Category: austin

Dangling horse dominates, but you’ve a hearty appetite as well

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Above: Skyline of downtown Austin, 11:59 p.m., December 31, 2023

Smoking mezcal cocktail delivered in Palermo, Sicily

Readers of this blog seem drawn to the embalmed horse, of course, suspended by artist Maurizio Cattelan from a dome in a former castle above Turin, Italy. And any mention of the Alamo always attracts a crowd, even when I’m drawing no line in the sand but waving a flag of truce. But you also seem drawn to photos of food, or cocktails, no matter the country of origin; street art; ghosts; and saintly tales not taught by nuns.

The following list represents the biannual results of the most-read postcards on this ever-rambling blog, with the numbers in parentheses indicating rankings from six months ago when applicable.

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Biannual Roundup: What posts you’ve traveled most

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Above: A mock wedding is always part of the pre-Lenten Carnaval in San Martin Tilcajete, Mexico

Above: Lou Ann Barton, Marcia Ball, Sue Foley, Ruthie Foster and Eve Monsees joined forces at a March benefit for the Austin History Center

Is everyone on a diet? I think this is the first time that there is not one food post represented in the top 12 posts that you have frequented during the past year.

The following list represents the biannual results of the most-read postcards, with the numbers in parentheses indicating rankings from six months ago when applicable.

Continue reading “Biannual Roundup: What posts you’ve traveled most” →

Postcard from Oaxaca, Mexico: Restaurant Alphabet Vol. II from Le to Tacos

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Above: Guava mole with shrimp and battered cauliflower at Levadura de Olla

Thalía Barrios Garcia is young, 27 years old, yet she has worked her way from a small Oaxacan village to own two widely acclaimed restaurants in the historic center of the state capital. One, Cocina de Humo, is intimate, providing a chance to observe traditional methods of cooking, but you need to make a reservation in advance. So we tried her Levadura de Olla instead.

Tomatoes. The gorgeous display of heirloom tomatoes immediately announces produce is important here. And a woman kept busy flipping fresh tortillas you know are made the ancient way, from dried corn boiled down with ash, nixtamal.

Continue reading “Postcard from Oaxaca, Mexico: Restaurant Alphabet Vol. II from Le to Tacos” →