4917 Airport Blvd
Austin, TX 78751
(512) 712-5700
http://www.kome-austin.com

New ramen digs, Kome has been making a splash in the Austin community. I was sad they only serve ramen for lunch and that hasn’t been working for my schedule. In celebration with the close of 2011 and the beginning of a new year, a couple of coworkers and I decided to treat ourselves to an off-site lunch at Kome. One of my coworkers is from Japan and tells me Kome is the closest thing to authentic Japanese sushi she’s experienced since living in Austin. Alas, we were only here for lunch so I only ordered the Miso Ramen. Sushi next time!

Miso Ramen, $8.50

Miso broth with pork and mustard greens. It was perfectly portioned and comforting for the chilly day. We all tucked into our entrees and muttered promises to each other between bites. “Let’s go here every time we grab lunch off-site.” “Yessss.”

Chirashi (assorted sushi over rice), $18

One of the coworkers ordered the chirashi. She was quite pleased with her treat. I was just impressed by the pretty stamped logo on her tofu.

Kome, great first impression. I’ll be eating you again soon. Dinner next time?

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As part of our progressive meal. Review to come!

3510 White Oak Dr
Houston, TX 77007
(713) 426-3554
http://www.facebook.com/HappyFatz

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Last week I was invited to try out Coal Vines, newly opened at the W Hotel in late September. The weather had just begun to cool down last week, so Alan and I opted to eat outside. It was such a treat! The night air was perfect and the Christmas lights were already out. Oh and to add to the magic, Frank Sinatra was crooning in the background.

We started off with the Smoked Salmon Tartar ($8.00). The tartar was dressed with goat cheese, avocados, and pomegranate vinaigrette. Very good! The salmon tasted fresh and the avocados and goat cheese served as a rich balance to the lightness of the fish and vinaigrette. Loved it.

For the main course, Alan and I split an entree and a pizza.

The waiter suggested the Fennel Crusted Salmon with arugula and Roma tomatoes side salad ($15). It was a very clean and simple entree. The salmon practically melts in your mouth. The arugula salad was a simple complement to the salmon. A healthy dinner without frills and did not sacrifice on taste. I can get behind this.

Lastly, we would be wasting a visit to a pizzeria without sampling the pizza. We ordered the special that night which was a pesto pizza with tomatoes and basil, drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. I mean, it had me at, “pesto pizza” The pizza was delightful. Light on sauce, crispy from first bite to last, and the flavors were in harmony.

I recommend Coal Vines for a casual date night (romantic or platonic!) It’s pizza night with a romantic makeover. Go soon while the weather is perfect and sit outside. Trust me on that.

P.S. I almost forgot to mention the wine. What is romance without wine? They have a nice selection of inexpensive wines. Alan enjoyed his Cabernet and loved my sweet Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling ($9/glass).

Disclosure: This meal was provided by Coal Vines. I received no monetary compensation for writing this blog post, and was under no obligation to write this or any blog post. All opinions expressed herein are of my own accord and were not influenced by any gratuities.

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A new ice cream shop opened just this week called Lick Ice Cream. I got wind that they carried a beets flavor and bacon flavor. Remember how I told you bacon has a standing invitation to party in my mouth? Yeah, it took me less than a day of hearing about these flavors before I dragged a skeptical friend with me. Maybe I shouldn’t have lead with, “OH MY GOSH, THIS PLACE HAS BEETS AS A FLAVOR!” Though I closed my sale well with, “AND BACON! BACON!” if I do say so myself.

Brittany and I met up for dessert last night, the first cold night of the season. I was giggling in delirious happiness as I sampled four or five flavors. The Grapefruit Ginger flavor was a perfect combination. Brittany who doesn’t usually enjoy grapefruit was won over and committed to a scoop. The sweet tartness of the grapefruit was subdued with the spiciness of the ginger. I love ginger hints with a lot of fruit.

The Cilantro Lime tasted just like cilantro and lime. I don’t know why I am so surprised when unconventional ice cream flavors really match their namesakes. But yes, exactly how you expect it. But in ice cream form. Works in your salsa; works in your ice cream! Who knew?

The Roasted Beets with Mint was earthy and sweet. I love beets. Fun flavor but didn’t melt me.

Granny’s Pumpkin Pie was good. I have a small obsession with pumpkin but it didn’t win out over the novelty of the other flavors and most importantly, over my mind-consuming obsession with bacon.

Mmm. Of course I ordered a scoop of the Breakfast Bacon ice cream. Smoked applewood bacon, molasses, and brown sugar. I don’t even know what to say about this except that it’s almost unfair for me to comment on anything with bacon. My love for it is too deep for me to say anything bad.

Goat cheese, thyme, and honey, the second of my two scoops. (Two scoops is the small size and cost $3.19.)
I already knew before tasting this flavor that this might be my winner. I was already a fan of these flavors hanging out with each other. The richness of the goat cheese with hints of thyme. You might find me weird, but I pictured honey just languidly swirling with the goat cheese to make up this concoction.

My happy and lovely date

The website isn’t fully up yet so in the mean time, how about you read these index cards they have tacked up at the store and drool a little. Brittany said it reminded her of Harry Potter. Does it remind you of Harry Potter? I’m Harry Potter resistant and naive.

Speaking of their website. Their website is http://ilikelick.com. I remembered it as http://iliketolick.com. Please don’t make that same mistake! It’s NSFW.

I took home a pint (~$6) of boring milk chocolate for Alan. I was almost ashamed that my boyfriend picked such a boring flavor. However, it didn’t stop me from stealing a good fraction of his bowl. The milk chocolate was good too. What’s really great about these ice creams is the high quality ingredients (all local!) and the texture. I usually have poor stamina when it comes to ice cream because it leaves such a brick in my stomach. (Sorry, TMI?) Not Lick’s ice cream. I could easily eat triple what I ate because it felt so light.

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9616 N Lamar Blvd
Austin, TX 78753
(512) 821-0396
http://www.lesoleilrestaurant.com

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A few weeks ago Cindy, Thomas, and I convened for another one of our progressive lunches. (Read about our first, second, and third stops.) Our fourth and last was just a simple yogurt shop near by, Yogurtland. I’m not as crazed about trying all the yogurt places in Austin and Houston as I was a few years ago when they were all the rage, but I still find them generally delightful.

So glad we went because the yogurt (coconut and taro) were great, and they had my favorite topping (Fruity Pebbles), but most importantly, I kept that plastic spoon and it makes me feel so utterly happy when I use it to eat my cereal.

This concludes my 4 post series for this progressive meal. I see another one on our horizon Thanksgiving weekend, when I reunite with my Houston food loving friends for the holidays!

P.S. Yogurtland is a national chain. Go see if your town has one and maybe you can pick up your own Sanrio spoon!

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A few weeks ago Cindy, Thomas, and I convened for another one of our progressive lunches. (Read about our first and second of four stops.) Our third stop, Original Marini’s Empanada House, was where we spent the most time and sampled the most eats. We also welcomed a few stragglers to our group who couldn’t wake in time for our first two stops. I bet they’re glad they didn’t sleep through Marini’s!

We paced ourselves pretty well for this lunch, allowing us more room to indulge at The Original Marini’s Empanada House. Swell because the list of empanadas available was overwhelming!

From Left: Texas Barbecue ($3.00), Tomato Basil ($2.50), Linda’s Chicken ($3.00)

I don’t have closeups of the Tomato Basil or Linda’s Chicken. Tomato Basil is filled with diced roma tomato, fresh basil, and mozzarella and provolone cheese. One of my favorite combinations of flavors! Tomato, basil, and cheese. Classic combination. Linda’s Chicken (My chicken!? Hee.) was filled with chopped chicken in a tomato chipotle sauce with American and Monterrey Jack cheese. Delightful and piping hot!

Texan Barbeque: chopped brisket cooked in their own barbeque sauce

Thomas really wanted this one. He practically squealed (a manly squeal) when he read it on the menu. The brisket was moist and sauce was decent with some tang.

Italian “Marcello”: Italian sausage, pizza sauce, mozzarella, and provolone cheese; $3.00

Italian “Marcello” was awesome. Kind of obvious since it’s comprised of Italian sausage, melted cheese and pizza sauce. Come on now. It could be my favorite savory one thus far.

Nacho Macho: ground beef, sautéed onions, refried beans, American, Monterrey Jack cheese and jalapenos; $3.00

Mmm Mexican flavors. Mmm Mexican flavors with jalapenos.

Dulce de Lechee: diced banana, dulce de leche, and Ghiradelli chocoalte; $2.50

The Dulce de Leche was the star empanada. Just close your eyes and imagine warm bananas, dulce de leche, and melted Ghiradelli chocolate just swimming in your mouth while hints of powdered sugar flirt with your palate. Do you see what I mean?

Man, I want to come back and try more empanadas but will definitely order the Dulce de Leche again.

Happy eaters!

I love eating good food in hot pockets. It can get a bit dangerous sometimes. OMEH provided a safety infographic.

Have a great weekend and happy eating!

* The photos used in this post were all taken by my eating buddy and talented photographer, Thomas Chen.

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The photo of me below was taken by Thomas Chen.

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