The Vitals: the spot: Trill Foods 415 E. St. Elmo road Austin TX 78745 @vacancy brewing the eats: rotating menu but get meat and veg dishes, think fine dining you can mostly eat with hands the bucks: $8-$12 a person the full nelson: one of my all time fav chefs making fine dining for the masses

Nick Belloni can't quit tortillas. His first food trailer, Trill Taqueria filled a niche of farm to table tacos for breakfast, lunch and dinner until Covid-19 shut him down. With an opportunity to rethink the big picture, he launched Trill Foods, offering more of his Southern Roots to the menu. He still has tacos and tostadas though, because he just can't quit tortillas. And neither can I.

Carnitas tacos

I've eaten countless tacos from Chef Nick and if there is one thing I've learned is that his vegetarian offerings are where it's at. That's not to say he can't cook meat. It's just that his eye and creativity with vegetables is a pure stand out. Restaurants like Odd Duck get deserved credit for being inventive with produce. Nick is just as inventive and Trill is like a quarter of the price. Right, back to the carnitas . . . locally sourced pork, Texas Citrus, bright green cilantro and house made salsas. The star of the show as always is the tortillas he nixtamilizes himself(i.e. grind the corn and turns it into dough).

Tuna Tataki Tostada

Those same great tortillas make for great tostadas too. This is sushi grade ahi tuna on display here on a bed whipped avocado, grilled peaches, togarashi(Japanese spice blend), and cilantro. I tagged this post "fine dining" because of this dish right here. This is the kind of quality level you would expect to find at a place on Resy with a two week wait. Literally as delicious as it is gorgeous.

Lentil and Chorizo Tostada

One will not go hungry if one has lentils. It's the food of my people(shout out to my Bengali/South Asian peeps) and it sticks to your ribs. Chef Nick cooks them in the style of chorizo and adds Oaxacan cheese, serrano chili and cilantro. This is a shareable tostada for sure so I'd order this for a group.

Charred Broccoli Tostada

The Tostada train continues with this charred broccoli tostada. Chef Nick brings out more whipped avocado along with Oaxacan cheese and chili oil. He demanded I get this and he was of course right. Like I said he rocks vegetables and this is the dish that stands out the most. And that's coming from a bonafide carnivore. More than a few recipes as of late suggest to cook vegetables like steak: charring, searing etc. The technique creates that Maillard reaction, a savory crust, and adds umami, elevating what could be have been a side dish to a main dish. I've toyed with this at home and have enjoyed the results. In Nick's hands you have a new go to meatless Monday meal.

Want beer with that?

All of this goes down at Vacancy Brewing and the beers are on point too. Austin might be crowded when it comes to craft beer and tacos but good is good. And Trill? It's the best. Pre pandemic times I used to take food tours to Trill Tacos. Some people loved it, some not so much. I think those that didn't thought they knew what they were getting. A taco at a truck? Not exactly a game changing notion. Then you take a bite and realize that you're being taken out of your comfort zone. Fine dining is about new experiences and challenging expectations. That's what you get at Trill minus the formality and price. Bending the rules and raising the bar is what an ambitious chef lives for. And that's what happens at Trill . . . for like a quarter of the price of his closest competitors. Definitely give Trill Foods a try. The cooking is special and like Guerilla Tacos in Los Angeles, he is offering fine dining for the masses. It's a must visit on my Austin list.

The Vitals: the recipe: Traeger Smoked 'n Simmered beer brats  the smoker: Traeger Ironwood 885 the time: about an hour and a half the full nelson: the best Brat method EVER

I've been Brat obsessed since the tender age of . . . well I don't exactly remember when. But I was a little boy with big dreams of eating all the meats in the butcher's case. Back in the day, my family would shop at our local butcher shop. That's where I first laid eyes on Bratwursts, Italian Sausages, Kielbasa, you name it. I'd get my parents to buy me some veal brat(they didnt eat pork) and we would fry 'em up at home. Years later my food obsessed lifestyle would take me to German Delis, gourmet markets and hipster butcher shops. While it's hard not to tip your cap to a true German sausage specialist for a top shelf brat, I ain't mad at Johnsonville for some reason. They do the job. Especially if you simmer them in cheap beer. And while you're at it, break out the Traeger.

Brats > Hot Dogs

It's hard not to argue that hot dogs are the simplest thing to cook on the grill. I mean, you're not even cooking, you're just reheating. Thing is, Brats > Hot Dogs and the extra effort is frankly more relaxing because you have more time to sip on a beer. And it's about as cheap as hot dogs too if the kind of dogs you're springing for are of the Boar's Head or Hebrew National variety.

Smoke your sausage

I smoked these brats for about an hour at 225 degrees. I use a Traeger 885 Ironwood which has this super smoke feature and I like to use it every chance I get. When it comes to making proper barbecue like ribs, I'll break out a smoker tube to really drive the point home but these brats only need a kiss of smoke, a chef's kiss even. I smoke these for about an hour though you could cut that in half if you're running short on time as it's going to cook more in the simmer process.

Break out the cast iron skillet

Like burgers, a cast iron skillet is your sausage's best friend. Like the one from summer camp that you finally reconnected with on Facebook and is now, like kinda weird. Well, actually nothing like that at all, because you're not friends with a pan. Ok, back to the method. Melt some butter and beer in the pan to a simmer. Now drop the links.

The Wisconsin Method

Years ago I came across this method of simmering the brats in butter and beer as part of a Wisconsin tailgate tradition. I've dubbed it the Wisconsin Method ever since. Actually I dubbed it that pretty much just now. But trust me, I've been to Milwaukee and I'm pretty sure some genius that's 6 or 7 Old Styles deep, making sweatshirts with Wisconsin Method ironed on as I type this. Oh right, back to cooking Brats. Look, you cook these till they look good. I'd ballpark it as 10-2o minutes depending on the size of the link and how long you smoked it. For safety, use a instant read thermometer and pull them when they hit an internal temp of 165 degrees.

Crisp 'em up for the finish

What's nice about the simmer is that you can hold the sausages warm without drying them out too much. When you're ready to serve, toss them on a grill or even a pan to crisp them up. It will only take a few minutes. Then get the buns, mustard and kraut ready.

Smoke 'n Simmer: best of both worlds.

This is such a fun and easy way to use a pellet grill like a Traeger. And while you could do this all on the grill, you could also just smoke them on the grill and do the rest over the stove. Any grill will work but clearly one that incorporates smoke will yield the best results too. I also find this method is a great way to dress up supermarket level brats like Johnsonville but you could try anything. In fact, I bet there is a little boy in a hipster butcher shop somewhere in Brooklyn, looking at some sustainably raised Duroc or Kurobuta pork brats wondering how his mom will cook them. Winona, if you can hear me . . . try the Ali Khan Smoked n Simmered method. Just keep the mustard ballpark style. Somethings are simply timeless. Thanks for bearing with me while I got weird with the humor in this one. If you liked it, comment below!    

The Vitals: the spot: T-Loc's  5000 Burnet Rd. Austin TX 78756 the eats: Sonoran Style Hot Dogs, Carne Asada fries, tacos, burritos and more the bucks: $5-$12 the full nelson: straight outta Tucson with real deal Sonoran Style Hot Dogs

Who let the dogs out?

T-Loc's did, that's who. But before we get into all that I feel like I need to let you all in on a little secret: Hotdogs are my kryptonite! More often than not, when it comes to tubesteaks I'll take a hard pass. This is especially true for loaded dogs. Are there exceptions? Heck yes and I'll mention Dave's Dogs from Cheap Eats Santa Barbara as a truly special exception. My man Dave can load up a dog, but rather than overload it with salty meat goodness, Dave seeks to strike balance by adding contrasting flavors. This flavor combo of complexity is the saviour of any loaded dog when it comes to the true blue gourmand's palate. And there happens to be a maestro of that caliber running a truck/trailer in Austin TX. His spot is T-Loc's and I'm loco for Chef Miguel Kaiser's elevated grub.

Miguel dreams of hot dogs

If Jiro Ono dreams of sushi, then Miguel Kaiser dreams of hot dogs. That's certainly the case now as he is currently in his seventh year of operating T-Loc's Sonoran Hot Dogs and Street food, a food trailer in Austin along with his partner Zulma Nataren. But was Miguel always dreaming of hot dogs? Definitely in his youth when he was growing up in Tucson, AZ. Tucson could be considered the capital of Sonoran style hot dogs on this side of the border. This might beg the question from some of you: what exactly is a Sonoran Style Hot Dog?

Sonoran Style Hot Dog 101

Look carefully at the upper lefthand corner of the menu and you'll see the Sonoran Hot Dog breakdown. Spoiler alert: it's all about toppings. A special bun that T-Loc's ships out from a bakery in Tucson is the bed for this bevy of toppings. A bacon wrapped hot dog takes a seat on the bun followed by pinto beans, diced onion and tomato, jalapeño sauce, yellow mustard and mayo. Spicy, salty, juicy, tart, filling and it's all so damn epic.

Ali Khan Eats approved

I'll say it again: I pretty much hate hot dogs but I'll make an exception for this one and give it my fist bump/cocktail bump. The toppings and the flavor contrast make the meal, kinda like a Chicago Dog. But make no mistake this is Sonora all day. It should be worth noting that yes, this hot dog style is a gift from Mexican immigrants from Sonora who started selling them in Tucson. Now I have had plenty of bacon wrapped dogs in LA, also known as TJ style dogs, but the bun and the precision layering of toppings makes Sonora style, particularly T-Loc's rendition, a total standout.

Sonoran Style Hot Dog remix

Even though Sonoran style dogs are steeped in tradition, Chef Miguel is an innovator. Recently I was invited to a pop up with T-Loc's and Wunderoot/Bolthouse Farms. Here Chef Miguel used roasted carrots with particular flavors in lieu of a traditional hot dog. Now I'm not big meat substitute guy(duh), but I certainly appreciate and partake in eating vegetables. Call me crazy but I don't want to keel over and die before I'm 50.

Better than plant based: just plants

What's cool about these "hot dogs" is that they're literally just roasted carrots versus some chopped up and reformed thing (McRib anyone?)  It's a far easier ask for me to eat vegetables than pretend that the vegetable is some kind of meat. I mean, let's just be real about that. That secret sauce to making it all work is what Miguel puts in toppings wise. You already know about the Sonora Style, the other two are a chorizo and an italian "sausage". For the chorizo, Chef Miguel contrast the spicy "sausage" with crisp coleslaw and bbq sauce. While those toppings aren't typically out of the norm for loaded dogs, BBQ sauce is far more interesting on a roasted carrot than an actual chorizo link. The Italian "sausage" gets hit with arugula and a spicy carrot vinaigrette. Named the hipster, I was least keen on this. Chalk it up to being in your 40s I guess.

Come for the dogs, come back for Chef Miguel

T-Loc's is Chef Miguel's muse. Yes, it's the spot to get a legit Sonoran Style Dog in Austin whether at the food truck or at Q2 stadium(where Austin FC plays). But it's all about a guy who trained at the Culinary Institute of America, interned Per Se, one of the most celebrated restaurants in the country yet focuses on food that can be appreciated by anybody and everybody. If Cheap Eats rolled back into Austin, T-Loc's would be a slam dunk. And the best part? I didn't even get to tell you about his carne asada fries. Literally . . . stay tuned. PS: He will be giving away FREE DOGS July 4th weekend and July 9-11.