Shake Shack Opens Today in Austin!

Austin fans of the Shake Shack, rejoice! Austin's first Shake Shack opens today at Lamar Union. I got to attend a preview party at the new location to sample some of their offerings. Here are a few of the delicious treats we tasted:

The Smoke Shack, a cheeseburger topped with griddled Kreuz Market jalapeno cheese sausage, ShackSauce, and pickles. I really love that they incorporated some local products into their Austin offerings, and thought the spicy sausage was a surprisingly nice complement to the cheeseburger. The super thick-cut pickles added a hearty crunch and kept the burger from being overwhelmingly meaty.

Crinkle-cut fries are usually too mealy and soft for me, but these Yukons were super crispy on the outside and very potato-y on the inside. The experience was almost tater tot-like - and who doesn't like tater tots?!? 

Apologies to Shake Shack for comparing their products to the competition, but I know most people will relate when I say that the Uchi-Koncrete is about the texture of a DQ Blizzard. Made in collaboration with the folks at local favorites Uchi/Uchiko, this dish combined vanilla custard, chunks of Uchi & Uchiko miso hazelnut blondie, and huckleberry jam. So sweet and impossibly creamy that I would have been hard pressed to eat more than the little cup they gave me...but I did eat every bite of that little cup! I saw on the menu that 5% of sales from the Uchi-Koncrete support Austin Pets Alive, which is another great excuse to indulge.

The decor at the Austin Shake Shack puts all other fast food burger joints to shame. Cool bubble lights are mixed with interesting bubble planters, with a backdrop of a huge living wall.

I am very much looking forward to checking out some of their other menu items, especially their version of a Chicago dog. Welcome to Austin, Shake Shack!

Shake Shack
1100 South Lamar Blvd, Ste 2100
Austin, TX 78704
512-717-0430
Their website

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T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs

"Man is only great when he acts from passion." ~ Benjamin Disraeli

If Benjamin Disraeli is to be believed, Miguel and Zulma Kaiser are pretty damn great. One has only to visit with them for a few minutes about their three-week-old business, T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs, to become firmly convinced of their deep passion for the food they're serving from their little trailer on Burnet Road.

Miguel graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Arizona and started his career with a bang as a commis at Thomas Keller's Per Se. He's held a number of jobs since then, most recently in a local hotel, working hard to hone his skills both in the back of the house and the front. He recently put in his two-week notice at his day job so he can focus on T-Loc's, which means that they will soon be able to provide lunch service in addition to their current dinner hours (EDIT: They are now open for lunch!).

Miguel and Zulma met while they were both working at a restaurant in Tucson. He was in the kitchen, she was bussing tables, and he was attracted to her work ethic. "She was always hustling," he says, with a note of great respect in his voice. She worked the morning shift and he worked nights, and he started going out of his way to say hello to her when he left. Years later, he proposed to her atop a pyramid in Honduras. They plan to marry later this year.

So, what's a Sonoran hot dog, you ask? You video-lovers can check out this clip from Man vs. Food; you readers can instead devour this short piece from Sunset magazine. Or, in case you don't feel like doing any homework, just drive on over to T-Loc's and check out their graphic menu:

Better yet, don't bother with the menu and dive into the real thing.

Sonora Hot Dog, just $5.

About to Bite Cam

I'd never tasted a Sonoran dog before, and I was instantly smitten. The combination of flavors and textures just works - the soft, steamed bun and the earthy beans serve as mellowing influences to the bite of the mustard, the tangy jalapeno sauce, the sharpness of the raw onions, the acidity of the fresh tomatoes, and the salty, bacon-wrapped dog. The crowning slathering of mayonnaise just pulls it all together and, as Miguel put it, "helps it go down a little easier."  This is a hot dog.

After tasting the Sonora dog, I would never have given anything else on the menu a second glance. But my husband wanted to try the carne asada burrito. He loved it so much that he ate three of them this week alone.

I am pretty sure my husband finished the other half of this burrito 

before I finished taking this photo.

After the carne asada success, of course I had to try the bean and cheese burrito on my next visit. This is not a dish I would typically order, but after trying the one at T-Loc's, I just may have to start.

Bean & Cheese burrito - ridiculously cheap at $4.

Despite their incredibly affordable prices, Miguel refuses to skimp on quality. He insists on getting the ingredients right and in order to ensure that he does, he has buns and tortillas Fed Ex'd to him from Tucson. He and Zulma make their own sauces and their own beverages, which include a rotating selection of homemade agua frescas and horchata (my husband is completely addicted to the pineapple agua fresca).

In short, T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs offers wonderful food at excellent prices. Best of all, you'll be helping a very sweet, exceedingly hardworking couple realize their dream.

Miguel and Zulma Kaiser, owners of T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs

T-Loc's Sonora Hot Dogs

5715 Burnet Road (across from the HEB at 2222 and Burnet)

512-994-8982

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Food Photo(s) Friday - Hot Dog King

Workin' all week, 9 to 5 for my money
So when I go out to eat it had better be yummy
Rollin' down the street, I saw this food truck it was pumpin'
I winked my eye, got outta my ride, walked on over, it was jumpin'
Checked the menu; finally said, "A Deer Dog's my desire,"
She said, "One venison dog comin' up, baby doll - and these jalapenos are on fire,"
Word to the ranks: if you want a great frank, look no further than Hot Dog King
They're so all right that baby, just one bite will make you want to do the wild thing.

- Wild Thing, revised (with apologies to Ton Loc)

Deer Dog made with local smoked venison sausage (onions and jalapenos are add-ons) - $4


Chili cheese dog (Fritos added!) - $5 (without the Fritos)


The King.*

*Actually, THIS is a picture of The King. And it is awesome.

Hot Dog King
8th and Red River Streets
Austin, Texas
Their website

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Frank-ly Speaking

"Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible."
— Frank Zappa

I originally blogged about Frank back in late July, on my first visit to what was then a relatively new restaurant. For one reason or another, I never made it back there, although I really loved everything about the place (why, oh why don't I still have an office downtown?!?).

Yesterday, I finally had an excuse to pay them another visit - they hosted the kickoff party for Launch 787's new FLAVORS of Austin series. What's FLAVORS of Austin, you ask? Well, Monday through Wednesday of each week for 52 weeks, one featured restaurant will offer a discounted, exclusive, multi-course menu for FLAVORS diners. It's like having Austin Restaurant Week all year long! Best of all, a portion of every dollar spent at a participating FLAVORS of Austin restaurant will be donated to the Sustainable Food Center of Austin.

At any rate, Frank has upped the ante since my last visit; they've just added a brand new coffee shop serving Intelligentsia coffee and a little store that offers locally-focused sausage, nostalgic candy, funky gifts, and other goodies TBD (they're accepting requests if there is something special you'd like them to carry). They're also serving breakfast items and are on the verge of rolling out a Sunday brunch, as well.

We got to taste a nice sampling of what Frank has to offer at the kickoff party. Although I didn't save you any, I did take some photos for you.

First up: cocktails. Frank has a pretty unique cocktail menu, featuring several original creations as well as a few classics with a Frank-esque spin. I tried two different cocktails, the Red Headed Stranger (Frank's version of a bloody Mary - house-made, bacon-infused Dripping Springs vodka mixed with Frank's ultra-spicy bloody Mary mix and garnished with a big slab of bacon, a pepperocini, an olive, and a chunk of cheddar cheese). I know this sounds a little unconventional, and perhaps even slightly unbelievable, so I offer you proof:

It's a meal in a glass, baby. Check out the half pepper/half salt rim.
Oh, and did I mention the big slab of bacon?

By the time I was ready for my second cocktail, I wanted something a little lighter, so I tried the Daytripper: fresh watermelon juice, St. Germain, Tito's vodka, and mint, garnished with a big chunk of watermelon. Soooo refreshing.


My kind of day trip. I could've done without the
salt/pepper rim on this one, though. Maybe a sugar rim?

Now, the food. Oh, the food! The good folks at Frank were very generous about giving us a good cross-sample of the menu to taste. We tried two of their new breakfast bierocks (an Eastern European filled pastry), the chorizo, potato & cheese:



And the Elvis (peanut butter, banana, and bacon). This sounds ridiculously gross (and doesn't look all that pretty, either), but it had my number. Seriously, I LOVED it - it was hot out of the oven and the peanut butter was just all melty and smooth and just oozed yummily in your mouth with the banana and bacon. I can see why Elvis' gyrating ways weren't enough to keep him super slim if he was eating this decadently on a regular basis.


This Elvis may well inspire women to throw their panties.

Also on the breakfast menu: beignets! Not quite Cafe du Monde, but delicious.



Moving on to Frank's specialty - hot dogs and sausage - the latter of which is made in-house on a daily basis.

Of course, no Frank tasting would be complete without a classic Chicago dog. I was so pleased to see that my beef (insert knee slapping here) from my previous visit about how they were building the dogs all wrong has been remedied - the pickles, tomato and sport peppers were wedged very nicely between the dog and the bun. Perfect.



We also sampled the Italian sausage, served with fennel mustard salad and aged provolone and topped with balsamic barbecue sauce:



The jalapeno venison sausage, served with butterkase cheese and bluberry coulis:



The crawfish & pork sausage, topped with cajun tartar sauce and lappi cheese:



And the Foie Gras - sausage made from foie gras, paired with pickled onions and an orange slice:



As if that weren't enough, we also savored some Gator Boudin fritters, dressed with a bit of hatch remoulade:



I don't know where I put all that food, but I feel sure I'm going to pay for that at some point.

I'm hard-pressed to pick favorites; I think it would all depend on my mood on any given day. But I really don't think you can go wrong, no matter which sausage you choose (there's a life lesson in there somewhere).

I even got to chat a bit with one of Frank's co-owners, Daniel Northcutt, and was so impressed with his passion for the food and for the unique adventure that he and his co-conspirators are creating. I'm sure Frank Zappa would have agreed that their unconventional approach to food is progress, indeed.

Frank's FLAVORS of Austin menu features a flight of FIVE mini-dogs/sausages for the ridiculously low price of $12. The promotion ends this Wednesday, September 30th, so hurry in! But in the event that you must miss it, Frank's great grub is very reasonably priced all the time.

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Chris' Little Chicago

The very large majority of my restaurant reviews reside on Yelp.com, which is where I first started writing about food. When I started this food blog, I grappled a bit with whether to put new reviews here, instead; I ultimately decided to leave them on Yelp, because I think it's very useful to have a pool of information about a restaurant in a single, easily-accessible place.

However, because Yelp doesn't allow me to integrate photos into my reviews the way I can here, sometimes the temptation to cross-post is just too strong. So, below is a verbatim cross-post of my new Yelp review of Chris' Little Chicago - seen here with the photos, for your viewing pleasure.
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I was first introduced to Chicago style hot dogs at my beloved Red Hot Lovers in Ann Arbor, where I went to college. It was love at first bite; the big, juicy dogs smothered in toppings I'd never even heard of (hello, sport peppers and celery salt) took my breath away. And the waffle fries...ohhhh, those perfect, perfect waffle fries...

But I digress.

Since moving to Austin, I have many times bemoaned the fact that there aren't any good Chicago dogs to be found here (or Jewish deli sandwiches...what is up with that?). So when I heard about Chris' Little Chicago, I hurried down for a visit just as quickly as I could.

Chris' Little Chicago is just a little red trailer in the middle of a totally overgrown field off S. Lamar. There are a couple of ramshackle tables surrounding it...definitely not an upscale dining experience.

Service was extremely friendly, and I was able to place my order very quickly and with little fuss. I had eyes only for the Chicago style dog - an all-beef Vienna dog covered in tomato wedges, a pickle spear, day-glo-green relish, chopped onion, mustard, sport peppers, and celery salt. The sweet woman working there told me that Chris went through 25 bags of fries before he found the right ones, so I had to order a side of those, as well. The combo - dog, drink (canned soda or bottled water), and fries - cost $6.50.



I thought the dog was very good. The toppings were perfect, really; my only minor beef (rimshot) was with the dog itself. It was a little on the small side and kind of watery - I really like my hot dogs to have a firmer, more dense texture. The fries were perfectly cooked and tasted great, as advertised, although I'll admit that I personally prefer plain fries to seasoned fries, particularly with a very flavorful dog (like those waffle fries at Red Hot Lovers...ohhhhhh). But if you like seasoned fries, these were a nice representation of that genre.

The dogs at Chris' Little Chicago don't quite live up to the Chicago dogs I hold so dear in my memories, but they're about as good as any you'll get in Austin.

(4/5 stars)

Chris' Little Chicago
3600 S Lamar Blvd
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 300-1791

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