Texadelphia at Fifteenth 15th and San Antonio in Austin

Texadelphi is primarily a sandwich shop specializing in Philly Cheese Steaks but they have many other menu items and they serve beer to those old enough to purchase it. There are many locations scattered around Austin and this particular one is centrally located at the corner of 15th Street and San Antonio Street at the base of one of the original moonlight towers. The Towers were originally constructed as a precursor to modern day street lights. Instead of small lights all over the place Austin had a bunch of huge towers that lit large populated areas of the city. The towers were heralded as providing the level of light one might experience during a full moon. There are still a few of them left around town although they have been substantially upgraded from their original construction. The little shopping center where this Texadelpia resides is named Moonlight Place because of the adjacent tower and there is a Starbuck's Coffee to one side of it and a Cleaners on the other side. There are about a dozen parking spaces shared by the three businesses and lots of metered parking nearby. Much of their business is walk in from nearby bank towers, office buildings and residential homes in the area. They cater with boxed lunches as well and, their service is top notch. If you like consistency this is the place for you. Any Texadelphia in town can be trusted to serve the same high quality product as another. The main difference between them is location and convenience and on this particular day, this location was the most convenient for me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_E6PaO6BHM

Amsterdam Cafe at Eighth 8th and Colorado in Downtown Austin Texas

I don't know the full story on this place. I think it opened a year ago and then closed again until recently, or maybe just the addition of food is new, I'm not really sure . The bartender at the Brown Bar told me they were newly opened and sold beer so I made the best of a good situation and checked them out while I was in the area. I never would have realized they existed if he hadn't drawn my attention to the place, but I'm glad he did. The people in there were friendly and went along with what I wanted to do and then some, even giving me a beer pouring photo op. I talked with the guy behind the bar for about ten minutes and enjoyed it. He said things were hopping during SXSW but that he was glad it was over. That's what the bartender at the Brown Bar said too. These places get business in waves during lunch and happy hour after 5 when the skyscraper workers get off. I beat them and didn't have to deal with people ducking and hiding from the camera. I just want to show y'all what these places look like so that if you ever end up going there you'll have an idea of what to expect. It might even make you realize there are places Downtown worth seeking out. About a hundred at last count, but you better have quarters during the day or be willing to pay to park at night. I just pay because driving around in circles hoping to get lucky sucks much worse than it did when I couldn't afford to pay to park and now I can. Stop in sometime and there is a very good chance you will be as pleased as I was. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VO26_dxEOM http://www.theamscafe.com/

The Brown Bar at Eighth 8th and Colorado in Austin Texas

This place was a complete surprise to me. A friend told me they were here and I still missed them on the first take. I parked at a meter which I recommend. Always have quarters in your car and your parking problems are gone downtown. Without quarters parking is very tough and even with quarters some meters don't work but the bastard's will still ticket you after you put your money in and no minutes register. But, that isn't the Brown Bar's fault and after a cocktail or a couple of cold beers those frustrations just melt away as you relax in splendid splendor in one of the many very comfortable and relaxing seating arrangements scattered around this fine drinking establishment better known as a beer joint. They have way more fancy ass drinks than you could ever think to order and a bunch of beers and I'm pretty sure they sell food too. If they don't then go next door to Gumbo's or across the street to the Amsterdam Cafe.

I feel like I'm finally a complete man now that I know where the Brown Bar is and you will be too once you check it out, unless you are a woman. This is probably going to end up being in the top ten fancy places I visit. That won't be a hard choice to make but my ten funkiest is going to take some coin tossing and thought. Check out their website at http://www.thebrownbar.com/ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaTj96SqeJ0

Cafe' Mundi on East 5th Fifth near Chicon in East Austin

I've made a couple of videos of Cafe' Mundi before because it is such a cool place and owned by a great lady named Jessica and staffed by a very eclectic hardworking group of unique individuals. After ten years of doing business with them I feel as if they are friends even though I don't really know any of them. It's the same way with the lady at the Chevron Station who is still mean to me sometimes, after a decade. At least with Cafe' Mundi I know they'll be nice, and they have Young's Double Chocolate Stout in 18 ounce bottles. It's brewed with real chocolate, according to the label. I've had breakfast and coffee in here about forty or fifty times and have stopped for a Chocolate Stout about twenty times. I like the place and it serves as a community meeting spot for a lot of different groups of people. Right now there are two other coffeehouses nearby that sell beer and one that doesn't. Yet, when it does I'll blog about them too. Cafe' Mundi was the first and is still the best. Their outdoor grove of Crape Myrtles sets them apart from everyone else in town and the impeccable service and attention to quality products and ingredients is obvious. But, some of the cooks know about spice and crisping the bun and some don't, according to my niece. The don'ts will remain nameless, namely because I don't know their names. Parking is easy just pull up and park. It's close enough to downtown to walk, but I doubt many do, yet it is far out in the country. Yeah, no doubt about it, Cafe' Mundi is far out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78hKWsqPPgk http://www.cafemundi.com/