured by one of the most peanut-y tasting peanut sauces I've ever had. It was so good, I had a few spoonfulls when the Spring Rolls ran out. I should have had a bite without dipping it in the sauce.

It takes a while for the coffee to drain out of the drip filter so I usually drink the Cà phê sữa đá after the meal so, I'll get back to this.

The soup stock (which is really the heart of Phở) was not that great, sadly. Since this was Phở Dàc Biêt, I expected to see a mountain of eye round, and flank steak, tripe and soft tendon, but, there wasn't really much to go around. There wasn't much in the way of noodles either. The bulk of the solids were white onions, green onions, and cilantro. It was worth about the price I paid for it (under $6). By comparison, though, most Phở kitchens give you much more for the price.

Towards the end of the meal, the Cà phê sữa đá was ready (as predicted), so I mixed it all up, and poured it over the ice. I've never had a bad glass of Cà phê sữa đá... until today. It tasted bad. I still can't place exactly what the problem was. Could it be the water was too hot, or the grains too old or was it that the condensed milk was expired? I ended up leaving half a glass, which never happens.

I'll reserve my final judgement until I visit them again, since it could have been an off day. Until then:

Eric - 4.5

Beluga Japanese Restaurant

http://www.belugasushi.net/

661 Louis Henna Blvd # 300

Round Rock, TX 78664

(512) 255-6454

There are a few lunch places that I tend to visit over and over again. Beluga Sushi on Louis Henna is one of them, but I hadn’t been there in a while. One reason is because none of their lunch specials are vegetarian, so I end up ordering a la carte items and that can get pricey. I usually get some combination of veggie roll, vegetable tempura, edamame, seaweed salad or age doshu (tempura tofu). I have to admit that while their veggie roll is good, it’s not spectacular and an entire plate of vegetable tempura is just too much fried friedness for one meal. Despite this and the fact that I just went to a sushi restaurant on Saturday, I decided to visit Beluga again today.

Beluga is in the HEB shopping center just west of A.W. Grimes on Louis Henna (45 tollway). It’s not much on the outside, but the inside is nicely done. It’s a swanky spot that offers stylish music, sleek decor and staff members with cool haircuts. It’s really got the cool edgy factor going for it since there’s not much competition for this approach in Round Rock.

Today I decided to sit at the bar since I was all alone and it was just a little too windy for their small make-shift patio. There usually aren’t many people at the bar but today some of the Dell crowd was there flirting with the bartender.

Blair, the bartender, brought me water and a menu. The menu looked new, so I began to scan it for previously unavailable items I could eat. Turns out Blair was a pescatarian so she understood my plight and was more than happy to help me find something really delicious. She recommended an off-menu item of Tofu steak in a Bento box. Something new- this was exciting!

I took her up on the offer and she brought me some miso soup as a starter. The miso soup was good but very typical. It contained small chunks of tofu and strips of seaweed. I slurped it down and soon my Bento box arrived.

Wow was I surprised at the amount of food: a California roll (minus the crab), a salad, vegetable tempura (broccoli, carrot, Eggplant, sweet potato, and shiitake mushroom), fresh orange slices and the elusive tofu steak topping a heap of white rice and sautéed vegetables. Then there where sauces: ginger soy for the tempura and a fantastic savory chili sauce for the tofu steak with just the right amount of spice. The tofu steak was perfectly flaky and the sautéed vegetables were a nice touch. The salad provided the perfect amount of green freshness the meal needed. The vegetable tempura was delicious except for the shitake mushrooms were tough on the ends. The roll was typical, but satisfactory.

The super friendly bartender offered me a box and I gladly took her up on the offer. She boxed up the leftovers (even the chili sauce!) and brought me my check- a mere $11.50, and although this is more than I like to spend daily on lunch, it was completely worth it for the variety and quality of food I consumed.

My faith in Beluga has been restored. Now, I wouldn't want to make a special trip up to Round Rock for it, but I’ll be happy to meet you there after work for their awesome happy hour specials- Anyone up for $2 Saketinis on Tuesdays?

Note: July 21, 2008.

Well, I returned for lunch today, and let me just say the waitstaff was a lot less accomodating this time. Apparently the super sweet bartender in the past was a super sweet fluke. My waiter refused to do any substitutions this time siting restaurant policy. For me as a non fish eater, the restaurant is far too expensive for lunch time. It's still lovely if you partake in raw fish, but not being a fish eater I will not return until they make a few additions to their menu. I have amended the bottom line.

Bottom Line: Decent Japanese food in swank decor. Not vegetarian friendly. Can get pricey if you order a la carte but they have decent priced fish happy hour and lunch specials.

Laura - 8 if you eat fish, 4 if you don't.

Kenobi

10000 Research Blvd, Building A
Austin, Texas 78759
512.241.0119

http://www.kenobiaustin.com/


Yesterday I got a phone call from my old friend Joel. He knew of a new sushi restaurant by the Arboretum that was celebrating its grand opening with free sushi and Grey Goose. I carefully weighed my options - sit in traffic on my way home from work, or eat free food and drink free martinis. Hmmm... What to do?

Kenobi is carefully nestled between Serrano’s and TGIFriday’s at the Arboretum. The outside of the building is a stark contrast to the chain restaurants surrounding it - classy and hip with a great outdoor patio. I opened the oversized doors and whoa. I was smacked in the face with one of those scenes that you read about in a Manhattan chick lit novel. Young people in trendy clothes drinking martinis behind a velvet rope guarded by several cute Asian girls with clipboards. “Is your name on the list?”

“Um” I paused. I hadn’t expected this, especially not in the Arboretum. I started craning my neck around to look for my friend while digging in my coat pockets for my phone. I stuttered out Joel’s name and they immediately let me in, telling me that he had already arrived.

As I made my way through the crowd, I couldn’t help but be impressed with the décor. The place was crowded, but the high ceilings made the place feel spacious. Large stone Buddhas were strategically placed. A medium-sized Romanian village worth of photographers snapped pictures of everything in sight.

The bar was immediately to the right and I made my way to it. “Surprise me” I told the bartender. He made me an orange grey goose cosmo that was pretty freaking tasty. I continued on and found Joel in one of the dining rooms waiting in line for the buffet. We sipped our martinis as we made our way to the front of the line. And guess what. Not a single vegetarian item on the entire spread. At this point I got very bitchy. But as Joel pointed out, I was drinking a very expensive martini -for free.

So I sucked it up and we made our way out of the dining room, past the patio exit, beyond the sushi bar where several sushi chefs were hard at work. We continued on into another dining room where we could sit at a table. I watched Joel chow down on his food and started to worry. Without food I ran the risk of getting very drunk, which would completely ruin my plans of going out and getting drunk later. A super hot waiter came by to offer us more drinks. We happily accepted his offer and I asked if the kitchen was open for food other than what was on the buffet. He promptly brought me a menu.

The prices were fair and there were several items I could choose from. The usual vegetable tempura, miso soup, edamame, veggie roll, etc. I ordered a veggie roll and got to work on my next drink.

The veggie roll was average. Don’t get me wrong, it was tasty, but nothing set it apart from the other 1000 veggie rolls I’ve had in my life. It contained avocado, asparagus, cucumber, yamagobo, sprouts and toasted sesame. All ingredients were fresh, but there was no enthusiasm to it. Joel conceded that his food wasn’t that good either.

We had a few more drinks, including some that we didn’t even ask for. More food and a trip to the restroom became necessary. We ordered edamame which was good- but how can you really mess up edamame? The restroom on the other hand was an experience.

The interior designer didn’t skimp on the restroom details. You went down a corridor to get to the toilets and upon entering your respective gender’s area, you were confronted with these amazing sinks. They were stone and square with motion activated streams flowing from a circular stone-framed hole in the wall. Seriously, if you go to Kenobi you have to check them out.

By 7 pm the restaurant had become very crowded, Joel and I had become pretty drunk and I felt the need to move on with the evening. So we paid up our bill – a total of $4 for the edamame + a pretty hefty tip. We grabbed goody bags full of all sorts of freebies for free food at Kenobi, products, and spa services around town. I thought it was a nice touch and proved that they didn’t leave out any details. Well except for that minor detail- the food.

Overall: good drinks, great bar, good service, excellent ambiance, decent prices, mediocre food. I could be convinced to stop by for a happy hour, but I wouldn’t make a special trip up for dinner.

Laura – 7.5

Clay Pit

1601 Guadalupe St
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 322-5131

Whenever you want to celebrate a family birthday, several different restaurants pop into my head, The Oasis – for the fabulous view (but the marginal food), Fogo de Chao – for an all you can eat meat orgy, Aquarelle – for the special someone in your life, or my personal favorite Roy’s. The first place that doesn’t pop into my head is Clay Pit, but that’s where my brother wanted to go for his birthday so that’s where we went.

Firstly, Clay Pit in an interesting location, in that there’s nothing around it. It’s a lone, isolated haven of ethnic food in an urban sea of hotels and sidewalks. Which is why its always so surprising that parking is so awful. They only have one small lot that is ALWAYS full. Don’t even try parking there. Park one street to the west on San Antonio and walk over, you’ll save yourself a headache. Secondly, this haven of ethnic food is located in a Texas historic building. The building, called the Bertram building after its first proprietor was built around 1880 as a grocery store, saloon and general store. It is really a perfect example of central Texas limestone pioneer architecture. According to this (http://www.whatwasthen.com/bertram.html) historic website, apparently there was a tunnel going from the basement of the building to a brothel next door. Business would purchase access to the tunnel so as not to be seen entering and leaving said brothel. Apparently its haunted to wooo ooo (pretend those are scary ghost noises).

I’ve been to the Clay Pit on several occasions and feel sufficiently warranted to review its many virtues. This particular time, we had a large party so we made reservations in advance. Yes, they do take reservations, and you’ll want to use them. I’ve waited as long as an hour and a half to eat there. However, their follow through of the reservations left a little to be desired. We had made reservations for 11 and when we were seated (very promptly I might add), we noticed that there were only 10 settings. And the 10 settings they had placed were squished together around 3 square (4 person) tables. When we questioned them, they put another plate down in the corner of an already crowded table. Let me draw a diagram to demonstrate how awful the arrangement was:

X X X X
----------X
X______ X
X X X X

My brother’s friend Linda – a take charge kind of woman – put on her bitch face and went to have words with the manager. Five minutes later, we were whisked upstairs to the large party room (where we should have been in the first place) where two large tables were set for us. Much better.

Once we were settled, we proceeded to order wine and 3 different types of the naan bread, the garlic and basil naan, the 3 cheese naan, and the peshwari naan (with nuts raisins and cherries). All three were soft and luscious exampled of unleavened bread. The readl star was the peshwari naan. Stuffed with a nut and cherry paste, it managed to be sweet and savory in that wonderful way only Indian food can achieve. It reminded me of a cherry breakfast kringle from up north (a large, flat, filled pastry normally seen in southern Wisconsin). We all passed the naan around family style and were so impressed with it that we ordered another round after it had been eaten. The 6 baskets was more than enough to satisfy the appetizer cravings of 11 people.

For entrees, instead of going strictly family style, as you would in most Indian restaurants, we all opted for our own main dish. Between the 11 of us, we had a fair coverage of the whole menu. Tandoori chicken, the malai kebab, lamb vindaloo, coconut curry, korma curry, and tika masala are the ones I remember off the top of my head. And I have to say for once in my life, I was equally impressed with all the entrees. We passed them around so we could all get a taste of each so I did try a little of all of them. The korma is one of my personal favorites, but it was rivaled in creamy goodness by the regular coconut curry. It was a slightly flatter version of the korma, but would be wonderful comfort food and a good dish for someone unfamiliar with the delights of Indian food. The korma on the other hand, is a more complex coconut curry with the nuanced flavors of almond and pistachio with the bitter and pungent punch of what I think is coriander seed. The tika masala at Clay Pit is equally wonderful. A richly creamy tomato curry sauce with tender pieces of lamb and vegetables (I always order with extra veggies). The vindaloos arrived in a small pot and were stewed to perfection. A perfect blend of lamb, onions, bell peppers & potatoes in a tangy tamarind sauce.

The grilled entrees, though in my opinion not as good as the curries, all had lovely flavor. The tandoori chicken was a bright color but came out slightly dry. A childhood friend of mine was Indian. Her mom used to make us wonderfully tender and rich tandoori chicken for dinner from time to time. It would literally fall off the bone it was so tender and moist. The Clay Pit tandoori chicken was not the wonderful example of Indian food of my childhood, but it still had a nice flavor.

The desserts were as masterfully executed as the entrees. Linda ordered Gulab Jalman – essentially sugary rosewater soaked doughy balls. I LOVE dessert. Its my favorite part of eating, but even this was too sweet for my tastes. Not my favorite but I think an acquired taste. I ordered the Kheer. I was expecting a rice pudding, but what I received was more a rice cereal. Rice covered with a thick sweet milk with almonds and a spicy cinnamon flavor. Very nice, but not a pudding. Zach ordered the chocolate layer cake. This wasn’t my favorite dessert either, a slightly dry cake with a little too much raspberry flavoring. But then I’m not a huge fan of the chocolate and raspberry pairing. My favorite dessert was definitely the Kulfi. Rich, frozen, creamy and sweet medallions of pistachio greatness. If you go here, you have to save room for it. It’s the perfect way to top off an evening of spicy food.

Overall, I was quite impressed with the quality of the food at Clay Pit. The ingredients were fresh and the recipes were executed in a way pleasurable to my western palate. If you’re not familiar with Indian food, Clay Pit is a great stepping off point to familiarize yourself with (northern) Indian cuisine. I consider it a PF Chang’s of Indian food. Great quality and Americanized.

Bottom Line: PF Changs of Indian Food

Mariah – 9.5

http://www.claypit.com

Chola

2601 S IH 35 B400
Round Rock TX 78664
512 - 244 - 2222


Hey. Laura reviewing from Round Rock again.

Lately I’ve been having a severe craving for Indian food. I’ve been day dreaming at work about tikka masala for days now. I even planned to satisfy my craving yesterday at lunch, until I realized the reason I couldn’t find my keys was because I had taken my car to the shop to get the oil changed and I had to jump on whatever lunch bandwagon my coworkers were on. But today. Today was the day I was going to make it happen.

I didn’t want to go far. I didn’t have the energy or patience for driving and dealing with traffic, and there was an Indian restaurant close by that I had not tried yet. I’d been there once before, but turned away when I realized it was a buffet. I always get the raw deal at buffets. I don’t eat that much in a single session. Plus, I’ve been scarred for life from those 4 months I worked as a cashier at Golden Corral as a teenager. I would stand at my station, pretending to rearrange cups and to-go plates, watching the post church crowd graze like cattle. They were bent over to examine the slop, swaying back and forth as they traversed the troughs. The thought of it still makes me shutter. But I had been convinced to try the buffet once at Madras Pavillion on 183 near Burnet and was fairly pleased with that, so Chola deserved a chance too, right?

I walked in, a lone diner with a book and asked how much the buffet was. I was told $8.99 and was seated immediately. I asked to see a menu, just to make sure I wouldn’t rather order a meal. The menu prices for meals were mostly $7.99 to $9.99, so I figured this might be worth the buffet to try lots of different things. I sucked up my buffet prejudice and hit the troughs.

Now keep in mind that I’m a Westerner reviewing an Indian food restaurant. I’ve never been to India. I’m not sure what makes Indian food authentic, but I do know what tastes good.

The selection was really wonderful for vegetarian eating. 2/3rds of the buffet contained vegetarian items and the meat dishes (chicken, lamb, goat, etc) were grouped neatly together at the end.

Two different soups were offered, a brothy soup with chunks of tomato and a spicy and flavorful soup with lentils and onions. The latter was definitely the more exciting of the two. It was very flavorful and on the edge of my spice comfort level. Both soups were tasty, but neither rocked my world.

Oh well, on to the rest. The onion pakora was really good in a comfort food sort of way. But, as Mariah and I have discussed, everything tastes great fried. The buffet also contained Saag Paneer- spinach and cottage cheese blended with cream. It warranted seconds. As did the Aloo Gobhi curry- potatoes and cauliflower cooked w/ onions and tomatoes. There were curried beans that were mediocre. And a fabulous mushroom dish with an amazing creamy sauce. Dare I say it tasted like it was cooked in wine? That can’t be right. I have to find out that secret ingredient.

The basmati rice was just perfect.

For dessert, the rice pudding was amazing with the fresh fruit. I braved a steamed cream cheese patty (Rasmalai). It could be my uncultured taste buds, but I’ll pass on it next time.

The waitstaff was friendly, one even kindly came by to tell me that there was yogurt if the spice was too much for me (which it wasn’t). And best of all, they served me water without ice. I didn’t even have to ask for it this way.

And in true buffet fashion, I completely stuffed myself.

All in all, a good experience. Chola is a pleasant surprise for a strip mall restaurant in the Round Rock area and a good lunch spot, if you are up for a little gorging.

Laura- 9

Thai Spice - Westlake

701 Capital of Texas Highway South
West Lake Hills, Texas 78746
Tel: (512) 330-0203

My tour of Austin’s Thai restaurants continued last week as I knocked another one off my list, Thai Spice. I went there for lunch with my girlfriend Sarah (with an h). Its kind of out of the way for most people, being out on Capital of Texas Highway, but Sarah works out that direction, so we thought we’d give it a try. She’d eaten there a few times and convinced me I needed to try it. She said their sushi was good. At first I cringed. Not only was there sushi at a Thai restaurant, but it was a sushi buffet at a Thai restaurant. I had a flashback to the last horrific experience I had with sushi on a buffet, I was worshiping the porcelain god for days. I vowed to never again eat sushi off a buffet. It’s just not natural. But, Sarah is quite the sushi aficionado and swore up and down that the sushi was pretty good, so I decided to give it a try.

When I first got there, around 11:30, I noticed the dreaded buffet in the back of the restaurant. The place was also dead; there were maybe 5 other people in the place. I remember thinking “this can’t be good.” We sat down at the table and pursued the menu. The lunch menu had about a dozen options ranging from Thai to Chinese. What really stood out was the price, $8.95 for the lunch! I remember thinking it was highway robbery for pad thai. Who charges that much for chicken and noodles?? Then Sarah explained to me that the dreaded buffet was included. I was going to have to pay for the privilege of eating buffet sushi. Yum.

I ordered Pad Thai (of course) and Sarah got some cashew stir fry called Princess Favorite. We then proceeded to the buffet. There were several different stations, including a salad bar, the dreaded sushi, and two kinds of soup. I got a little of everything. The salad greens were fresh, as were the veggie toppings. They even had pineapple. Sweet! I did make the mistake of getting what I assumed was the “house dressing,” a concoction of a thin amber sauce with what looked to be bits of chilis and some chopped up greens. The dressing turned out to be just a little too strong and cilantro flavored for my pallet. I’m sure a true cilantro aficionado would find it much more pleasing. For the soup, I got a bowl of the Tom Kha. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. This Tom Kha was spicier and more complex than the Thai Passion version and didn’t have the pungent aftertaste. The buffet sushi was by far the biggest surprise. It wasn’t awful at all! In fact, I rather liked it. It wasn’t the greatest sushi I’ve ever had, but for buffet sushi it receives a solid A.

The entrees were just as good as the buffet. The pad thai was rich and oily, much better than the Madam Mam’s pad thai and about even with the Thai Passion “pud” thai. I didn’t care for Sarah’s Princess Favorite. It had the odd flavor of a Thai restaurant trying too hard to make a Chinese dish. Sarah said she’s gotten it several times and likes it a lot. I’ll let her stick to that, and I’ll keep the Pad Thai.

Mariah - 8

Madam Mam's

I went to Madam Mam’s last week with my friend Becky for lunch. The tires on her car tried to fall off so she and her car were stuck at the mechanics and I decided to rescue her for a quick lunch. We went through the meager list of acceptable food options in far south Austin and decided on Madam Mams. Becky eats there quite often and swears by the P13, the masman curry. She claimed it is the perfect dish and probably her favorite food, so I felt it was worth my while to try this fabled Thai restaurant.

Its been years since I’ve eaten at Madam Mams. I went to the original by campus one when I was in college (I know, that totally dates me already, so I’ll even admit I used to eat at the Brugger’s Bagels before it was Madam Mams). When it first opened, it was the only Thai restaurant around campus and students flocked to it. I heard all sorts of stories about how perfect the food at Madam Mams was. So I went, and it was good enough, but apparently my young palate wasn’t refined enough for Thai cuisine and never really went back. But over the years I’ve continued to hear stories of how awesome the food is, so I thought I’d give it another chance.

We arrived around noon when lunch was in full swing. The exterior of the restaurant in south Austin is pretty noticable. The building is screaming pink. And I'm not talking Santa Fe adobe pink, I'm talking crazy Asian pink. Parking is apparently a bitch there most of the time, as Becky informed me, but we really didn’t have any trouble finding a space (FYI, there is another lot behind the restaurant). The interior of the restaurant was cute and characteristically Asian. There were hundreds of colorful, painted parasols hanging from the ceiling. It created a nice effect of texture and color. The rest of the joint was pretty unremarkable.

The food on the other hand was quite good. I was really craving sweet potato fries that the Thai restaurant in Fort Worth used to serve. They were awesome, covered in a light golden batter and dipped in a rice wine vinegar and cucumber sauce. Madam Mam's did not have sweet potatoe fried (like most Thai places regretably), so we settled for spring rolls. I tried ordering them without the evil, evil cilantro but I was told they were pre-made and I was going to have to suck it up and eat it (well they didn't say "suck it up" but that was sure implied). I surveyed the bingo list of menu offerings, even though I knew I was going to order the Pad Thai. They had a great selection of Thai dishes. Several soups, a half dozen or so curries, and lots and lots of pads (pad is Thai for stir fry btw). For the main dish, I, of course, ordered the Pad Thai, the measure by which I judge all Thai restaurants (see every other Thai restaurant post if you don't believe me). Becky ordered her favorite P13 (bingo!).

Just as a note, the service here was.. interesting, to say the least. We had 3 different servers. One that took our drink order, one that took our food order, and another that checked up on us. We also got out food as it was available. My Pad Thai came out a good 2 or 3 minutes before Becky's curry. It was a little awkward, but we're good friends so she didn't mind that I dug in before hers arrived.

The spring rolls were very tasty. If there was cilantro in them, I couldn’t tell. The greens were freshly crisp and the peanut sauce had a refreshing zing to it. The Pad Thai was good, but fairly unremarkable. It was a little on the dry side for pad thai, but the flavor was good and overall I was satisfied.. for lunch.. Becky was right, though, the best thing on the menu was the masman curry. I tried a bite of it and it was truly a symphony in my mouth. It was complex, spicy and was really quite good. The peanut and coconut flavors blended beautifully with the curry. Curry on a whole is pretty hard to mess up and in my opinion most curries are quite average. But this curry went above and beyond my bar for "average" curry. Since I couldn’t get it at Thai Passion, I ordered mango sticky rice for dessert. It was really tasty. It was smooth, creamy, slightly salty, coconut goodness. The mango was fresh and perfectly complimented the deliciousness of the sticky rice.

Overall the price is right and the curry is excellent. I’d eat there again.. for lunch..

Mariah – 8

Thai Passion

So I was totally jonesin Thai food today and being new to Austin I didn't have a tried and true Thai hole in the wall that I am a patron of. At about 3:00 today while I was in the middle of a 25 page document, I had the hugest craving for sweet potato fries dipped in a warm fish and cucumber sauce and a sweet, spicy pad thai. As the day progressed I started to have delusions of dancing thai ladies (see picture on left) carrying large trays of sweet potato fries, bobbing their heads back and forth, bodies undulating.. 

I decided I had to have Thai food and I had to have it now. Laura and I met up after we had both worked out (so neither of us felt entirely guilty about eating Thai noodle candy). We had the address and knew this place was somewhere around 6th and Congress. So we dutifully trekked downtown, parking next to a couple of homeless men yelling at each other. We literally could not find the place. We walked up and down Congress feeling like total idiots because we couldn't find this little Thai joint. I felt like I was looking for some exclusive secret-knock worthy speakeasy. We finally sucked up our pride and stopped to ask for directions (because we aren't guys). So here's a tip. Its not actually on Congress. It's actually on the south-west corner of 6th and Congress (but its really on 6th street). 

First impressions were good. The restaurant looked clean. There were interesting Thai decorations on the walls, statues of dancing Thai women (sorry if they're gods, I'm pretty ignorant of Thai religion), and the obligatory asian restaurant fish tank. The place was pretty empty, but it was 8:00 on a Monday night. We were seated promptly and given sufficient time to peruse the menu. 

The offerings seemed fairly limited for a Thai restaurant, which usually offers 186 different kinds of noodles/curries/soups, etc. However, the menu looked very appetizing. My mouth started salivated the second I started reading about the delectable entrees. 

Laura and I, always the cheap engineers, decided we probably should split something. After discussing curries and noodles in depth, we decided on a tofu pad thai (or as this place calls it pud thai, but really, can you take any food called pud seriously?). Unfortunately, this place neglected to offer any tasty sweet potato fries, so we opted instead to get a couple of bowls of soup. 

Laura picked a bright and flavorful tofu tom-yum soup. It tasted strongly of lemongrass and was definitely a soup that would pep you up (and put hair on your chest) on a cold winter day. I picked the meat filled chicken tom-kha. Rich and flavorful, the soup smelled and tasted strongly of fish sauce. It was a little off-putting at first, its been a while since this gringo has eaten anything with fish sauce. But the more I slurped, the more I enjoyed the full flavor of the coconut broth. The mushrooms and chicken were a nice added touch, but the lovely broth was truly the star of the dish. 

The main course arrived as we were discussing the horrible things that happen to women's bodies as we age. Laura was telling me about a book of short essays written by a women describing her life as she aged. Apparently there will be a lot of turtlenecks and neck covering scarves in my future to hide my forthcoming turkey-waddle. 

The tofu "pud" thai was almost as good as the soup. The ingredients were fresh and the noodles were every bit the "Thai Candy" I was craving. It was rich, sweet, savory, and just downright yummy. The cubes of pan fried tofu were not very..."meaty".. as Laura put it, but was definitely not the worst tofu we had ever eaten. And to be honest the noodles made up for it. 

For dessert, we tried ordering one of my favorites, Mango sticky rice. My toes curl just thinking about firm, juicy pieces of mango mixed in with a sweet, milky rice. But, alas, they had no mangos, so we were stuck ordering the egg custard sticky rice. And trust me, we weren't disappointed. The rice was lightly sweetened, and delicate. The green egg custard was a little unnatural, but it is asian food, and asian cooks love their unconventional food. 

All in all, Thai passion is a very delightful step up from the Thai hole-in-the-walls I was used to frequenting in Forth Worth.  Though not the best Thai food I've ever had, the ingredients were fresh, the preparation was good, and the price was excellent. I will definitely be back in the future. 

Mariah: 8.5

Laura: 8.5