Last month, international hispsters descended on Austin for two weeks of SXSW music, film and interactive festivals. In the neighborhoods surrounding downtown, we spent our days weaving through pedestrian herds. Or, as I like to refer to it, we played a skinny jean and vanity glasses version of Frogger. Two weeks of temperate weather, blooming Kool-Aid-scented mountain laurel and a plethora of Tex-Mex left many of the trend seekers giddily proclaiming they found a yippee-ki-yay euphoria.
It felt a bit like someone swooning over your rebellious puppy that spends most days chewing the garden hose and burying lost socks.
As much as I love Austin, I do grumble about some things: heat, pollen and the city’s inability to block a consistent path for the every-other-weekend 5K races. However, the visitors’ excitement brought a refreshed thankfulness for the Austin coolness we pass every day – especially south of the river. (Sorry, I needed to insert at least one territorial dig.) So, I’m offering my win, place and show of overlooked Austin treasures.
El Primo Taco Trailer
Corner of S. First and Live Oak
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I know what you’re thinking. I did also. It looks like food poisoning on wheels. My eighteen months of experience as well as lines of construction workers and neighborhood devotees testify against the sketchy decor. Forget that it parks in front of a run-down tattoo parlor and hookah lounge; this is the alpha and omega of street tacos. Eggs crack in front of you with each order – no tin container of those scrambled five hours ago. They arrive in your taco curled at the edges, crisp from the cozy, order-stacked grill. All salsas are made fresh, loaded with peppers that don’t fear offering you a bit of heat. Those of us who abandoned eating mammals happily discovered amazing vegetarian bean tacos (cooked with corn oil instead of lard – I didn’t say healthy), loaded with the same seasoning they use in their chorizo and overflowing with onions and cilantro. I’ve watched others melt over the tacos al pastor and asada. Grab a few and head next door to OnceOver coffee shop, which barely missed this list. They welcome patrons bringing in baskets of their neighbor’s tacos and tortas. You’ll often find the baristas munching on a few. At $1.25 – $1.75, I feel heaven gave those in on the secret a delicious bargain.
Big Stacy Pool
Live Oak and East Side Drive
Sure, Barton Spring gets all the glory. It’s bigger, centrally located and has the storied past of sacred salamanders. News flash: it’s not the only year-round spring-fed pool in Austin. News emphasis: Big Stacy is fed by a warm spring making the temperature bearable year-round and it’s free. At least half of the pool is dedicated to lap swimmers at all times. While Stacy can get a bit crowded when the temperatures soar and kids are out of school, pool patrons and lifeguards take amphibious etiquette pretty seriously. No one feels shy calling out offenders – especially those interfering with the lap lanes. It’s not quite as scenic as Barton Springs, and the grass often becomes crunchy by June, but there is another important bonus. Farther from the University of Texas, those of us who have surrendered our co-ed figure abandon the need to constantly suck in the abs around a pool full of middle-aged parents and aging hippies. And that, in my opinion, makes the perfect pool.
Harry Ransom Center
300 W. 21st Street
OK, so technically the HRC is north of the river. However, as this facility is so often forgotten even among Austinites, it deserves t be on every don’t miss list. While in the past years it’s been overshadowed by the additions of the Blanton Art Museum and the Bullock Texas History Museum, the HRC is every geek’s gem. Most people tend to identify it as the home of the Gutenberg Bible or the place where they occasionally trot out the dress designs and scripts from Gone With The Wind. It’s so much more. I’ve attended numerous readings and film screenings there (most of which are free). Later this month, the center hosts an anniversary panel with Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein and Robert Redford to discuss the film All The President’s Men (I guess Dustin Hoffman’s shooting another Meet the Parents sequel?), a reading by U.S. Poet Laureate W.S. Merwin and a mixology class on the cocktails and times of Tennessee Williams. That’s one week … and one cool place to be a nerd.
http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/
So, I’m keeping my eyes and mind open in the city that keeps it weird … at least when I’m not sweeping that nasty yellow pollen off the porch.
I can now fully, and happily endorse the El Primo Taco Truck that is featured above, as one of the best tacos I’ve had in Texas. Truly. Happy cook, amazing ingredients (a perfect avocado), perfect salsa and a shocking total of $7 for 4 tacos. Wendy’s writing has provided good justice to a treasure, once again.