The Vitals: the spot: Contigo 2027 Anchor Ln, Austin, TX 78723 the eats: Burger w/ cheese and fries the bucks: $16 the full nelson: one of the best burgers in Austin

An article came out in Bon Appétit magazine last year describing Contigo as a restaurant "locals bring out of towners in order to convince them to move here". I would go a step further and say it is a place to bring your friends visiting from Brooklyn, Silver Lake or San Francisco and say "hey Austin has food as good as you do plus we are as laid back as the patio you are eating and drinking in". Austin of course has food worthy making a trip for, especially if you hail from the latest and greatest corners of gentrification. Contigo isn't so much a meal you see on an episode of Chef's Table but they are as timely and relevant as chef driven, farm to table burgers get. It's among my top two burgers in Austin and proof that the best Bang for your Burger Buck in this town sits in the mid teen range(Odd Duck is right up there too). But wait, did I say the best burger value is in fact closer to an Andrew Jackson then a Abraham Lincoln? Yeah, I really did. As much as P. Terry's and Hopdoddy will absolutely sate your burger fix for under $10, whats happening around the $15 mark at Contigo and Odd Duck, well that's good enough to convince your East and West Coast friends that Austin's food scene is as relevant as LA, SF or NYC. Need more convincing? Well that's what I'm here to do. (more…)

The Vitals: the spot: Pueblo Viejo 502 Brushy st Austin TX 78702  the eats: lamb barbacoa, taco Nes, taco chicharron the bucks: $3.75, $3.75 and $3.20 respectively per taco the full nelson: you can't eat more than three. but you will want to. 

My people, sometimes I just gotta come at ya and flat out say it: right now Pueblo Viejo is my favorite taco spot in Austin, may the whole damn world. They take the idea of cheap tacos and turned it on its side. Rather than offering a small tasty treat for $2 or less(and I know LA peeps - $2 a taco is $$$), Pueblo charges you somewhere between $3 and $4 for a tortilla stuffed with enough meat to fill a San Francisco Mission style burrito. Two will be enough, yet I dream about eating more than three because they are as flavorful as they are generous. Being a taco spot in Austin you might be tempted to try the breakfast tacos, and while cheaper, the fun lies in lunch . . . oh lordy these tacos are bumpin' so let's just my Pueblo pics . . . (more…)