Pumpkin Butterscotch Blondies

Can ya'll believe it's already November? It seems like October just flew by! Halloween is already over and now we have Thanksgiving and Christmas to look forward to! Anyone else as excited as I am?!

So to continue my fall flavors, or pumpkin craze, I am presenting to you all these lovely Pumpkin Butterscotch Blondies!

Hopdoddys

So during a break from work one day I found myself with nothing to do. I went home for about 5 minutes, got bored of that so I then went to the Domain and walked around and soon got bored of that as well. So what does a foodie do when they are bored? They eat. That day I decided to try out Hopdoddy's since they supposedly have the best burgers in town.

Here's a secret. I happen to work at another burger joint in Austin that has amazing burgers, the back of our shirts actually say voted best burgers in Austin. I felt like I was cheating when I walked into Hopdoddys. Since I was just on break I still had my shirt on and all the workers kept asking which was better, how I liked it, how we made ours.

I'll be completely honest. Hopdoddy's makes a damn good burger! I went with the classic bacon cheeseburger and floated into hamburger heaven for a minute. All the ingredients are fresh and it shows. It was juicy and greasy in the best possible way.

Now which burger is better, the burger joint I work at, or Hopdoddys? Honestly I feel like they are two completely different burgers. Hopdoddy's is more of an upscale burger bar rather than the family style burger joint I work at. The fact that Hopdoddy's makes everything, including their own buns, fresh every day impresses me, and I love the fact that they get all their food from local farmers. Any place that does that I support completely!

There is one thing I can say for sure though. The fries were not my cup of tea. Were they good? Yes, they were good, but when I want french fries I want thicker cut, not wedges but not shoe string, and I like em' deep fried and extra crispy.

Would I come back? Yes, especially seeing the shakes... I must try one of their shakes one day, however it is rather expensive for a broke teenager. Over 10 dollars for one burger and fries is quiet a bit, but if you have the money do it! I urge everyone in Austin to at least try it, because it is amazing! Definitely one of the best burgers in Austin!

Lukes Inside Out

So since my birthday was in the middle of the week last week, we had my birthday dinner on Saturday instead of the actual day, but the wait was definitely worth it. Cream Cheese and Herb Stuffed Venison Rolls with Cranberries, Squash Casserole, Salad, and French Bread... Om nom nom... So good! Plus along with the other two cakes we had in the house that I had gotten on my birthday, my mom who's an amazing baker, made me Paula Deen's German Chocolate Cake.... Worth every calories omg. I could live off that stuff... Well until it killed me!

Now onto the food, our latest adventure being to Luke's Inside Out food truck on South Lamar. Food trucks are becoming the big thing right now, but some people still doubt how good/clean they are. I mean how could you get good quality, fresh, and sanitary food from a mobile truck? The question is out of my hands, but I sure am a fan of their amazing grub! I actually have expectations for these places now, not only do I expect my food to be fast but I expect it to be good as well! Luke's Inside Out is just that. Good food! Scratch that.... Great food! The staff are also very friendly and very helpful. I talked to one girl who worked there about cameras and how we take pictures of almost everything we eat, she was hilarious, and the co-owner I think about becoming a chef and working in the food industry. Just the people alone make you feel welcome and want to come back!

Opened by badass Luke Bibby who's been catering to musicians for over twenty years. This guy knows what's good!

Now the menu is pretty basic sounding, but what they do to it makes it special! Something you won't find at a whole lot of places. It's mostly  sandwhiches with a few appetizers. The sandwhiches are named after the meat they're made out of such as "The Pig" which has pulled pork, shiner bock beer, peaches, bacon, gouda, and cheddar topped with onion rings and chow chow on toasted french bread. Does that not sound like the best pulled pork sandwhich ever?!

Unfortunately I didn't try it... But what I did try was excellent. For an appetizer we ordered the Mapo Tuna Fingers with Sesame Slaw, featuring Salmon that day since they were out of tuna. The salmon was very very lightly breaded and absolutely delicious. It didn't fall apart in little pieces making it agonizing to get a bite, and the cole slaw was perfectly seasoned. The dish was perfect. Simple as that.

Next was a special on the menu, I can't recall exactly what it was called but it was ceviche tostada. It had shrimp and salmon with guacamole and a nice "salad" on top, all on a crisp flat taco shell with some sort of sauce. Although very messy, the mess was worth it. This dish had a little bit of a spice to it, which me being the wimp that I am was not to fond of, but the taste made it worth every bite. I would definitely recommend it to seafood fans!

Going to Luke's you have to try their sandwhiches. That's what they're known for, you just have to! After a long debate between getting the Rabbit or The Pig I finally settled on the Rabbit, since it was featured on Food Networks "Diner's Drive In's and Dives". I was not dissapointed! Pulled rabit meat, pear slices, tater tots, and a bbq sauce on a toasted french bread roll. I gotta say, I love rabbit and this sandwhich did it justice! Although I did pick out the tater tots and eat those on their but that's just how I am with everything, I like everything to be eaten separately don't judge! The sandwhich was amazning, and BIG! Served with potato chips with parmesan on top. Yumm...

Great service, great food, serving to all the people at the Gibson bar right next door, this place is gonna go far!

Simplicity Wine Bar

Another Tuesday another dine out. Tonight's restaurant? Simplicity Wine Bar on Burnet. This place is a "Tapas" style restaurant, serving small plates and wine for cheap prices. This place has many alcohol selections, but since of course I am underage I paid no attention to any of that.

We arrived at 5, dining in style with the  old people, and were the only ones in the restaurant. From the outside the place looks kinda sketchy, but don't be scared just go on in! While nowhere near fancy, this place has a rustic/eco friendly/modern look, going for the recycled look but still classy. We were the first ones there, so when we walked in the staff were all sitting around the bar watching some Soccer game on the flatscreen, waiting for business to arrive.

You pick wherever you want to sit, either inside or out on a patio. We sat inside, as it was very humid that day and sitting outside sounded horrible. The waiter was very friendly, happy to answer any questions and our drinks arrived shortly. We first ordered the Escargot and Potato wedges from the starter menu.

Yes, the food was served on paper plates that remind you of Chipotle, but don't let that fool you. The food is excellent. The potato wedges were surprisingly good, baked in olive oil, healthier than fried, served with a cool creamy ranch dip.

This was my first time trying escargot, so i'm no expert, but this stuff was good! Served in a small dish with tomatoes and olive oil, healthy and delicious. To me the escargot was almost like a pasta. Chewier, but it had a sort of buttery flavor. It wasn't at all slimey like I expected it to be. I would definitely order them again. 

Next we got the Bacon wrapped quail and crawfish tomato bisque.

 The bisque came out hot and tasted like a tomato basil soup with chunks of crawfish on the bottom. It was very delicious though! Simple and elegant in a paper bowl. They brought out two baskets of rolls to dip in, and mmm they were a little sweet which is just how I like bread rolls.

There were little jalapeno bits over the quail which topped it off even more! A fancy version of a jalapeno popper sort of taste. Quail is exotic to some, but to me it's simply delicious, if I see it on the menu, I want it. These were no exception, they were fantastic! Served over grits which soaked in the juices and flavors and olive oil, I could've ordered several more of these and finished it off myself! 

Overall I would give this place 4 out of 5 stars. The food was excellent, service excellent, the prices very reasonable, the atmosphere ehh not my favorite but not bad, and i'm willing to overlook the fact that they were watching soccer in Texas. I would definitely come back again and try more!