13 Fresas in South Austin

Fresa's in South Austin is a recent discovery. It's off of south 1st street, so it's a trek to get there if you live up north. But it's absolutely worth it.

I've only ever been here in the evenings on the weekend, and it's always quite busy. I highly recommend making sure you get a reservation before you go. Otherwise you run the risk of having a very long wait. 

This place is a Mexican style restaurant and it is fantastic.

We tried an appetizer called Black Bean Pachucos. It's queso monterey, crispy corn masa with avocado verde salsa and crema. Just say yes to these. They were crispy and delightful. 

For the main menu Justin got the Chimichuri Skirt Steak Fajitas, while I got a chicken taco and a shrimp taco. For sides we had beans and rice, then some Mexican street corn. I cannot say enough good things about all of this food. The taste was fantastic, the meat was tender and flavorful. Everything was just divine.

The of course we had to try dessert - churros with dulche de leche. I could eat these all day long. So good. 

I honestly cannot say enough good things about how delicious this food was. You've got to try this place. 

We give it 5 out of 5 stars.

Chuys Tex-Mex

 
Chuy's Tex-Mex restaurant is a staple in my diet. They have locations all over the city, and are a great place for some really good Tex-Mex style food. The portions are large, the service is fast, but this place is always busy.

The main reason you go here, other than the food of course, is the creamy jalapeno dip. I could drink this stuff up all day every day. It's a kind of ranch dip with jalapenos. It's amazing. 

They also have salsa that comes with the chips. I will say their salsa is ok. It's not my favorite salsa. But I'm here for the creamy jalapeno dip, not the salsa so it works out well.

Any local who frequents Chuy's will probably tell you they tend to gravitate towards a particular dish. 

While I've never had anything bad here, it's all been wonderful, my staple meal of choice is the chicken soft tacos. They just always hit the spot for me. They come with beans and rice, and are just delectable.

Justin usually gets the Elvis Presley memorial meal. This place does have an affinity for Elvis, and yes, some of their dishes are named after him. But like I said the portions are quite large, the food is hot, and it's just plain old yumminess.

We are biased because we love this place. We give it a 4,5 out of 5 stars.

Kenney Fort Pub in Round Rock

 

Justin and I were talking about how we missed out favorite British restaurant that closed down during the pandemic. It was a hole in the wall place called Full English. It was English breakfast, and high tea, and tons of tea, and millionaire shortbread, and all my favorite British foods that I miss when I'm not in England.

I miss it a lot. We jumped down the google rabbit hole and started searching for any British restaurants that existed in the Austin area. It's so hard to find a good Fish and Chips place. We found a few places, but one that stood out to us was a place called Kenney Fort Pub by Dell Diamond in Round Rock. The owners are from England, which gives me a lot of hope that it could be authentic. So we took a gamble and decided to test it out.

We'd never heard of it, and it is rather hidden away in a newer development area. 

Turns out they just barely opened the place in November, so it's still rather new. I do hope more people find out about it.

We decided to both get fish and chips. This is a dish I don't usually order in the states as I'm always disappointed. Nothing compares to Fish and Chips in England or Scotland. 

The décor on the inside is very clean and simple. The murals are well done, and of course there is some of that English cheekiness that I love. This is in the style of a sports bar, then there is an area with tables and chairs. They said they get really busy when soccer games are tv. I assume cricket and rugby will be busy here too. Typical English style place. 

I got the small plate of fish and chips, which comes with one piece of fish, mushy peas, and chips (fries). The waiter did tell me when it came out that my piece of fish wasn't normally this big. It was HUGE. I couldn't even finish eating it all. 

Justin got the full size plate, which was two pieces of fish with the mushy peas and fries. The fish is much bigger than it looks in their pictures, so be warned. He had a hard time finishing it all. You definitely get your money's worth. The fish tasted fresh, and it wasn't just breading. There was so much fish it was shocking. The fries - I wish everywhere made fries like this. Big, thick, and wonderful. It was heavenly.  And it even came on newspaper. Loving it.

One of my favorite English desserts is Sticky Toffee Pudding. Not something I see in the states often, but it is a favorite of mine. It's a different flavor than what American desserts are used to. But I love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. They did have this option on their menu so of course I had to try it. I was not disappointed.

Over all we were so glad we gave this place a try. The food was really good, the place is clean and the staff is friendly. Plus the food came out piping hot. I will definitely be coming back here again.

We gave this place a 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Blue Corn Harvest in Cedar Park

 

For lunch we happened to be in the area of Cedar Park and stopped by a place called Blue Corn Harvest. It's a bit hidden and can easily be passed if you don't know it's there.

The restaurant is a farm to table place, and the few times I've been there have been really good. On the weekends it seems they have a mimosa buffet and mimosa specials for brunch. If mimosas are you think, you may want to check this place out.

They do give you a basket of cornbread and butter to munch on while you wait for food to come. Really good cornbread.

For lunch we both ended up getting burgers for lunch. I got the BBQ burger, which was rather good if you are looking for something hardy and covered in BBQ sauce. The fries are really good too.

Justin got the Bacon Jam Burger. It was really good and had a very sweet jam offset by some blue cheese. 

The place was clean, it was busy but we didn't have to wait, and the food was delicious.

We left full and happy. We'll have to try dinner here sometime.

We gave this place 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Andy's Frozen Custard in Pflugerville

 Andy's Frozen Custard is a favorite spot. They have a few locations up north in Pflugerville and Round Rock, but nothing south of that. So you have to make the trek to the north part of town if you are not already in that area.

Why do I love this place? It's hard to explain. Their custard is so thick and creamy and just wonderful. Please they have a variety of pre-made options. Of you can make your own by picking the kind of custard you want with whatever toppings you want.

From Sundaes, to malts and shakes, to just an ice cream cone. You really can't make a wrong choice by going him. especially when it gets to those long hot summer days in the heat and humid awfulness that is Texas. This treat tastes extra good.

My latest adventure I got a Snow Monster Concrete. This is vanilla custard, with strawberries and melted chocolate chips. So yummy.

Definitely a 5 stars out of 5 stars place. Regular old ice cream just doesn't compare.

Jardin Corona in Austin, Texas

 Jardin Corona is a favorite Mexican food place of ours in Austin. They have a few different locations, but the main one we tend to go to is the one off of 183 and Anderson Mill.

We love this place. I've never had anything hear that I did not like, and of all the people I've taken here for lunch or dinner no one has yet to complain or be disappointed in the food. So whenever we are craving some good Mexican food, this is often the place we head to.

Of course as soon as you sit down you get chips and salsa. It's always hard not to immediately fill up on this goodness.

The last few times I've come here I've gotten the beef fajitas for 1. Even though it is only for 1, it's always too much for me to eat so I always go home with amazing leftovers. The beef, peppers, and onions all have a really great flavor. The tortillas are fresh, and it just makes me happy.

Justin got the Camarones en Brocheta - shrimp wrapped in bacon and stuffed with cheese and jalapeno peppers. How can that be wrong? It's one of his favorites, as they cook the shrimp on a grill for that nice grilled flavor.

As I said before, this is a place we are never disappointed at. Maybe that considers us biased. Either way this is definitely worth a try whenever you want some good Mexican food.

We give this 5 out of 5 stars.