The Vitals: the spot: Provision 4200 B W. Braker Lane Austin TX 78759 the eats: A special tasting menu paired with Old Forester Bourbon the bucks: $0 - sorry kids, perks of the life. This was a complimentary dinner. Typical avg entree price is $30 at the restaurant the full nelson: a lesson that when you drink heavy hitting bourbon, you deserve heavy hitting proteins
Recently I had the pleasure of attending a bourbon tasting menu prepared at a new restaurant in Austin called Provision, sponsored by Old Forester. Now tasting menus aren't exactly typical fare at Bang for your Burger Buck but indulgence in rich foods certainly is. Besides, you can learn a lot from fancy meals too and who knows, you might even find a tip or two here the next time you hit up a primo restaurant and have to decide on whether to get the surf or the turf. The correct answer is "both" in case you were wondering. (more…)
Austin isn't exactly a two horse town when it comes to food. Sure, there are plenty of farm to table special occasion meals, some ridiculously good burgers, and some of the best soup dumplings I have ever had but if you came here and just stuck to barbecue and tacos, you would cover a lot of delicious ground.
So imagine then what happens if tacos and barbecue get into a tussle? When the dust settles, what emerges is a hand held, no napkins necessary(almost), smoked meat experience. Welcome to a taco new wave. Giddy-up my friends, you are about to jump on the Taco Bronco Chuck Wagon.
I think I've been in Texas too long . . . (more…)
The Vitals:
the spot: Texas French Bread 2900 Rio Grande Austin TX 78705
the eats: TFB Burger: 90/10 Wagyu patty, cheddar, pickles, red onion and a tangy mustard slaw + fries
the bucks: $17 w/ fries
the full nelson: Luxe burger that skips shock value toppings for classic complimentary flavors
There have been multiple renditions of the TFB Burger at Texas French Bread. I have had two in as many years and both times I have been more than happy to part with almost $20 for the burger experience. Both times I have risen from table with a degree of struggle and an even greater degree of full belly satisfaction.
No, spending $20 on a burger isn't easy but filling your belly on Wagyu beef on a hamburger bun so coveted that it is shipped to restaurants all over town . . . well that's certainly worth a worthy price tag. But what really gets me about this burger is the coleslaw . . .
(more…)
The Vitals: the spot: Carnitas El Momo 2411 Fairmount St, Los Angeles, CA 90033 the eats: Carnitas tacos the bucks: $2.50 a taco the full nelson: Carnitas so juicy and full of pure porcine flavor that you don't need salsa . . .
When it comes to great tacos, you can reinvent the wheel but you sure don't have to. Case in point: Carnitas El Momo in the historic Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. Masters of simmering pork in lard filled copper pots for hours, Carnitas El Momo has been long considered the spot to get carnitas in Los Angeles, ever since Bill Esparza aka the Street Gourmet LA shared this find back in 2013. The internet hype train soon followed. Finally, I got my chance to see what the buzz was all about. (more…)
The Vitals: the spot: Dai Due 2406 Manor Rd. Austin TX 78722 the eats: Dry Aged Double Wagyu Burger the bucks: $20 (comes with sweet potato fries) the full nelson: the best bacon cheeseburger you never saw coming
Back when I started Bang for your Burger Buck, I was protesting the rise of $10+ burgers that didn't satisfy without a side of fries, or really, just weren't all that. I made it a point to find burgers with all the right earmarks like a brioche bun, burger patty cooked to order, caramelized onions etc, for under $10. FWIW even then I said I was open to the idea of burgers that broke the $10 bar if they offered something those contenders under $10 could not. It's been a long time coming but as late, I have found a few burgers tipping near the $20 scale, with fries that are worth your time and money. And with that let me present to you The Dai Due burger: (more…)
The Vitals: the spot: Dave's Hot Chicken 970 N. Western Ave Los Angeles CA + locations throughout the city the eats: Chicken Tenders and Chicken Sliders + fries the bucks: $11-$13 for a combo the full nelson: A delicious gut buster on multiple levels
Nashville Hot Chicken ain't just a Nashville thing anymore. Take it from a guy who has been to Nashville and done the deed, you can now find spicy as Hell fried chicken in Austin, Chicago, NYC and most certainly Los Angeles. The kind of spice level Nashville Hot Chicken is known for is a young man's game. When I was 22, I'm sure I would have been up for signing that infamous waiver before eating the Reaper spice level Chicken Tenders or Chicken slider at Dave's Hot Chicken. But you don't need to go through all that torture to break a sweat at Dave's Hot Chicken. In fact, that part comes pretty easy. (more…)
The Vitals: the spot: Ippudo 65 4th Ave New York NY 10003 the eats: Ramen the bucks: $16 the full nelson: a ramen that comes with a ton of hype and some seriously good pork belly buns
How much should you pay for a bowl of ramen? That answer has changed dramatically over the last 20 years, in the US at least. In college, I never touched the stuff. And by "the stuff" I mean the ramen packets my pals would turn to when they realized that their food allowance took deep of a hit from last night's beer run. Cut to around the mid 2000s and I finally went to a respectable ramen joint. A spot that gets the people hooked with that super rich Tontkatusu pork broth and a line out the friggin' door. The place was called Daikokuya in Little Tokyo - downtown Los Angeles. Back then the line was fierce but the tab was pretty tame. 14 years is a ways back but I'm pretty sure a bowl of ramen loaded to the loaded to the gills should have set you back no more than $10. Today, expect to drop about $14. Which takes me to a ramen joint in NYC with a big rep and wide net: Ippudo, a ramen joint that can be found in locations spanning four continents. (more…)
The Vitals: the spot: Casita Nicole Antojitos Mexicanos 9618 Manchaca Road Austin TX (parked at the Texaco) the eats: Machete, Huitlacoche quesadillas, and everything else on the menu the bucks: $10 a person will set you up nicely the full nelson: the taco place Danny Trejo should have opened and Austin's answer to a Mexico City delicacy
Just when I think I have seen it all when it comes to tacos, I come across machete tacos, tacos shaped like a machete blade though far safer to eat than a machete blade, or any blade for that matter. Bigger isn't always better, especially when it comes to tacos, but in the case of these Casita Nicole Machete tacos, well big is kinda awesome. Especially when the taco is bigger than the plate. (more…)
