Today is the final day of our short excursion to Texas. Fortunately we do not fly home until 6:40 PM, which allows us to make something of this day. And the group has taken pity on me and is allowing the day to essentially be built around getting lunch at a place that was on a list of restaurants recommended to me by a friend whose culinary opinion I completely trust, Mike. You see, Mike is a professional chef and not listening to your friends with expertise is plain dumb. When Mike came to Austin a while back, he generated a google map of the five best BBQ restaurants in Austin. He shared the map with me, and today you shall be seeing pictures of what promises to be some fine barbecue at Lamberts Downtown.
Rainy day. Then again, when the day's agenda is eating and shopping, who cares about rain?
Before lunch, we spent a while in St. Bernards, a sports clothing store. Barbie got an awesome jacket and vest, both of which are as soft to touch as one of those super-plush toys people give to babies. And I got a hat that you will see in detail near the end of today's Waste. Patience, my friends.
Alexis, Barbie and Josh are ready to enter Lamberts Downtown Barbecue. Steve saw a chocolate store to the right, and zipped in that direction, followed by Bryna who likely wanted to prevent him from getting lost. In his defense, he needed to buy chocolate for people back home.
It is always refreshing when the menu is completely honest with you about where your meal originated.
They brought us cornbread with jalapeños.
Barbie and I shared the special soup, which was crab meat with vegetables and rice.
Beer Battered Florida Rock Shrimp, with Texas ginger honey glaze.
Crispy Wild Boar Ribs, with honey & sambal, Cabrales blue cheese, celery and Daikon slaw.
For me, the Brown Sugar and Coffee Rubbed Natural Brisket, with baked mac & cheese and ranch style baked beans.
For Barbie, the Pulled Pork Cuban Sandwich, with BBQ sauce on wood grilled ciabatta.
My brisket was close to, pretty much
the, best brisket I have ever had. Barbie agreed. I love nothing more than shots that feature foreground focus. And that piece of brisket on the fork deserves to be looked at very closely.
We were all fairly full, but Barbie had spotted a dessert on the menu that combines my two favorite things in the world, peanut butter and chocolate.
Peanut Butter Cup, with chocolate and caramel sauce.
This was so good that, even though I had agreed to share it with everyone, after the first bite I picked up the plate, turned my back to the table and started eating it away from the drooling crowd. Sanity soon returned and I placed it back in the center of the table for everyone else to enjoy.
There is history to this picture. Steve has made a habit of licking dessert plates over the years. Alexis is always disgusted, while the rest of us shake our heads and begrudgingly laugh. I also learned something today. I normally do not put people on the Waste, and Steve has been able to get himself onto the Waste this trip by doing visually silly things. My code has been cracked.
Lamberts Downtown Barbecue was, in a word, fantastic. Every dish was simply delicious. Many thanks, Mike.
Josh's wallet is on the left, mine is on the right. Can you guess which of us makes an effort to travel light?
The fine kitchen staff of Lamberts Downtown Barbecue. Many thanks, loyal staff.
Two doors down from Lamberts sits Teuscher Chocolates and Coffee.
Originating in Zürich, Teuscher calls the guy on the right Sinterklaas. How incredibly cute is that?
Between Lamberts BBQ and Teuscher Chocolate, one finds the Lofty Dog. Since everyone we are with has pets, we went inside.
Good thing we did. The owner of Lofty Dog had the keen eye to pick up this statue, and the kindness to place it in the store to share with the public. This statue is a fantastic, over-the-top mixed media piece. There are so many elements glued together here that it borders on ridiculous, except that the elements work together brilliantly.
Yours truly, doing the Colbert Point with the statue.
UPDATE: The young man working next to this statue gave me a business card and asked me to email this picture to them. The next day (December 29) I received a reply from Lofty Dog, thanking me and adding, "We love our Barnabus!" Therefore, I now know his name. I will share more as I learn it.
Please note the rubber bat on his shoulder, the Roman helmet, and the sombrero.
Please note the circular saw blade in his hand, as well as his purple grass skirt and red holiday bow. I am telling you; I could have taken twenty shots of Barnabus and devoted a whole Waste posting to him.
Update Two: Here is the story of Barnabus, as told by Veronique Michalik, proprietor of Lofty Dog. "He’s really a mystery. We found him at a used fixture store, and the story was that he was in an art gallery, then a restaurant in Houston, then another restaurant locally, until he ended up at the fixture store. The owner didn’t want to sell it to me, but I wore her down. She finally agreed only if I kissed it flush on the month. I got on my tippy toes, stuck my hand up his skirt, and gave him a big kiss. Then off he went to Lofty Dog. He’s my keeper of the animals, and homage to Leslie, our famous cross-dressing transient who ran for mayor several years ago and walked away with over 7% of the vote. Ahh, ya gotta love Austin!"
As it turns out, a lot of Barnabus' accoutrement was added by his current owners, which means that part of his genius is theirs. Also, I should stick to Waste tradition and share that St. Barnabas was one of the earliest Christians, so early that they are historically known as
Jewish Christians, who fought with the other early Christians who wanted to to prevent non-Jewish converts to Christianity. In other words, without men like St. Barnabas, Christianity would have remained a small Jewish sect and would not have become a world religion that sought converts throughout Rome and eventually around the world. Consider we just wrapped up another Christmas season, stick that knowledge into your Christmas stocking to wow family and friends next year.
After visiting Lofty Dog, it was time to drive around the University of Texas campus for a bit and then head to the airport.
The Tower, completed in 1937 and made famous by a shooter in 1966. And get this. Alexis shared with us that her mother was a student at UT at the time of this tragedy, and was within the shooter's range that day. People next to her were shot as she ran for cover. Frightening.
Public art. From some angles, this piece probably looks like your basic abstract steel sculpture. From this angle, there is no denying that it looks like a man holding his arms over his head who is very glad to see you.
The University of Texas Tower is right THERE.
We headed to the airport, said our good byes, and made it through security and to the gate. At the gate, I took a minute to share with you my wonderful new purchase. You see, with Barbie's help, I have learned to always be prepared. In my winter jacket, there is always a scarf, a knit hat for cold, and a baseball cap for rain. Sit back and enjoy the following photo essay,
The Hat Hybrid.
The knit cap that lives in my jacket in case of cold.
This baseball cap that lives in my jacket in case of rain.
Voila! Both of the previous caps are now replaced by the new cap, the best of both words. There is nothing that I love more than replacing two items with one. Efficiency is purity.
And that, my friends, is the story of Jeff's new cap.
Austin Airport Candid. December 2010.
Austin to Los Angeles In-Flight Candid. December 2010.
The lights of Los Angeles. You know that I love shots of city lights, and that I love shots of airplane wings. I am kind of certain I have never combined these loves until now. I declare that the above photo embodies the same spirit at the new cap.
Looks like home.
Sometimes you get a blurred picture from a moving vehicle that is better than the sharp picture you intended.
And with that, loyal Wasters, we are home. See you next year.
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