16th July, 2010 - Posted by carsi - 1 Comment
According to this Austin Business Journal article, the Lower Colorado River Authority is being sued by three environmental groups. They are accusing the LCRA of violating the Clean Air Act at its coal-fired power plant near La Grange. Additionally, the groups allege LCRA owes the state about $500,000 in pollution fees for under-reporting its emissions. Check out the article for more details.
16th July, 2010 - Posted by carsi - No Comments
My birthday is this weekend, and to celebrate I decided I would like to go to a restaurant that serves local, ethical meat and give myself a one-day break from the vegetarian thing. I decided on East Side Show Room because I’ve heard great things about the food and their specialty cocktails, if not the service, from yelp and several of my friends.
Once inside, I immediately loved the 20′s decor. Old silent films playing on the wall, rose petals in the women’s restroom, ornamental red wallpaper, old-timey lightbulbs, etc. Just lovely. And unlike the many horror stories I read on yelp, our waitress was very nice and helpful. She recommended a sweet and fruity gin drink for me, which was delicious and summery and served with some blackberries. My boyfriend and I ordered the venison appetizer, which came wrapped in bacon and served with fried okra and jalapeno cheese grits.
This was my first bite of meat in over seven months, and I gotta say, it wasn’t as exciting as I thought it’d be. It had a nice flavor and wasn’t too chewy, but the barely cooked bacon kinda threw me off. The okra and grits, though, were to die for. I want that grits recipe–yum! Then for the main dish I had the coq a vin:
This dish was so comforting–it reminded me of a chicken pot pie but with a much more intense flavor. The croissant was nice and flaky and the summer herb butter served with it was mouth watering. That’s another recipe I would like to have! My boyfriend ordered the prime rib and seemed moderately happy with it, although he noted that it was a bit chewy.
I would definitely recommend this place as an ideal spot for a special occasion, but before you go check it out, it’s probably good to know going into it that things are going to get a bit pricey. The drinks and food and atmosphere are excellent, but I think the trendiness plays a factor in how much you’re paying. Overall, though, I’m glad I got to try out some local meat and enjoy a beautiful atmosphere for my birthday dinner.
16th July, 2010 - Posted by katherine - 4 Comments
A few months ago, Carsi and I tried to review several farmer’s markets in Austin – we were able to go to 3, but since then we’ve become aware of several that we’ve never been to (for example, one at the Barton Creek Mall, one in South Austin). One farmer’s market that I’ve never been to but would love to try out one of these weekends (since it’s probably the closest farmer’s market to my house) is the Cedar Park farmer’s market. Starting this Saturday, the Cedar Park farmer’s market is relocating from its former location to the Lakeline Mall, located at the intersection of 183 and 620.
Here’s some info about the market from its website:
“F2M’s Cedar Park Farms to Market is an outdoor market where you can not only
meet the farmers and producers; you have the opportunity to ask them how they grow
and produce this wonderfully fresh food. The relationship with the producers is quite
a bond,” said Carla Jenkins, Organizer and Founder of Cedar Park Farms to Market
Texas. “Lakeline Mall, with its accessibility to Central Texas and large space, is the
perfect setting to relocate Cedar Park Farms to Market.”
Approximately 45-60 vendors will be onsite including:
Amador Farms, Bush Farm, Cowan’s Farm, Fruitful Hill Farm, Green Valley
Farms, Hairston Creek Farm (organic), Hillside Farms, Manheim Market Gardens,
Orange Blossom Farm (organic), Schwegmann Orchard, Star Farmers Market, Tecolote
Farm (organic) and Two Happy Children Farm.
In addition to offering sustainably grown fruits and vegetables, the market also
features meat (pork, lamb, beef), poultry, eggs, dairy (goats and cow milk products),
seafood, many fabulous prepared foods to take home or eat there.
photo credit
