Austin
Flew out to Austin for a quick weekend trip. It has been a very long time since I was last in Austin. With the United merger of Continental, there are direct flights scheduled to Austin and I boarded a Bombardier CRJ-200. It was a tight fit but I made due with the space.
Since I was arriving at odd hours and there was a motocross race this weekend, I ended up staying at several hotels each night. Got a deal on Priceline for a rental from Avis and ended up with a Kia Sorrento. For a SUV, the Sorrento did really well and I was pleasantly surprised how nice it was inside. It didn't have much power but it was helpful in my treks crisscrossing Austin.
Checked into the Home2 Suites Austin Round Rock. Unfortunately, my reservation was canceled from a credit card processing fee and the hotel was almost sold out. It took some finagling but the receptionist was able to get my rate and put us in a one bedroom suite. An upgrade from the studio I booked. It is the first time I've stayed at this brand. It seems like a paired down version of the Homewood Suites brand. I particularly enjoyed the pre-made breakfast sandwiches. You nuke them in the microwave and go.
The next morning, went to the Doubletree Suites Austin. The suite here is smaller than the Home2 but likely due to proximity to downtown Austin, UT-Austin, and the Capitol Building. The staff was friendly. I would argue the parking could have been cheaper but it was doable. The hotel's restaurant was out of commission due to a fire so I cannot comment on the breakfast.
Went out to Hula Hut for a late lunch and enjoyed a chile verde burrito. They make tortillas and chips fresh. The chips are in self serve stations if you can't wait for it at the table. The axiom smash was tasty too.
Wandered over to Easy Tiger which is a beer garden and coffee shop in one. The ambience was nice and the Harris Tweed went down easily. I wouldn't recommend their pastries, not the chocolate croissant.
Had a late dinner at the 1886 Café and Bakery in the Driskill Hotel. Great service and food was good. I had better fried chicken elsewhere but it hit the spot. The mac and cheese could have been hotter but it still tasted good. I took a cinnamon roll to go to check out later.
The next day, headed to Tacodeli and enjoyed some breakfast tacos. They do have great salsas. With breakfast out of the way, headed out to the WestCave Outdoor Discovery Center. Walked around the preserve and enjoyed the natural beauty. It was nice to see that there are parts of Texas that is green. The grotto was nice to visit and refresh my knowledge of geology.
Afterwards, had dinner at the Salt Lick. The place has significantly grown since I was here last. The addition of the outdoor seating and wine cellar was interesting. Outside of the reasonable price of $25 for all you can eat, I think the food is good but not enough to consistently visit. I've had better BBQ in Atlanta.
Had dessert and a nightcap at Chavez inside the Radisson Austin Downtown. Since I had an early morning flight, there was no point in leaving my third hotel. The room was nice but showed some age. The notice on the desk said that the hotel was undergoing renovations so I wasn't sure if it was completely done yet. This is the first hotel I've seen that had a Sleep Number mattress. The dessert was the café con leche at Chavez and was delicious. I would come here again for the dessert.
Made out like a bandit on this trip with a United voucher. Apparently, there was a large event in town and everyone was flying out and United needed a volunteer. Got to hang out at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport all day and had some pretzels from Auntie Anne's after the girl at Hoover's Cooking couldn't figure out how to redeem my United food voucher. Enjoyed some ice cream from Amy's Ice Creams as well. Otherwise, mostly killed my day working in the United Club.
Since I was arriving at odd hours and there was a motocross race this weekend, I ended up staying at several hotels each night. Got a deal on Priceline for a rental from Avis and ended up with a Kia Sorrento. For a SUV, the Sorrento did really well and I was pleasantly surprised how nice it was inside. It didn't have much power but it was helpful in my treks crisscrossing Austin.
Checked into the Home2 Suites Austin Round Rock. Unfortunately, my reservation was canceled from a credit card processing fee and the hotel was almost sold out. It took some finagling but the receptionist was able to get my rate and put us in a one bedroom suite. An upgrade from the studio I booked. It is the first time I've stayed at this brand. It seems like a paired down version of the Homewood Suites brand. I particularly enjoyed the pre-made breakfast sandwiches. You nuke them in the microwave and go.
The next morning, went to the Doubletree Suites Austin. The suite here is smaller than the Home2 but likely due to proximity to downtown Austin, UT-Austin, and the Capitol Building. The staff was friendly. I would argue the parking could have been cheaper but it was doable. The hotel's restaurant was out of commission due to a fire so I cannot comment on the breakfast.
Went out to Hula Hut for a late lunch and enjoyed a chile verde burrito. They make tortillas and chips fresh. The chips are in self serve stations if you can't wait for it at the table. The axiom smash was tasty too.
Wandered over to Easy Tiger which is a beer garden and coffee shop in one. The ambience was nice and the Harris Tweed went down easily. I wouldn't recommend their pastries, not the chocolate croissant.
Had a late dinner at the 1886 Café and Bakery in the Driskill Hotel. Great service and food was good. I had better fried chicken elsewhere but it hit the spot. The mac and cheese could have been hotter but it still tasted good. I took a cinnamon roll to go to check out later.
The next day, headed to Tacodeli and enjoyed some breakfast tacos. They do have great salsas. With breakfast out of the way, headed out to the WestCave Outdoor Discovery Center. Walked around the preserve and enjoyed the natural beauty. It was nice to see that there are parts of Texas that is green. The grotto was nice to visit and refresh my knowledge of geology.
Afterwards, had dinner at the Salt Lick. The place has significantly grown since I was here last. The addition of the outdoor seating and wine cellar was interesting. Outside of the reasonable price of $25 for all you can eat, I think the food is good but not enough to consistently visit. I've had better BBQ in Atlanta.
Had dessert and a nightcap at Chavez inside the Radisson Austin Downtown. Since I had an early morning flight, there was no point in leaving my third hotel. The room was nice but showed some age. The notice on the desk said that the hotel was undergoing renovations so I wasn't sure if it was completely done yet. This is the first hotel I've seen that had a Sleep Number mattress. The dessert was the café con leche at Chavez and was delicious. I would come here again for the dessert.
Made out like a bandit on this trip with a United voucher. Apparently, there was a large event in town and everyone was flying out and United needed a volunteer. Got to hang out at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport all day and had some pretzels from Auntie Anne's after the girl at Hoover's Cooking couldn't figure out how to redeem my United food voucher. Enjoyed some ice cream from Amy's Ice Creams as well. Otherwise, mostly killed my day working in the United Club.
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