Food @ SXSW

Hey folks,

2nd year at SXSW this year - my only gripe about last year was my inability (or perhaps lack of concern) for finding great eating spots downtown.

I was wondering if some of the vets here could pitch in with their favourite eating spots, with variety being the goal (although please include your fave BBQ spot by all means!) I've not had decent mexican since I left CA last year, so that's my own priority. What's yours?

Tags: food, sxsw

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Permalink Reply by Heather Spencer on February 23, 2009 at 9:17am: Hey Nick! I'm a newbie to SXSW but just wanted to send a shout out and thank you for a great thread.... I could use some advice as well, although I'm only hitting up SXSW-I.

Heather; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Ms. Jen on February 23, 2009 at 11:06am: The duke outs for BBQ downtown (in the area of the Convention Center & 6th St) are Iron BBQ and Stubb's. I am not a big bbq fan so both taste like BBQ to me. Apparently there is a place out of town that everyone raves about.

As for my fave joints downtown, I love and eat at every year (a mix of lunch & more pricey dinner places):

The Mongolian BBQ on San Jacinto & 2nd - great for a fast lunch with lots of veggies
Guerro's Tacos on south Congress - I love the taco bar here.
Whole Foods food court at the Mothership WF on 6th & Lamar
Mekong Delta on 6th St - also good for lunch
The Japanese sushi place on Congress between 3rd & 4th, forget its name - it is easy to miss as there is just a door that takes you upstairs
Las Manitas - The uber Austin mex place - on Congress between 2nd & 3rd
Stubbs for the sides (love the mashed yams/sweet potatoes)

There are more, but those are my perennial faves...; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kristen Brown on February 23, 2009 at 2:55pm: The Japanese place on Congress is Kyoto; it is located over the Elephant Room.

Las Manitas is closed. The building was torn down.

I like Iron Works BBQ. And I totally agree that the Whole Foods food court is fantastic.

Downtown Austin isn't exactly a dining destination. I could give you a fantastic list of restaurants I frequent in Austin, but only one or two would be downtown. That said, here's some of my downtown picks--places that are within a few blocks of the majority of the SXSW venues:

Maiko Sushi (311 W. 6th)
Thai Passion (620 Congress but entered from 7th)
Chez Nous (not cheap. 510 Neches)
Roaring Fork (happy hour food is affordable. 701 Congress)
Athenian Grill (600 Congress but entered from the side street. they were closed but now are back)
The Onion pizza is the best by-the-slice place by far (116 W. 5th)
Kebabalicous (ridiculously delicious food cart on 7th across from Mugshots)
The Best Wurst (food cart on 6th)
El Sol y La Luna (just relocated to 6th and Red River)
B.D. Riley's (on 6th) has good fish 'n' chips
Casino el Camino (on 6th) has good burgers, but you'll wait forever
Jackalope (on 6th) has great bar food; try the blackened catfish poor boy or the chicken & brie sandwich. plus they serve until 1 AM.

PS--let me know if you'd like any recommendations in other parts of town, like East Austin, South Congress, campus/Guadalupe, far West 6th, etc. :); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Nick Fitzsimons on February 23, 2009 at 3:11pm: now THIS is insiders info ;) Thanks y'all!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by deb on February 23, 2009 at 3:39pm: i heard they were closing las manitas down,,,,,,, its so sad. it was the only palce for true mexican breakfast.
have they relocated any where????? or does any one know of an alternative. it was the onlyplace to go with no sleep and ahangover.....the food lifted you to face another party filled day!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kristen Brown on February 23, 2009 at 3:57pm: They will supposedly relocate eventually, but have not yet.

As for alternatives, there are not any perfect substitutes in the immediate downtown area. Sad, yes. Although, the recently relocated El Sol y La Luna should help--they serve Mexican breakfast!

If you want a good Mexican breakfast outside of downtown (but not too far), try:

Mi Madre's
Tamale House
Juan in a Million
Amaya's Taco Village
Taqueria Arandas; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by deb on February 23, 2009 at 4:11pm: thank you! i missed sxsw last year and so missed my mexican fix its just not the same in england!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kristen Brown on February 23, 2009 at 10:10pm: You're welcome, everyone!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Brad King on February 23, 2009 at 10:42pm: This is my 16 or 17th year (can't remember) and I loved the city so much I kept my house there :) If you're looking for the good food:

Star Seeds Cafe: http://www.starseedscafe.com/ - it's just out of downtown but it's the best diner anywhere in the country

The Salt Lick: http://www.saltlickbbq.com/ - the BBQ destination for the whole region

The County Line: http://www.countyline.com/comeseeus.asp#Austin (On the Hill) - if you don't want to drive to the 'Lick

Magnolia Cafe: http://www.cafemagnolia.com/ - another great eatery :)

Trudys: http://www.trudys.com/ - this is the award-winning local joint

Hope it helps + enjoy the city :); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jamie on February 23, 2009 at 10:46pm: Magnolia Cafe on Congress not too far south of the bridge. It is a definite stop every time my family goes to Austin. Don't miss it - huge menu, great burgers, great tex-mex, great vegetarian selections, 24 hour breakfast (love!), nice location. http://www.cafemagnolia.com/index.html; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Rachel Masters on February 23, 2009 at 11:53pm: I think I ate at Lamberts every day last year... Once day I had lunch and dinner there. It's great modern bbq and they have Frito pie that is to die for: http://www.lambertsaustin.com/.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by alison on February 25, 2009 at 11:20pm: These are in the downtown vicinity, which is not known for great eating spots, but getting better. There are a ton of new restaurants that have opened in the past year. Some of these may have already been mentioned, but I hope this helps.

El Sol Y La Luna (Now on Sixth next to Emo's) for Mexican breakfast.
Mekong River (on Sixth, a couple of blocks E. of Congress) Vietnamese
Thai Tara (a few blocks West of Congress on Sixth) Great Thai food.
parkside (On Sixth, a couple of blocks E. of Congress) kind of upscale, but good food, open late.
Casino El Camino and Jackalope (on Sixth) for late night burgers and such.
Chez Nous (a few blocks E. of Congress off of Sixth Street) great French food.
Stubbs (on Red River, N. of Sixth) Brisket and sides.
Pango's (on Congress; N. of Sixth) Sushi, martinis, good happy hour deals.
Kyoto (on Congress; S. of Sixth) Sushi, yum.
Opal Divine's (on Sixth; W. of Congress) Some good beer on tap and decent bar food.
Mother Egan's (on Sixth; W. of Congress) Irish pub food and beer.
Whole Foods (on Sixth and Lamar) tons of great options.
Waterloo Ice House (Sixth and Lamar; next to Waterloo) burgers, good beer.
Jo's (2nd Street Location; W. of Congress) good coffee, lots of breakfast and lunch options.
Katz's (On Sixth; W. of Congress) decent. But stays open all night.

Not much in the way of decent Mexican or BBQ downtown. If you don't mind heading a bit south you can try Curras (Oltorf, E. of Congress), Gueros (South Congress), Nueva Onda (Congress and Oltorf).

As for BBQ, it's a hard call.

Breakfast: Magnolia (on S. Congress) and Kerby Lane (on S. Lamar)
These places are usually super-crowded. Be prepared to wait a while.
Try Bouldin Creek Cafe for good breakfast. (On South 1st, just a few blocks W. of S. Congress)
Enoteca Vespaio (on S. Congress) has an excellent brunch, good lunch and dinner too.
Woodland (S. Congress) great cocktails and food.
Homeslice (S. Congress) great pizza by the slice and beer.

Also, the East Side (just on the other side of I-35) is starting to have a ton of new restaurants and bars.
The Good Knight (on Sixth; E. of 35) is awesome. Excellent bar food and old-skool cocktails.; ▶ Reply to This