The Vitals:
the spot: Sour Duck Market 1814 E. Martin Luther King Blvd Austin TX 78702
the eats: Goat Chorizo Breakfast Sandwich
the bucks: $9
the full nelson: it looks like a burger. it tastes like legit Mexican food. And its for breakfast.

Sour Duck Market is the latest offering from Bryce Gilmore, the chef who turned a food trailer into two of the more celebrated restaurants in Austin Texas: Odd Duck and Barley Swine. I have been going to Odd Duck for years now, in part because I take food tours there via Austin Eats and because ponying up to the bar for a brilliant cocktail program and some intriguing farm to table cooking with a Texas edge is worth the money for the babysitter. Though its set up as fast casual, Sour Duck is serving up something more than his Odd relative: a family friendly environment. The place is practically kid proof, has a full bar and serves up the same quality ingredients is a casual all day menu. There is a God. And God likes breakfast.

Odd Duck serves one of the best burgers in the city, thanks in no small part to an amazing bun. The bread program is something to behold at Odd Duck so the idea of a bakery/cafe from this group bodes well indeed. Honestly you could just come to Sour Duck for the baked goods alone, stuff worth waiting in line for like many a SFer does for Tartine Bakery in San Francisco. One bite of the croissant or the savory Danish will tell you why the French don’t need bacon and eggs for breakfast . . . they just need good bread. And when you translate “good bread” from French to English you get “exquisite baked goods“. Straight up I must say the savory Danish shown above with tomato is reason alone to come to Sour Duck for breakfast.

This egg dish was a special when I visited for Father’s day. I suppose a more diligent blogger would have written down every detail of this dish but for reals . . . look at that damn thing. A yolk cooked that gently, more of that amazing bread program on display and what appears to be okra and butternut squash. As a monster carnivore like myself, I am weak at the knees right now. It’s a good thing I’m sitting down while I type this or I would fall over. Keep in mind that this gorgeous piece of food porn, like every other item on the menu, does not sail past the $15 mark(save a goat chop special) . . . Bang for your Food Porn Buck right here.

And now the main event. The Goat Chorizo breakfast sandwich is without doubt going on my list of dishes of the year for 2018. A great breakfast sandwich of course starts with the bread and without doubt at Sour Duck, you are in very good hands. The chorizo patty is composed of  . . . goat. Now hear me out those who don’t eat goat, this is not something to be intimidated by in the slightest. Goat does have a distinct taste, though not as noticeable as lamb and when seasoned with authority, as is the case when turning goat into a Mexican spiced sausage, there is balance in the breakfast meat force. Most intriguing could be the topping which has two components: a super soft scrambled egg and pimento cheese. The elements do play together quite nicely; creamy, rich and tart served over a well spiced, distinctly flavored patty on some of the best bread in the city for $11. And your kid is running around playing giant connect four while you consider a third mimosa. Who said being a parent was hard?

The only downside to Sour Duck is just how close I live here. I can freakin’ walk here. Which means on nights when I should cook at home, I’m rolling, with the fam, to get a taste of Bryce Gilmore in a fun, totally Austin, family friendly setting. Oh and they have a burger as well. And don’t get me started on the smoked carrots. I very well could end up spending my summer blogging about this restaurant alone. Which is still cheaper than getting a babysitter. Farm to table meets family friendly. So I guess I’ll just see you over there. And the first round of goat chorizo breakfast sammies is on you.