East Side King on South Lamar

Y'all. I just had a revelation.

I've been eating at the East Side King on South Lamar ever since they opened about a year ago. But somehow I was oblivious to the shaved ice offering they added to their menu back in September. If you like the $12 cheddar cheese ice cream sandwich at qui, I suspect that you'll love the $5 shaved ice at East Side King. They've somehow made the rather unlikely combination of white cheddar shaved ice, dulce de leche, green & fuji apple, waffle cone pieces, grated aged cheddar, and jalapeño salt - jalapeño salt! - work together beautifully, creating a savory, spicy, lightly sweet combination that I could not get enough of.

There are other winners on the menu, too. Of course, the East Side King staples like chicken karaage, pork belly buns, brussels sprout salad, and beet fries are there. But also the tako (octopus) taco, which I usually order over rice instead of in the fried shell it comes with. It's hard to get octopus right, but they do it right here. Still tender, and butter poached, which adds a richness you don't usually find in octopus. It's garnished with tobiko and a nicely acidic vegetable ceviche, and costs just $3.95.

My lovely friend and blog date, Linda, got this awesome "bento box" which came with a tako taco, an ebi ebi (tempura fried shrimp) steamed bun, some vegan beans and rice, and some kim chi fries. All so delicious, and just $12.95!

East Side King offers an incredible value for a menu driven by such an outstanding chef. And now that they've got me hooked on that cheesy shaved ice, I'll not let so long go between visits in the future.

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Food Photo(s) Friday - Austin Restaurant Week at Uchiko

It's official - I am in love with Austin Restaurant Week. After using it as an excuse to visit four "special occasion" restaurants in two weeks, how could I not? More importantly, this week I ate at Uchi and Uchiko on back-to-back nights. That pretty much qualifies this as the best week ever, in my book.

I have long thought that I preferred Uchiko over Uchi. My favorite meal in 2010 (which, regrettably, I never got around to blogging about) was at Uchiko. But my ARW meal at Uchi was so mindblowing that I am forced to re-evaluate that stance (requiring additional "research" meals, of course). It was so epic that it requires a full blog post, not just a Food Photo Friday. So, here you're going to get photos of my ARW Uchiko meal. Although it was not as good as the Uchi meal, it was still excellent, and I for sure would not have kicked it out of bed for eating crackers, if you know what I mean.

We started with an amuse bouche of house-made sweet potato chips, served with a sweet potato purée.

Although it was not on the Restaurant Week menu, we knew we had to get an order of Uchiko's edamame, which is the best I've ever had and doesn't cost any more than a bowl of edamame at any other restaurant. It's grilled, which adds a smoky, roasted quality to the beans that tastes fantastic.



In order to maximize the number of things we got to taste, we each ordered different things for each of our three courses. Our terrific server, Robert, orchestrated the meal so the courses landed one at a time.

First up was the yokai berry - raw Atlantic salmon served with dinosaur kale chips, Asian pear, bluberries, and yuzu. The yuzu was pretty sour and overpowered the other ingredients a little, but I liked the salmon-Asian pear-kale combination.



Next was the Shag roll, made famous by Uchi and beloved at Uchiko, as well. It's a roll with salmon and sundried tomato that's been tempura fried and topped with spicy sauce. I personally think that frying a sushi roll robs it of some of its best qualities - the lightness of the raw fish and the slight chewiness of the nori - but like I said, its a crowd favorite, so who am I to say?



Our first entrée was the wagyu prime rib, which was dressed in some sort of vinegary sauce and served with fresh wasabi root, candied garlic, and parsley. I honestly would've preferred a more straight-up soy sauce preparation on this, but the beef was very tender and flavorful.



Oh, pork belly. I can't quit you. Uchiko's ninjin bacon dish showcases grilled kurobata pork belly on a bed of pecan soil and topped with fabulously architectural carrots. Yesssssss.



For dessert, we started with their sweet corn sorbet, which comes with a wonderful polenta custard and is sprinkled with a bit of caramel salt. Caramel salt!



I chose the chevre fondant, which is accompanied by the loveliest tomato sorbet and a Sicilian pistachio soil. I was totally wowed by the way the fresh tomato flavor infused the sorbet - that is some dessert genius, right there.



Just when we thought it was over, Robert presented us with a complimentary order of their "dirt and berries" dessert. This is the kind of innovation that makes Uchi and Uchiko great, IMO. A thin layer of foie gras mousse is covered with a pumpernickel "dirt," out of which fresh and dehydrated Poteet strawberries are "growing." Beautiful, playful, and fodder for both the mind and the palate.



Now, if you'll pardon me, I have some exercising to do. Happy Friday!

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Uchiko, part deux (and trois)

I was fortunate enough to attend a media reception at Uchiko last week. I had been once before during their soft opening in July and had a great meal - so I was very excited to go back and sample more of their menu. A few days after the reception, Chris and I went back and enjoyed a regular meal there, as well. I want to incorporate both experiences into one post, so I'll try to limit the photos from the reception a bit.

Most exciting thing about the reception? Tyson Cole and Paul Qui were standing at an open window at one end of the room making our food. Let's just say that the moment I realized this, I made my way over there and kind of refused to leave. It was amazing to watch both of these talented chefs at work and be able to taste each item as they were completing it.

Tyson Cole serving up some chicken yakitori with candied peanuts and garlic


(left) Paul Qui putting the finishing touches on a batch of koviche bites

(right) Fried tuna tendon. This is usually an inedible part of the fish, but in the hands of these amazing chefs, it became incredibly delicious - with a crispy, flavorful batter outside and a slightly chewy texture when you bit into it. Tyson said when he served it up, "This is what we eat." Tyson, I want what you eat.

This doesn't look like much, but it was stellar - housemade chicharrones with a fragrant truffle sauce that is still indelibly etched in my memory. There were also some gorgeous black chicharrones (colored with squid ink), but my little camera just couldn't do them justice. I beg the powers that be at Uchiko to add these fantastic morsels to the menu!



Could this be any more gorgeous? This is the Akami Te - big eye tuna with watermelon, cilantro and coriander. I love the way the colors of the tuna and watermelon are so closely matched, making it difficult to tell where one ends and the other begins.



We got to try quite a few other things at the reception, but I'm going to fast forward to our sit-down meal here, now. To start, we were treated with an amuse bouche of tomatoes with basil blossoms. So fresh and bright and crisp - perfect.



Then we had a bowl of their wonderful roasted edamame. The roasting process really coaxes an extra level of flavor out of these. I think these had a little douse of oil somewhere along the way, as well, which added a nice sumptuousness to them.



Next up was the koviche, one of my favorite dishes from my first visit to Uchiko and on my permanent to-order list here. Ridiculously fresh raw diver scallops atop tomatillos, dressed with kalamata powder and black lime. Put a scallop/tomatillo bite onto an architectural cracker, insert in mouth, make gutteral mmmming noises as your eyes roll back in your head.



Our order of chicken karaage arrived next. Half a chicken is expertly fried and served with a lemon juice/salt mixture and a side of marinated onions.



I know pork belly has become nearly cliché at this point, but I personally haven't tired of it - and Uchiko's version is well worth putting your pork belly suspicions aside. Done just as pork belly should be - crisp, yet rich and juicy. The roasted carrots that were served with it made my eyes widen with pleasure and delight - and I usually hate cooked carrots.



Also on my permanent to-order list are two of Uchiko's nigiri offerings: the nasu (eggplant) nigiri and the shiver-inducing beef tongue. The eggplant is smooth and silky and pairs so beautifully with the slight vinegar flavor in the sushi rice. And the smoky char to the falling-apart-tender beef tongue is simply revolutionary.





Our last savory selection was the tiger cry roll - grilled wagyu steak with yuzu kosho, toasted rice, and cilantro. The flavor of the beef was wonderful, but based on the two rolls I've had at Uchiko so far, I really think Uchiko shines more in its other offerings.



We closed the deal and the meal with their sweet corn sorbet, served with polenta custard, caramel salt, and lemon. I love that this dessert isn't too sweet, and the way the clear corn and polenta flavors challenge your palate to re-interpret the meaning of dessert.



I think Uchiko has worked out some of the minor kinks that were present during my first visit; between the media reception and the outstanding meal we had there this week, Uchiko just earned itself a place in my list of favorite restaurants in Austin. Everything here - from the service to the space to the food - marries excellence and accessibility in a way that really appeals to me. As anyone who reads this blog knows, I love great food, and I enjoy it even more when it's served in a context that doesn't take itself too seriously. Uchiko nails this for me. Big thanks to Tyson Cole and Paul Qui for bringing this wonderful dining experience to Austin.

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