Howdy y’all! I’m going to share all the fun deets from my recent trip to Austin! I was visiting my bestie Betsy (say that 10 Times fast) who recently moved there. After hearing sooo many good things about ATX, it was at the top of my travel list!
Before I go on a trip, one of my favorite things to do is research the area and find all of the must see/do/eat places! I love having a broad plan of places I want to hit in order to make the most out of a trip. Plus it gets me so excited in the days or weeks leading up to my travels. Betsy was super impressed with all of my research and it was honestly so much fun to drive around and see the places I researched in person, haha!
I didn’t realize it beforehand, but Austin has a huuuge food truck scene. On Friday night we decided to hit up a local bar that had a food truck in the back. We ended up at a little speakeasy where we got some fancy drinks and finished off the night with tequila shots and pictures in a van turned photo booth. Only in Austin, right?!
The next day we hit the ground running because it was Cinco De Mayo! I didn’t even realize I would be in Austin for this holiday, but it was kind of perfect seeing as they have some of the best Tex-Mex around.
On Saturday I wore this dress (similar), and these statement earrings. Bets and I strolled South Congress, took some pictures in front of the infamous “I love you so much” mural on the side of Jo’s coffee, then got breakfast tacos at Torchy’s—an Austin staple. The highlight for me was the queso. Let’s be real, I’ve never had a queso I didn’t like, but it was DELICIOUS. I really liked the pork taco I had as well, but the breakfast taco I got wasn’t the one I ordered and I didn’t enjoy it as much. Betsy ordered one called “The Independent” which was filled with fried mushrooms, corn, avocado and more. It was a really different combination, but the mix of flavors was surprisingly good.
We worked off our tacos walking around the Pecan Street Festival! It was so cool to see all of the arts & crafts and experience “Dirty 6th Street” during the day bustling with live music. Austin really is such a young and vibrant city, there is so much to love. Can you tell I loved my first trip there? We also tried out one of my finds, Thai Fresh which had amazing iced coffee and gluten free goodies, I was in heaven.
Saturday night we got reservations at a really popular Japanese restaurant, Kemuri Tatsu-ya. Let’s just say they had interesting things on the menu…we ordered tapas-style and tried some crazy things ranging from stingray jerky to chicken hearts. The experience overall was super fun, and I would definitely go back for more of their traditional food. We wrapped up the night with some delicious boozy ice cream from prohibition creamery. Fun fact: their logo is a sloth which is one of my favorite animals!!! Saturday night I wore this fun PJ-style shirt, a jean skirt and pearl studded sandals (similar)
On my last day in Austin, we woke up early and went to breakfast at Picnik. I wore this maxi dress and these earrings. I had been wanting to go to Picnik for THE longest time because I’ve seen their food on instagram and it looked like a gluten free dream! Bets got the French toast and I ordered the banana nut pancakes which were the best pancakes I’ve ever had in my life, gluten free or not! I still find myself thinking about them! We tried their avocado toast too which was so good!!! After breakfast we went to check out graffiti park. We got some really great views of the city here. Later on, we went to have a couple drinks on Rainey street which is a well-known street with a bunch of different bars, each in a different house. There was even a bar made out of shipyard containers, aptly named Container Bar. We went to one spot, Unbarlievable, that had a giant slide inside. Yes I definitely took the chance to slide down it, we had so much fun there!
We even were able to squeeze in some Austin BBQ at Terry Blacks! My oh my, it was worth the wait! I think my “call me darlin” shirt from Forever 21 was the perfect addition. All in all my trip to Austin was a blast. It was filled with food and so much fun, but my favorite part of the whole trip was having quality girl time, catching up on life and getting ready together! If there is one positive that comes from having a close friend live far away, it’s the fun trips you get to take to see them! I hope you all enjoyed my Austin recap and save these recs for a future visit.
Xo,
Jess