I went to the Magnolia Cafe today for breakfast. We went to the one on Congress. I’ve been wanting to go to one for a long time, but the last time I tried the line was too long. This time I had just minutes to wait before I got a table. I got the breakfast tacos, of course. They were really good! The best part of the breakfast was the orange juice. It had to have been made fresh. I wish I would have ordered a large!

I haven’t been blogging much lately. I haven’t gone anywhere in Austin lately, and I’ve been really busy at work and at home. I’m not even sure I want to continue with this blog to be honest. I think I may want to change the focus and blog about something new.

Cattlebaron, Jesse Driskill opened his historic hotel in 1886 after he purchased the entire block in 1885. The price of building the hotel was an outrageous $400,000. The Driskill quickly became the place to see and be seen, especially if you were a politician. Deals were made and even LBJ spent many elections watching returns come in at the hotel. Some supposedly liked it so much that they decided to stay and haunt the place!

But, the hotel isn’t only for the rich and famous. There in a nice little cafe in the lobby, that while a little pricey, is still affordable. We went there for breakfast while my mother was in town. I had the Hippy Hollow breakfast skillet, which was eggs with feta cheese, spinach and tomato. It was delicious, but nothing special.

We didn’t see any ghosts, but the service was sparing. We only saw our waitress when we ordered and when she brought the food and drinks. Tea was left unfilled and we even got someone else’s bill at the end of the meal!

While the ambience is nice, I’m not in a big hurry to return. However, I would like to try their 5 star restaurant in the future!

“Up against the wall, a red-necked mother…” sang the band as we walked into Ross’ on Lamar. We were on our way home from Central Market, (for the second time in a week), when we decided we better get something to eat before we go home. We looked over and saw neon lights announcing Ross’ restaurant. Intriguing. We decided to stop.

We were excited that they had live music as we walked up to the place. There were three older gentlemen on a stage singing country music. Not really our type of music, it can still be a fun experience to watch! This band of guitar playing seniors were reminiscent of listening to Merle Haggard with his old country flair.

The food at Ross’ was kind of home-cooking style. I’m trying to diet, so I ordered the grilled chicken dinner. It came with a choice of vegetables and I chose broccoli and salad. Mike ordered the pork and fries. (Embarrassingly, he chose to sit next to me while we waited for our food, rather than across from me, but he wanted to watch the trio, too…

I got a HUGE chicken dinner. They do not spare food at Ross’. The chicken had lots of spices and almost tasted like a steak rather than normal dry chicken. I’m sure that this meal wasn’t REALLY dietary! It also came with Texas Toast. I haven’t had that in years!

Overall, it was a good experience. The people that work there are VERY friendly and welcoming. The biggest complaint I have about the place was the Aggie knick knacks that the place had displayed. BOO Aggies!

An Austin Tradition since 1939. The building was opened as Sammie’s Drive In in August 1939. It became Eli’s lounge and then Picante’s Mexican Restaurant. In 1969, the building was bought by Homer “Hut” Hutson and reopened as Hut’s. Hut’s was originally on South Congress. In 1981 the new owners bought the restaurant and have had it ever since. I found out all this information from their menu. I find places with a history fascinating.

As you walk in to Hut’s you find all the awards proudly displayed on the walls. When you look around, you find that there is really very little room for anything else to be added to their walls, since all of the wall-space is being utilized. Upon close inspection, you will find animal heads, liscense plates, sports pennants, photos, and much much more.

The line for Hut’s is unbelievable. We chose to eat at the bar to avoid some of the wait time. The bartender/waitress was very nice and paid just enough attention to the people that she served. There was one other bartender and we noticed that he had a shirt on for the next door restaurant. We inquired about his shirt and we were told that the owner of Hut’s also owns the Italian restaurant next door. They are trying to cross advertise.

I’m not really a hamburger fan, but when you are in a hamburger place, you have to get a hamburger. I have to admit, that I really didn’t like their burgers. I think it’s because they were a bit large for my tastes. My husband absolutely raved about his, and said he would rank it up with the best burger he had ever had. As we were leaving, he was talking about when he could go back.

Since the Yuppie Puppy had closed down, I decided that it was time to eat. Right next door to where the YP used to be, in Davenport Village, I found the Pizza Gallery. I noticed art for sale around the walls, which made the name of the place make a whole lot of sense.

For the first time since I have been in Austin, the service was almost too much! I had two waiters. (One of them must’ve been in training). Probably because of where I was seated, the guy came by to see how I was doing (probably) close to ten times. However, they took my order quickly, took my plate as soon as I was finished and I got my check promptly, and that is what I want when I go out to eat.

I was seated right behind the wine rack and there was some guy, probably the owner, that fiddled with the wine the whole time I was there. He rearranged the wine on the top of the rack and then rearranged all the wine in the rack. It was a little annoying, but that wine is organized now!

There were a couple of pieces of art that I thought I might like, but upon inspection, I found them to be a bit out of my price range! Some of the art was not really my taste, but it was still more than I had to spend!

The pizza was delicious. For some reason, I felt the need to eat my pizza with a fork. I really don’t know why, maybe it was the place? I also had a delicious caesar salad. It was a great lunch!