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WHAT'S NEW
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Tasty food and live music in Austin, Texas
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Austin just might be the heart -- and stomach -- of Texas. Explore six local restaurants where you can eat great food and listen to terrific live music.
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By Kevin Revolinski
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4. The Broken Spoke
www.brokenspokeaustintx.com
Whether you like country music or not, this is a cultural experience. The Spoke is the quintessential honky-tonk. The food is that home-cooked variety and the chicken-fried steak ranks up there with the best. Afterwards, burn calories with a bit of Texas swing dancing in a long, hardwood-floor dance hall.
5. Lamberts
www.lambertsaustin.com
"Blues is the common denominator of Austin music," says manager Will Bridges, and Lamberts pays tribute to it. Located downtown in a once-condemned but now restored historical building, the restaurant bills itself as "fancy barbecue."
Portions are Texas-sized and come with house BBQ sauce, hot mustard, and hot sauce. The fried green tomatoes with crab meat and mizuna is a popular appetizer, and the bar mixes up top-notch mojitos and caipirinhas.
There's a pleasant dining room downstairs and a lounge-style bar area upstairs infused with red neon light. For something really special, check their online schedule to see when local regular Gary Clark Jr. is in the house. This talented young blues player is a one-man band: one foot on a hi-hat, one on a bass drum, a harmonica hanging around his neck, and some serious blues picking.
6. Shady Grove
www.theshadygrove.com
On Thursdays there is nothing much nicer than Unplugged at the Grove. The setting for the music is outside beneath the spreading arms of an oak tree. For popular acts, crowds gather on blankets in the grass of the front yard. A couple of trailers sit alongside the outdoor dining area (there is also indoor seating), and people of all walks of life find themselves comfortable here.
The menu is creative, to say the least. Don't miss the walnut-crusted catfish with a spicy cheese sauce. The chili cheese fries are a delectable specialty and the twice-baked potato comes with the kick and tang of pickled jalapenos. The signature drink, Shady Thang, is like a margarita made with Peruvian pisco (a sort of brandy). Finish the meal with some ice cream cake -- maybe peanut butter flavour? The menu is successfully daring, and vegetarians will find relief here from the steak and brisket traditions.
In Austin, there's a menu for every palate and a tune for every ear. If you're hungry and hankering for some music, this city is definitely the place to be.
Sites to surf
The Austin Chronicle chronicles who's playing and where:
www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Calendar/MusicListings
Want to be in the audience for the next taping of Austin City Limits?
www.austincitylimits.com
Get vacation planning information from the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau:
www.austintexas.org
For great photos from this trip, see our Austin, Texas slideshow.
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