Another full day in Austin and we still had so many places on our list to check off! Today, however, we chose to be a little more laid back and spent the morning and afternoon at our AirBnB apartment building pool. The weather was perfect for taking dips between Vitamin D recharging sessions. All accompanied by a good book and a fellow visitor's Corgi pup entertaining us with his friendliness and curiosity.
We seriously lucked out with our AirBnB selection. Our studio apartment is located in the west campus area of town: normally, this would be a terrible place to choose because it is so highly saturated with college kids, but school's out! Save for a few late night howls and some loud Nicki Minaj jams, the building was pretty quiet. We were also facing the street and not the pool, so that helped.
I would recommend this place for any solo or couple (even small family) travelers. The apartment is NICE and very clean. Modern IKEA everything, cool concrete floors, and Apple TV for tunes and staying up to date on Game of Thrones.
Realizing that The Vegan Nom would be closing soon, we hustled over there to taste more of their menu. This place ROX! I cannot say that emphatically enough - their tacos are the fucking best! Punch-you-in-your-mouth flavor, yet not mind-numbingly spicy (unless you load your taco up with their selection of salsas). We got the Jalisco chik'n faux-jitas again (soooo good), the Señor Yoda special, the Bean Diablo (spicy!), and the Maple Miso Sweet Potato (OMG) and our bellies were content.
With Sweet Ritual within walking distance, we couldn't pass it up. And if you wind your way through the tree-lined residential neighborhoods you get to marvel at the xeriscaped lawns and cute ranch homes.
My boo was so happy to get a simple, yet beautiful #vegan chocolate shake, yet I had to go big or go home.. behold: the "Celeste's Best Sundae" with mint chocolate chip, cookies and cream, Sweet Ritual's house-made salted caramel sauce, and Celeste's Best cookie dough bites. You guys. YOU GUYS. This is how it's done. Total mouthgasm.
After we rested our tummies, we walked over to the Spider House Cafe, expecting a tiny outdoor bar/cafe and were completely blown away!
This place is gigantic! With a separate bar/ballroom and cafe/outdoor area, Spider House sprawls over what seems like blocks. And it is beyond cute. One could spend hours soaking in every string-lit square foot of eclectic decor and not be bored.
There are at least 3 different food trucks on site, including Love Balls, which serves tasty Japanese fare. Having heard about this place from some friends, I had to try the "side set" combo of yumminess: 2 grilled Garlic Yaki-Onigiri rice balls, miso soup, seaweed salad, and moyashi sprout salad in ponzu sauce. Super salty, but so delish!
Washed it down with a "Green Bull" cocktail from the bar: rum, guarana, mint, mate and pineapple. Yum.
The bf went with a Freeto Burrito from The Vegan Yacht: organic tempeh chili and corn chips with added avocado and some bomb hot sauce.
A glimpse into the quirkiness of the Spider House… yes, this is a theme.
After a long day of meandering and stuffing our bellies, we started our trek back to the apartment, yet there was one more stop I had to make...
More Red Rabbit Bakery doughnuts from Wheatsville Co-op! Cannot get enough of these babies… and the Austin Cream Pie is to die for! This was a perfect midnight snack as we dozed off watching Whose Line is it Anyway? reruns and prepared for our last full day in ATX.Labels: travel, Vida Vegan Con
