Hyde Park Bar and Grill (4206 Duval St. Austin, TX)

I have been dining at Hyde Park Bar and Grill for over a decade now.  The food, atmosphere, and service has always been stupendous, and it still was last Sunday night for dinner with my wife's family.  Having just returned from a trip to Fort Worth and eating a very late lunch, I wasn't particularly hungry, so I was going to get something small to eat.  As I was scanning over the menu, all of my favorites seemed to be whispering my name, like kids wanting to be chosen for your kickball team.  "Pick me, pick me." I kept telling myself that I wasn't that hungry, but my voice of reason kicked in and reminded me that I could always take the rest home for lunch the next day.  So now I had to make a choice on which of my favorites I wanted.   I kept going back and forth between the Asian Chicken Salad and the Blacken Yellow tail Tuna Sandwich, when suddenly the craving for a burger hit me.  Looking at the menu, I had four choices of burgers, the Texas Raised Kobe beef, ground chuck, ground turkey, sirloin, or the Garden burger.  I decided to go light with the turkey burger with the addition of smoked Gouda cheese and a side of their Austin Chronicle's consistently voted "Best French Fries in Austin."  ($5.95 + $1.95 to add fries)

The turkey had some flavor, but was a little on the dry side.  But after spreading some deli mustard and some the secret fry sauce on it, it was very tasty.  So tasty in fact that before I knew it, my plate was clean.  There goes saving half of it for lunch tomorrow.   My father-in-law had ordered the ground chuck burger with mushrooms added and my brother-in-law had the Garden burger, which both said were delicious.  My brother once had the Texas Raised Kobe style beef burger, but said that he could not tell much of a difference from a regular burger... I guess I will just have to try it out for myself in the future.  It's hard to compare a turkey burger with a beef burger with bison burger, so you really have to keep them in separate categories.  I haven't had many turkey burgers before, but this one wasn't that bad.  I will be on the lookout now for other restaurants who serve them to really get a good comparison scale going.



Hyde Park website:  http://hpbng.com/menu

TARKA Indian Kitchen in Round Rock

So my wife and I had to make a trip up to IKEA this past weekend and we were in the mood for some good ol' Mighty Fine burgers.  It was about 1pm and the line was to the door.  We were hungry and didn't want to wait, even though they are some good burgers.  As we drove into the shopping center with IKEA, I had notice on the directory sign an Indian Food restaurant.  Located on the southeast side of the shopping center across from Mighty Fine and about 3 stores down from OfficeMax on the corner, stood TARKA Indian Kitchen, (same format as Pei Wei).  The place was busy but not overly crowded.  I went with the Combo Kabob (lamb and chicken kabob with grilled bell peppers and zucchini) ($9.00)

and my wife got the Aloo Ghobi (Braised cauliflower & potatoes cooked with a fragrant blend of spices. A traditional north Indian favorite!)($7.50).  We also ordered some Naan and soft drinks which made the total cost of our lunch $23. 98.  They sell soda from India, like a Thums Up, which tastes a lot like a Dr. P but less sweet.  The food arrived at our table in no time at all.  The kabobs were nice and juicy and the grilled veggies were perfect.  It came with a yummy mint-tamarind-yogurt chutney to dip in.  I thought the everything tasted great and will definitely go back when I am in the area again.




http://www.tarkaindiankitchen.com/

in the [BUNS] burger joint

After reading an article about this new burger joint in northwest Austin in the Community Impact Newspaper, I was had to give it a try.  Why not, it's close to wear I live and it serves burgers...just another candidate for my search for Austin's best burger for under $10 (excluding chain restaurants).

Had to take a bite b/c it looked to good

Located in the shopping center in the HEB parking lot at Hwy 183 and Lake Creek Pkwy, facing the 24hr Fitness, I will say that this is a great burger joint.  They serve burgers, dogs, chicken sandwiches, and salads.  The best thing is that they have some great options for all eaters.  With the burgers, you can choose from beef, veggie, turkey, portabello mushroom, tilapia, or chicken breast.  They even over options on the buns (white, whole wheat, gluten free, or no bun).  I ordered the "classic cheese" which is served with lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, cheddar or Swiss, mayo, and mustard.  I opted for the gluten free bun, because I have some friends who can't eat wheat.  They cook the burger with the cheese melted inside the beef patty.  At first look, the burger seemed small in diameter, but it was a decent size burger.  You will want to grab a few napkins because it was juicy and delicious.  I was licking my fingers between bites, it was that good.  My only disappointment was that I didn't order their sweet potato fries or a Maine Root organic fountain drink.  The atmosphere was OK, but the manager was friendly and the food was delicious.  Will definitely be going back to this burger joint again.



(like them on Facebook and get updates on dining deals)
In-The-Buns-Burger-Joint