February 5th Blog
Booking a restaurant for Valentine’s Day continues to be a total freak show. I’ve gotten hundreds of emails from a variety of panicked men who thought that calling Eddie V’s or McCormick and Schmick’s two weeks in advance was more than enough time. No way Holmes. Basically, at this point, the downtown restaurants are full; unless you don’t mind starting your dinner at 11:45pm. But not all is lost. There are many other cool, little restaurants that still have reservations at civilized hours. On our Valentine’s page we’ve got many restaurants listed. Try some of the newer ones like Mood and Food, The Veranda, Ruggle’s Grill, Bombay Bistro, Cantina Laredo, Ka Prow, Mesa Ranch, Vin Bistro, and Selene’s in Cedar Park. And also, as you head farther out toward the lake, you have some nice choices in Ciola’s, The Oasis, and the Iguana Grill. All still have plenty of reservations available.
You know there are days when my enduring and almost chauvinistic love for and devotion to Austin actually wavers: those are the days when the allergens are at their worst and my body responds by going into spasmodic fits of sneezing which are inevitably followed by sinus leakage, a hacking cough and the intense battle to keep all of this from descending into chronic bronchitis. These are the days when it really sucks to be a food critic AND to have no prescription cough syrup on hand.
Such was the case with me on this Monday. The only saving grace of a lost day was to watch Jack Bauer’s latest outrageous moves as he attempts to save America from another terrorist-induced nuclear holocaust. You have to like 24 though. The show just gets under you skin. I’m addicted. The other saving grace was getting some food to go from Rosie’s on Highway 71 near RR620. Since I am low-carbing it these days, I ordered some guacamole, some queso, and three burritos minus the flour tortillas. I did have a few small few corn tortillas (a minor indulgence) and it was all quite tasty and relatively innocuous.
We’ve been going to Rosie’s for over 20 years. It’s a BYOB kind of joint with crappy chairs and Mexican felt art on the walls. Also a lot of pictures of Willie; and strangely, a faded photo of Robert Redford looking as if he’s just realized that he’s not Brad Pitt. But the food’s always been very reliable. I love their bean and cheese nachos, cheese enchiladas, burritos, and guacamole. With the possible exception of El Patio on Guadalupe, Rosie’s makes my favorite enchiladas. Rosie, always the indomitable force behind the cash register for years, has retired. But son Vincent carries on the tradition. And they still don’t take plastic!
