Mark Davis
Mark Davis
Didn't see much from my searches...Thx, -mark
Good lists and shops on Austin?
- Thread starter Mark Davis
- Start date
Andrew Zachary
Andrew Zachary
Mark,
Despite Austin's reputation as a "weird" city, the wine-buying clientele is largely uninterested in odd-ball, off-beat wines.
For that reason, good wine shops are scarce; there are really only two. Austin Wine Merchant has some good stuff and has access to lots more. They are strong on Burgundy and Germany, much weaker on Loire and Jura. Can't comment on the California selection since I don't ever buy them.
The other store is Twin Liquors; they have two "show-piece" stores with lots of trophy wines. One store is at the Hill Country Galleria about 15 miles west of Austin, the other about 5 miles north of downtown. I haven't been to either store, as a good friend manages a smaller branch near my house. (PM me for details)
Restaurants with great lists (not necessarily great food!)
First off, you should know that it is illegal in Texas for a restaurant to buy wine at auction. So, all the restaurants have to buy only through licensed distributors, and that necessarily limits the breadth and depth of their lists.
Best list is at Congress, a new, high-end restaurant in the Austonian at 2nd and Congress. June Rodil is the sommelier, and she really knows her stuff. Wine prices are fair, with lots of gems in all price ranges. I'm not wild about the cooking, and it is pretty expensive, even by New York standards, so I don't go all that often. [As an aside: Second Bar and Grill is the down-scale version of Congress. Prices are much more reasonable, and there are some good wines on their list.]
Paggi House has a very good selection of Burgundy, much smaller selection in other areas. Prices on the Burgundies are fair. I cannot comment on the cooking, as I haven't eaten here. Again, reviews from some people I trust have not been particularly favorable, so I spend my money elsewhere. If you go, please let me your opinion.
Uchk/Uchiko have very good wine lists, and the cooking is superb. (They have Puffeney on the list, how can it possibly get any better!) Moderately expensive and worth every penny. Hard to get a reservation right now with SXSW in full swing, but sit at the bar at Uchiko and have fun. Vibrant bar scene, btw.
Olivia has a good wine list, with occasional flashes of brilliance. They had Occhipinti's wines long before they were on the shelf on any wine store, and they sometimes get older bottlings of Paolo Bea and Texier. Cooking is variable; sometimes great, sometimes not so great.
At most other places, drink beer (the local brew pubs are very good), a margarita, or any thing BUT wine.
If you need any additional advice about food in Austin, let me know.
Andrew
Despite Austin's reputation as a "weird" city, the wine-buying clientele is largely uninterested in odd-ball, off-beat wines.
For that reason, good wine shops are scarce; there are really only two. Austin Wine Merchant has some good stuff and has access to lots more. They are strong on Burgundy and Germany, much weaker on Loire and Jura. Can't comment on the California selection since I don't ever buy them.
The other store is Twin Liquors; they have two "show-piece" stores with lots of trophy wines. One store is at the Hill Country Galleria about 15 miles west of Austin, the other about 5 miles north of downtown. I haven't been to either store, as a good friend manages a smaller branch near my house. (PM me for details)
Restaurants with great lists (not necessarily great food!)
First off, you should know that it is illegal in Texas for a restaurant to buy wine at auction. So, all the restaurants have to buy only through licensed distributors, and that necessarily limits the breadth and depth of their lists.
Best list is at Congress, a new, high-end restaurant in the Austonian at 2nd and Congress. June Rodil is the sommelier, and she really knows her stuff. Wine prices are fair, with lots of gems in all price ranges. I'm not wild about the cooking, and it is pretty expensive, even by New York standards, so I don't go all that often. [As an aside: Second Bar and Grill is the down-scale version of Congress. Prices are much more reasonable, and there are some good wines on their list.]
Paggi House has a very good selection of Burgundy, much smaller selection in other areas. Prices on the Burgundies are fair. I cannot comment on the cooking, as I haven't eaten here. Again, reviews from some people I trust have not been particularly favorable, so I spend my money elsewhere. If you go, please let me your opinion.
Uchk/Uchiko have very good wine lists, and the cooking is superb. (They have Puffeney on the list, how can it possibly get any better!) Moderately expensive and worth every penny. Hard to get a reservation right now with SXSW in full swing, but sit at the bar at Uchiko and have fun. Vibrant bar scene, btw.
Olivia has a good wine list, with occasional flashes of brilliance. They had Occhipinti's wines long before they were on the shelf on any wine store, and they sometimes get older bottlings of Paolo Bea and Texier. Cooking is variable; sometimes great, sometimes not so great.
At most other places, drink beer (the local brew pubs are very good), a margarita, or any thing BUT wine.
If you need any additional advice about food in Austin, let me know.
Andrew
Mark Davis
Mark Davis
Thanks Andrew!
I had no idea that law was in place for auction wines in TX. Interesting info - thanks!
Favorite restaurants for food?
Anything must-do while I'm there? I really wont have a ton of free time...
Thanks again, this information is very helpful, --mark
I had no idea that law was in place for auction wines in TX. Interesting info - thanks!
Favorite restaurants for food?
Anything must-do while I'm there? I really wont have a ton of free time...
Thanks again, this information is very helpful, --mark
Andrew Zachary
Andrew Zachary
You are very welcome. Don't know if the Politburo allows you to send me a PM, but please send me an email and I will add some additional color if you wish.
As to favorite restaurants:
Uchiko is very very good. I don't know how they continually manage to turn out inspired dishes when much of the clientele prefers fancy drinks with lots of hard alcohol and eats far too many spicy tuna rolls. That said, I'm a sucker for the duck, the wagyu beef, and almost any fish dish. The straight sushi is not as good as Karuma or Yasuda, but considering we are at the end of a extremelly long food chain, the quality is surprisingly high.
Olive and June has a decent wine list, a beautiful setting and very good food. Service is accomplished for such a new place (it's only about 6 weeks old.) My wife and I went for dinner and we had no complaints about the food at all. The bread was in the same league with Sullivan Street Bakery, and the sorbets at dessert were wonderfully tart.
If you're staying downtown, there's good coffee/espresso/cappucino at Patika (a little coffee cart on 2nd and Congress across from the Austonian), and also good coffee at Cafe Medici, which by happy coincidence is in the Austonian at 2nd and Congress. Medici has tables upstairs and down, free WiFi, good bagels (the go-to guy is Rockstar Bagels). Both have excellent coffees.
Other must-sees: Zilker Park is worth walking through. After 15 months of the hottest temperatures and most extreme drought on record, it has started to rain again and everything is vibrantly green. Well, as green as this part of Texas ever gets. There's good jazz at the Blue Elephant on Congress Street; the area called South Congress (SoCo) is good wandering just to do some window shopping and to see the odd ball sights, though they will seem pretty tame after Greenwich Village.
Anything else that might interest you? We are short on art galleries (none -- well, one, but it's closed right now), classical concert venues, dance, and theater. There is lots of Rock/CW music all around, but not my thing so I can't advise.
As to favorite restaurants:
Uchiko is very very good. I don't know how they continually manage to turn out inspired dishes when much of the clientele prefers fancy drinks with lots of hard alcohol and eats far too many spicy tuna rolls. That said, I'm a sucker for the duck, the wagyu beef, and almost any fish dish. The straight sushi is not as good as Karuma or Yasuda, but considering we are at the end of a extremelly long food chain, the quality is surprisingly high.
Olive and June has a decent wine list, a beautiful setting and very good food. Service is accomplished for such a new place (it's only about 6 weeks old.) My wife and I went for dinner and we had no complaints about the food at all. The bread was in the same league with Sullivan Street Bakery, and the sorbets at dessert were wonderfully tart.
If you're staying downtown, there's good coffee/espresso/cappucino at Patika (a little coffee cart on 2nd and Congress across from the Austonian), and also good coffee at Cafe Medici, which by happy coincidence is in the Austonian at 2nd and Congress. Medici has tables upstairs and down, free WiFi, good bagels (the go-to guy is Rockstar Bagels). Both have excellent coffees.
Other must-sees: Zilker Park is worth walking through. After 15 months of the hottest temperatures and most extreme drought on record, it has started to rain again and everything is vibrantly green. Well, as green as this part of Texas ever gets. There's good jazz at the Blue Elephant on Congress Street; the area called South Congress (SoCo) is good wandering just to do some window shopping and to see the odd ball sights, though they will seem pretty tame after Greenwich Village.
Anything else that might interest you? We are short on art galleries (none -- well, one, but it's closed right now), classical concert venues, dance, and theater. There is lots of Rock/CW music all around, but not my thing so I can't advise.
Florida Jim
Florida Jim
Morgan Harris
Morgan Harris
I can vouch for June Rodil's professionalism.
She's pretty darn good at what she does and is a real sweetheart.
She's pretty darn good at what she does and is a real sweetheart.
U
Unknown
Guest
little city coffee used to sell brun beaujolais rouge et blanc for buttons. you could even sit on the sidewalk as you chugged it down. sad to see it has closed. and why.
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Andrew Zachary
Andrew Zachary
Little City had good sandwiches, too. I suspect, but cannot prove, that the landlord raised the rent and cleared the block to entice a different class of tenant. With new hotels sprouting all around, seems like a reasonable business proposition. Really miss Little City, though.
Mark Davis
Mark Davis
Thanks all for the recs. As it turns out, I was stuck at some "resort" over an hour West of Austin (Horseshoe) and never got away...
-mark
-mark
Andrew Zachary
Andrew Zachary
Horseshoe Bay Resort? Ugh. Good for golf, not much else. Stay clear of the rattlesnakes and water moccasins.