Examiner - a new attempt at free-lance journalism

I started writing for Examiner.com.  I never thought I would agree to be an unpaid free-lance journalist;) after years of professional experience in India.  But hey, breaking into the world of free-lance journalism in the US hasn't been exactly easy - not in this economy, not with my lack of a media network.  So the Examiner, it is.  At least it let's me get published and I receive some good feedback from their group of editors backing this venture.

So here goes a link to one of my recent articles... read, comment and enjoy!

http://www.examiner.com/x-30849-Austin-Vegetarian-Food-Examiner~y2009m11d28-Brunching-at-Magnolia-Cafe-vegetarian-style

The Steeping Room

The warm wafting smell of jasmine, the chilling sweetness of cold hibiscus, the oozing sinful joy of fig and port butter... my afternoon this Saturday was all that and more.

A group of us girls met up at The Steeping Room (specialty tea shop, restaurant and lounge) at The Domain.  The menu takes a bit of getting used to and I have in the past tried everything from the warm teas to the mediterranean plate.... but this time, given that Austin weather was back to the high 80s today, I decided to try a Tea-Tail (mocktail).  And of course, who can resist the lure of a prettily cut up tea sandwich?  So along with my Kasbah Cooler (iced hibiscus tea mocktail with mint, pomegranate syrup and rose water) I ordered a plate of the Lemon Edamame sandwich - a tea sandwich with a lemony edamame spread and with a sprinkling of scallions and thinly sliced cucumbers.  Yumm.  As I slaked my thirst with the most refreshing beverage I've had (after just plain water and coconut water :)), I couldn't resist the smells from Surbhi's tea pot - the enticing aroma of warm jasmine tea that she was sipping on with her cold napa rolls.  The perfect finish came when we ordered the cupcakes (double chocolate, vanilla chocolate, carrot, etc...) and sank our teeth into the soft cakes... pure sinful bliss...

The verdict after 3-4 afternoons at The Steeping Room: It is the prefect place for a girl's get-together, afternoon tea, after-shopping snacking or just plain lunch and dinner. http://thesteepingroom.com/

P.S: As for the scones at The Steeping Room, my personal preference is to order one of the spreads so it's not too dry.    

P.P.S: Oh and if you buy one of the massage packages that include food at the Spa Reveil close by, the food comes from The Steeping Room as well.

Vietnamese Cuisine in Austin

After a shopping spree at the Arboretum on the weekend, I ended up going to my favorite Vietnamese restaurant in Austin to grab takeout. Sagiang (on Jollyville Road close to the Oak Knoll light) is my favorite for various reasons - primarily the Tofu that is grilled to perfection and moist on the inside. Top that with lemon grass sauce and spicy toppings, and it's the perfect little dish to be paired with either Vermicelli or Rice. Of course, the same dish comes with their sweeter house special sauce and curry sauce as well. (Always ask of the sauces have fish in them, if you are a pure-er vegetarian :)). They have the usual Phos and other things, but I almost always get the Grilled Tofu with Lemon Grass Sauce on Rice Vermicelli (sorry I can't remember the Vietnamese name and Sagiang unfortunately does not have a website). The other reason I like this place are the two brothers (? or is it father and son) who run the place and are actually quite nice, sometimes even funny. The younger one is usually very amused that every single time I go there, my total comes up to 8.88. "8.88 lucky number..." he keeps saying happily. In case you're wondering, that includes the price of my favorite dish plus coconut water... yes it's that cheap!

The Sagiang folks' attitude is unlike the folks at Sunflower Cafe (by Peyton Gin and 183 South in the little complex by Target), the other really good Vietnamese restaurant in Austin. The people who run that place always strike me as being too busy, too efficient to be warm. They aren't mean or rude or anything, but still... for a hole-in-the-wall, they don't really have a hole-in-the-wall attitude. Of course this hole-in-the-wall does way more business than you would've expected. And you only need to eat there to know why. I've tried many different things at Sunflower, but my top picks are the Claypot (with Tofu) and the Vietnamese crepes... yumm!

Live in South Austin? Try Hao Hao. Nice owners. And probably the best Phos I've had in Austin (can't say the same about their other dishes).... and their quality of food is always very good. Note - always ask about the broth used to make Phos. Hao Hao's broth is vegetarian too, if you order a veggie or tofu Pho, but not all Vietnamese places do that.

And as for the classic vietnamese sandwiches on baguettes, Rahul, Arun and the others have been talking about Bahn Mis for so long now, that I really need to try one for myself. More of that later...

Hudson's on the Bend - a review

My husband and I finally visited Hudson's on the Bend after giving it a miss for many occassions and celebrations. My biggest questionmark was - what could they possibly have for a vegetarian? My husband on the other hand swore he wouldn't be at peace until he had eaten there... so I called them for his 33rd birthday and asked about veggie options. The Maitre D' rattled off salads ("we veggies aren't cows who graze on salads, grrrr"), then talked about a crabmeat appetizer. I cut her off ta tthat point saying, "Vegetarians don't fish..." Her response? "yeah they do...". At that point I was sorely tempted to hang up and say, "So much for a good first impression, lady." but decided to stick it out for my husband's sake.

We ended up going there on a Tuesday night when it wasn't too crowded and found it to be charmingly off beat for a top-ranked Austin restaurant. Of course the crowd inside was dressy and expensive-looking. While my husband and I argued over how we would define the interiors "rustic" or "Texan and wannabe rustic"... the friendly server started us off with some coconut-mang-melon shooters spiced with a tad of chili, courtesy of the chef, and to cleanse our palates. We loved it so much, we asked for it as a drink, but since they were only making courtesy shooters, our server winked at us and told us he would get us a couple more. Next, the unbelievably delectable bread served on a skillet with tasty butter (two types - one sweet and tangy, one herb-spiced).

Vikram noshed on the "Smoked Duck Diablos" (duck, jicama, jalapeno, fig in balsamic, wrapped in applewood bacon) appetzier while I ordered the Tossed Greens salad in a roasted poblano lime dressing. I am not a big fan of a bunch of greens tossed together with accoutrements and salad dressing, so only enjoyed it so much. Honestly, I couldn't even get the flavors of the dressing. But Vikram thought it was the best grass he'd ever grazed on! The chili-spiced, smoky glaze-dip served with his appetizer was palate-awakening, for lack of a better term. It's like the smokiness and spice twirled together and woke up my tongue from some deep sleep! Very different, very enjoyable!

I ordered the token veggie entree on the menu "Black bean tamale, roasted poblano stuffed with corn and veggies, served with mashed potatoes and corn bread", while Vikram was torn between every menu item and ended up ordering the "Grilled Pheasant Breast stuffed with Cliantro Pesto, seved with Duck Tamale and White chocolate Tomatillo Sauce". Of course he was making orgasmic sounds throughout his meal. I enjoyed my meal too, surprisingly... and loved the fact that almost everything had a roasty, smoky, spicy-chili flavor to it...

We even ordered desserts - mine a chocolate mouse (since I had been obsessing for chocolate mousse ever since I saw it the previous day on a Food Network show) and Vikram's was a Belgian-chocolate covered Pecan Pie. Needless to say we almost had to unzip our jean buttons when we got back into the car! Hudson's also says goodbye to everyone with goodie boxes (each with a special chocolate in it).

Was a delectable, enjoyable, 3-hour birthday dinner!