Austin City Limits Music Festival 2024: My five picks for where to eat at ACL Eats.

The Vitals: the spot: CM Smokehouse two locations in Austin TX + ACL Eats the eats: Brisket Crunchwrap  the bucks: $17  the full nelson: Texas BBQ meets Chef driven munchies 

As I looked over the food line up at this year's Austin City Limits Music Festival, CM Smokehouse jumped as a must visit spot. Fun handheld foods are the move at a music festival and CM's Brisket Crunchwrap is most certainly that. Chef Cade Mercer loads a large flour tortilla with a generous amount of brisket along with all the other classic elements of the famous Taco Bell crunchwrap. Yes this one will cost you a lot more but as I said when I tried it last year, it's the size of a small pizza and shareable. The Vitals: the spot: Shawarma Point multiple locations in Austin // @ACL Eats Main Food Court the eats: Gyro the bucks: $15 the full nelson: one of my fave ACL Eats Another example of a handheld that shines at Austin City Limits Music Festival is the Gyro at Shawarma Point. Despite the Greek name, this Gyro has the feels of a Halal Cart style shawarma sandwich exemplified by the dueling drizzles of creamy yogurt and a fiery chili sauce. The pita is nice and buttery and does a great job of holding the bold flavors together. The Vitals: the spot: Mama Fried @ACL Eats Main Food Court the eats: Chopped Beef Nacho Fries the bucks: $16 the full nelson: Essential loaded fries that has been proven to fight hangovers Sadly, Mama Fried closed its location in Austin but has been resurrected for the Austin City Limits Music Festival. I don't often eat fries but make exceptions when they are loaded with chopped beef from one of the best barbecue restaurants in the state. Queso, pico de gallo and pickled jalapeños mean salsa isn't required. Mama tried real good on this one folks. The Vitals: the spot: Lamba Royal Indian 80 Rainey St.  Austin TX 78701 // @ACL Eats main area the eats: Spicy Lamb Curry the bucks: $16 the full nelson: Solid Curry Fix Curry might not be the first thing that comes to mind at Austin City Limits Music Festival, I'll give you that. But consider the plethora of craft beers on tap and consider how well the aromatic spices from hoppy beer pair with the aromatic warming spices in a curry. For me, curry peaks with tender morsels of lamb which is what I have found year after year when I visit Lamba Royal Indian at ACL Eats. The Vitals: the spot: La Pachanga: located between the main merch tent and IHG Hotels  Resorts Stage the eats: all star tacos and Mexican Smashed Burger! the bucks: $-$$ the full nelson: What I am most excited for at ACL Eats Far and away the La Pachanga line up is what I am most excited for about the Austin City Limits Music Festival, sorry Dua Lipa. The mashup of who's who of taco giants in Austin is worthy of a Netflix series, or at least one on PBS. Many of these participants I have highlighted on this blog as well. I can only hope this dream of a food court lives up to my lofty expectations.    

The Vitals: the spot: Uchiko Austin 4200 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78756 the eats: tasting menu the bucks: $$$ the full nelson: a curry lovers dream

The Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up by Chef Jack Yoss

Was a heavyweight title bout of a tasting menu. I was fortunate to be invited by the folks at Uchiko to bear witness to the eleven course Indonesian extravaganza and it easily tops my list of elegant curry experiences. Given the price and prestige behind Uchiko, which as a Japanese restaurant put Austin Texas on the map for destination sushi, this shouldn't be too far out of left field. However this would not have been possible with Chef Jack Yoss, whose love for Indonesian food is as real as it gets.

The eleven course line up:

I won't bog your phone scrolling with all eleven courses of the Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up. So I'll stick to the highlights. And spoiler alert: there will still be a lot of scrolling.

The dish of the night: Beef Rendang

I came first and foremost to the Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up for my curry fix. The base of this and all the other curries, the sambal, took weeks to make. Part of that was due to Chef Jack Yoss' schedule and the other part is that the creation of these curry bases can take that long. Chef Yoss chose beef short ribs where the texture of the short rib, not too fall apart, was as spot on as the red hue of the curry.

Sumatran Lamb Curry

Had I attended the Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up and was forced to choose on curry, on paper I would have chosen lamb. The gaminess of lamb is off putting for some but I relish it and the protein excels amongst bold flavors. Chef Yoss admitted to me that his lamb simmered a few minutes too long, which is why I preferred the Beef Rendang. Still, I would easily try this dish again if given the chance.

Yellow Curry Crab

The idea of making a crab curry has never crossed my mind. I'm starting to rethink that line of thought. After attending the Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up, I know that sweet coconut milk and sweet crab meat make for natural best buddies. This was a touch sweet, creamy and mellow compared to the red meat curries but equally captivating.

Grilled Pork Secreto

The greatest secret in pork might be the Pork Secreto. This specialty cut, essentially the flank steak of the pig is cut from Iberico breed pigs, whose tremendous marbling makes this cut as prized as a ribeye cap. This was rubbed in a marinade and grilled and was my second fav dish of the night. In general if you see Pork Secreto on a menu, order it, whether you are at an Indonesian Pop Up or otherwise.

And the rest of the bench was deep.

I may have hit my limit documenting all eleven courses of this Uchiko Austin Indonesian Pop Up but I sure did try my best to eat every thing that came my way. The water spinach pictured above was a life saver amongst a sea of rich dishes. And with Uchiko being an all star sushi restaurant, any dish with seafood was just gonna hit extra. My biggest takeaway is that while some of these dishes also excel in street versions and in mom and pop curry houses, it was nice to experience them elevating without losing any soul. The flavors were deep and while the price reflects ingredient and atmosphere, it was also a peak into what elements of fine dining can bring to foods beyond Western European or Japanese. I can't tell you when this pop up will happen again, but when it does, I will be there.  

The Vitals: the spot: Pau Hana Base 407 Seaside Ave #107, Honolulu, HI 96815 the eats: Gyoza, Takoyaki, Okonomiyaki, Udon, Yellow Tail Collar the bucks: $-$$ the full nelson: a tucked away Izakaya in Waikiki 

 

Scroll down for video here

Do you eat at Izakaya?

If the answer is no, you need to. Think bar food meets Japanese food where you can snack or supper. From skewers to sushi, depending on the Izakaya, the world is your oyster. You just have to ask yourself if you want it raw or fried.

It helps to start with a round of drinks

After landing in Honolulu earlier that afternoon and immediately getting Udon, it was a matter of time before the Asian food bug would hit again. One of the reasons we chose to go to Honolulu after spending time in Kauai was the Asian food scene. And the next words I entered in my Google search would be "Honolulu Izakaya".

Fried foods are a non negotiable

At least when it came to our Honolulu Izakaya adventure. My kid loves them and I after seeing the great char on the flat side of the Gyoza, I knew the folks at Pau Hana Base took their Gyoza making seriously.

Get the Okonomiyaki: A Japanese savory pancake

We went to a DIY Okonomiyaki place in Tokyo in 2023 and let's just say the bar for the savory pancake was set high. Each dish came out individually at Pau Hana Base, a good sign that everything is cooked to order.

The bite of the night: fried oysters

The pitfalls of all things fried, especially fried seafood is when all you taste is breading. Not the case at our Honolulu Izakaya adventure at Pau Hana Base. The fried oysters here were first and foremost plump and juicy, with what I can only assume to be Panko breading. And that breading did its job by keeping the exterior crisp and the inside moist.

Takoyaki: Grilled Octopus Balls

There really isn't a better way to describe the round balls of Octopus. Often seen at Izakayas, I leapt at the chance to try these during our Honolulu Izakaya excursion. I'm not sure why I keep ordering them. Often the taste of the octopus, which tends to be mild, gets lost in the batter, as was the case here. But it does make for beer and sake snacking.

And even more Udon.

I suppose the easy sell of getting Izakaya for my kid was that Udon was a likely showing of Udon on the menu. He had Udon for lunch and dinner that day. I abstained from trying it but he seemed please.

Gotta get some kinda fish collar

Usually it is Yellowtail or Salmon collars one finds at Izakaya restaurants. At Pau Hana Base, we chose Yellowtail. The meat just below the head is fatty but bone ridden, thus making it perfect for picking at with chopsticks. If you have never had it and love the taste of yellowtail or salmon, try it.

And the hook? Self Serve Cotton Candy

Really. Per this story from Honolulu Magazine, the hook at this Honolulu Izakaya restaurant is free cotton candy which you "make yourself". Words fail me but TikTok doesn't so see below for more clarification. Much like Maragume Udon, I would come back to Pau Hana Base in a heartbeat. It was a great Izakaya whether we are talking the Honolulu Izakaya scene or anywhere else. Affordable and had the late night Tokyo Izakaya vibes, what's not to love?  

Video

https://www.tiktok.com/@alikhaneats/video/7410976544128093471