We Fuse is Le Fresh!

I went with my friend Karinne to WeFuse last Friday before going to the Drafthouse to catch Julie & Julia, which was adorable by the way ... and we caught them before they closed! Turns out Jon, the owner, is Karinne's friend and he treated us to some pleasingly fresh dishes. I forget how good fresh fruit and veggies are. Why?!

Karinne ordered this Pear, Walnut, and Blue Cheese salad ... I had a few nibbles and wow. First of all, all the salad is definitely a bang for your buck. Second of all, the pairing of all the flavors topped with balsalmic vinaigrette (probably my favorite salad dressing) was awesome. I don't think of salads as healthy options. I think of them as real deal meals cuz they are darn good!

I ordered the Tuna Tataki with Avocado, Cucumber, and Seaweed Salad. Wow! Do you see that red sliver of sauce? Yeah, that's right ... it's Sriracha. And as all humans should know, Sriracha is an ingredient that should be integrated into everyone's diet. Why? Because it makes everything taste that much better, seriously. But anyway, the seaweed salad was just right. The cucumbers added a nice crunch to the softness of the fresh tuna. And the avocado was a nice textural balance as well ... kind of like sushi without the rice and seaweed paper ... and much bigger. Ha.


And finally, a non grape sangria! It's watermelon grapefruit sangria! Yeah, dude. This is gold. I think they make different fresh fruit juices/sangrias/concoctions every now and then ... and I'm not sure if they are on the menu or if they are free or if they are just ... secret? But yeah, definitely ask and see if they have this when you go!

Anyway, We Fuse is open generally for lunch. He said it gets packed in there, so I'd go early and snag a seat as the place isn't that big. It's located downtown at 2nd and Brazos. Get it.

--

PLEASE listen to this. It's amazing. This band is.
King Tuff - Sun Medallion

x,

Franny

The Woodland - Austin Restaurant Week

Rachel, Karinne, and I decided to go to the Woodland located on S. Congress instead because it was cheaper and I just feel like Louie's 106 may have just been too stuffy of an environment for us. Anyway, it was really yummy. And excuse these shitty pictures, I don't know how to use my new point-and-shoot. It's retarded ... or maybe I am. I'm a lot better with complicated cameras, haha.

Pork Empanadas
I actually think these were my favorite. It seemed like we all liked our appetizers the best... to the point of where we didn't want to share. Haha! It reminded me of those curry-stuffed dumplings, but with really soft pork instead. Yum.

Meatloaf w/ mashed potatoes & green beans
Ordering this made me feel super American... haha. But since I'm Asian too, I never eat this shit. Anyway, it was pretty good. It was a little dry I thought. I wish there had been more of a sauce. It wasn't gourmet by any means and I don't think it was supposed to be...I think it's more of just a comfort dish. How can you make gourmet meatloaf? Is there such a thing?

Chocolate Cream Pie

As you can see, this restaurant is all kinds of unhealthy. It's interesting... now that I think of Louie 106's menu which consisted of like... tuna tartare, racks of lamb, and some fancy fish dishes... and stuff haha. But this fit more into my neighborhood of eating... and it was good. I like fruity pies better, but this was still really good. I think they specialize in pies to some degree or something, because they had a ton to choose from. I want to be a pie maker.

Anyway, there you have it. My first Austin Restaurant Week experience. It was a nice way to end a somewhat hectic day of finding out someone had drilled a hole into my car window and shattered it, then stolen my ipod, then ran to class frazzled to turn in a marketing paper, and then having to take an essay test explaining why I want to be a woman in Salem during the witch trials... yeah.

John Lennon - Oh Yoko

Until next time!

x,

Frances

Your 3 Favorite Movies and a Praying Mantis

HEY. I've been so busy, I'm sorry. All work and no play, I'm serious. But then again work is play, hehe.

Currently, I'm listening to this ridiculous NPR recording for my advertising class. I have a test tomorrow. One thing I did learn in class is that... people like ads with animals. So, here's a picture of everybody's favorite cat, YEAH!


charlie is thinking about what he wants to make for dinner. tuna tartare? and maybe a cookie for dessert. okay this is getting creepy.

well you don't know creepy b/c what the fuck is this:


... but a praying mantis by La Tazza Fresca. duh. what else?


speaking of, they have yummy Tomato Basil Soup!

---

on the topic of food, i had my first "vegan" cake yesterday. ok it wasn't that big of a deal. vegans still eat funfetti, so it's all good. hehe. anyway it was super yummy. better than any cake i ever made.

i haven't felt like this in a long time. it's nice, i like it. :)

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Sigh, so anyway the other half of the title of this blog... so if you do keep up with my posts, I'm really far behind on my movie-watching. I mean like everyone's favorite movies you know... if you think of one, I probably haven't seen it. What I have seen consists of like ... Charlie and the Chocolate Factory ... hm. SO, I'm asking you: WHAT ARE YOUR 3 FAVORITE MOVIES... So I can watch them... kthx!


picture from The River Flows East. it was cold.

"godzilla got kinda happy at some point... didn't he?" - my npr recording

x,

franny

Black Condoms, Viet Sandwiches and NEW Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

My roommate has a great internship. She comes home with surprises like these! LOL!



Black Joe Lewis has a new marketing scheme. Teehehee...

"Just... Want.. to get it open!!!" - Charlie dirty-wanna-be-black-cat Lin.

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So I drove this baby up to Bee Caves when I was at work the other day to get an estimate. Yeah, no rear-view mirror. Plush seats. I looked pretty smooth, might I add. Not to mention someone's mix cd was left in there that included the likes of Britney Spears, Ghostland Observatory, and Cupid's "The Cupid Shuffle"... yup.

---


So I've been promising you vietnamese sandwiches for a long time. We finally went to LuLu B's on South Lamar across from Bird's Barbershop! We'd been missing it because they had a family death and also they are open at annoyingly inconvenient hours, but whatever! It was yummy. I got the Lemongrass Pork sandwich garnished with daikon, carrot, cucumber, cilantro, and chili. It was pretty filling for just $4.50 and with some Sriracha sauce, it was muy sabroso. Definitely check it out if you're in the South Lamar area. There's another vietnamese sandwich place up on North Lamar at Chinatown... that I want to try as well. Yum Yum!

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Finally,
new Yeah Yeah Yeah's has leaked.
Yeah Yeah Yeah's - Heads Will Roll

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Pictures from this weekend will be up later. Tootles.

x,

Franny

Crickets at La Condesa.

The lovely Rachel Myhill treated some friends and I to a complimentary friends & family dinner at La Condesa, a Mexican restaurant opening Thursday on 2nd & Guadalupe right next to Lambert's. According to the Austin Business Journal, the 26-year-old chef/owner, Larry McGuire, of Lambert's is playing a large part in the opening of this restaurant... so I'm sure it will become a well-known Austin establishment in the near future. Anyway, there's a Dallas location in the snazzy Victory Park, but apparently this one's better. Well, I know I had a fabulous time... I love trying new things! And boy did I try new things, lol.

ANYWAY, this is what you really want to see/hear/taste I guess:



Chips & Salsa with Chipotle & Roasted Almond Guacamole
So yummy. I didn't taste the roasted almond, but I definitely felt the chipotle. The salsa isn't pictured but they had 3 different kinds. My favorite was the salsa verde. I think we all had a different favorite. So they all must be good.


Bebidas! The watermelon martini was yummy in my tummy. Good margaritas too.


I don't remember the names to these. The one on the left is Carnitas I believe. Very tender pork belly. It reminded me of this tender pork that us Asians eat and put in between soft buns. The one on the right is some kind of pork ribs. Realllly yummy. I loved the plaintains. They were good and spicy.


Crickets!! In a corn tortilla!! Covered in guacamole!! Ahh!!!


Before and after. Well more like during and after. Honest truth, it wasn't my favorite thing in the world. I mean, it didn't taste bad. I really have a serious mental block toward odd meats. Even duck freaks me out. IDK! But it was worth trying. I would try it if you have the chance! Nothing like some cricket legs floating around your mouth, mmm. Karinne's face is awesome, btw.


Rachel eating the crickets. Why is she so composed?


Dessert. On the left, a goat cheese cheesecake that had a much fancier name. On the right, a molten flourless chocolate cake topped with caramelized bananas and ice cream... that also had a fancier name. The chocolate was my favorite. The cheesecake was too cheesy for my taste.

I also didn't snap a good picture of the tostadas that we tried. There were two different versions, but I only tried one of them. It was a Tuna Tostada ... crispy tostadas topped with yellowfin tuna, pickled cucumber, crispy leek, and chipotle mayo. Mmm, I love chipotle mayo. Especially on a Mopac sandwich...

SIGH, ok. I love free food.

Anyway, I think I am finally going to try those vietnamese sandwiches this weekend. Very excited.

And also, if you still haven't seen Kittens Inspired by Kittens what are you waiting for?! God, best thing ever.

I'm going to start doing hw now... because I'm in school... ?!
Oxymoron.

x,

Frances

Circle One: Yes or No

yes or no?!



Should Blake and Dov be BFF?
Circle One: Yes or No

Okay maybe not. Since the founder of TOMS (Blake ... not "tom") is probably ... well he IS 1000x more ethical than American Apparel. But on the topic of company comparisons, both companies make a point to publicize how their employees receive more than a fair wage. And I would say their target markets are pretty much the same crowd. Both Blake and Dov have curly hair and live in or near LA. He he? Not to mention the shirt I'm wearing is Tri-Blend American Apparel. Anyway, it was a fun time Saturday... working at the Clinton Global Initiative and giving away hundreds of free shoes for a good cause. Besides the fact that my car got towed and cost me near $200 and being late to my roommate's 21st birthday dinner. SUCKKK.



Andrew Bird, will you marry me?
Circle one: Yes or No.

Maybe one of the best artists to traipse across my path. His whistling melted my heart until it was no longer a heart but an empty place that wanted to be filled. Is that what his music does to you? Make you ache? I guess that's why I like it. I am okay with having Andrew Bird be the reason of my heartache.




Does P.Terry's give you a heart attack whilst being pooped on by birds?
Circle One: Yes or No

Well, I know the answer actually. It's YES. Except I wasn't pooped on by birds. I fully enjoyed my cheaper-than-mcdonalds hamburger while my friends were pooped on by birds, hehe.



Would you use my cat to kill the ubiquitous gecko running around your house?
Circle One: Yes or No

Well I didn't even know there was such an ubiquitous gecko running around my house. I actually stumbled upon my cat playing with this gecko, who I'm guessing (and hoping) he killed ... what a beast. I'm not saying I don't like lizards. I love lizards. I wanted one for a really long time. But I'm really proud of my cat seeing how he is the biggest scared-y cat ever. I pretty much decided he has downs syndrome this past weekend. Sad story. :[

---

My song: The Kinks - Strangers
hmm. :[


x,

frances

Move. Get out of here.

This entry is in sequences.

So,



Yeah.

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Fish tacos, Wahoo's on 6th.
I like mini corn tortillas. Cabbage instead of lettuce was an interesting choice. The rice was refreshing and different. Preettty good.


Dessert selection, Mandola's at The Triangle.
I tried the gelato on the first row in the middle. It was coffee-flavored with something. Damn good.

Also went to the Loxsly, Oh No Oh My! show at Emo's on Thursday.
The most memorable thing was Loxsly's visuals. They were pretty awesome.
I commend whoever did them... I think it might have been a band member?
My favorite were the walking tweezers... or whatever.

Fashion Freakout! at Mohawk last night, as well.
We've started selling tie-dye tights and I hate them.
Well. Laced with Romance seems to think they were cool.
I still don't think they are.
There were a couple nip slips and butt cheeks hanging out, but overall I enjoyed the show.
I loved New Bohemia's elephant necklace. ohh my goddd, how do I get that?!

Sigh.

I'm done.

x,

Frances

ALPACA!

I've been making my coffeeshop rounds since the weather's been nice.

Hibiscus Lemonade, Quack's on 43rd.

Mmm... so beautifully unhealthy, i love it.

Goodbye Little Man, hello Alpaca.

I rode my bike to Epoch yesterday for my first real bike ride. I nearly passed out ... someone's completely out of shape. I have a lot of work to do before SXSW. There might have been some other contributing factors, but overall ... yeah, a lot of work to do. I'm just so scared to ride around a lot of traffic. I need to find a safe way to practice ha... man, my legs were so wobbly.

Anyway, the Broken Social Scene concert at Bass on Saturday was amazing. Even though I only knew a couple songs, I was very impressed. One of the members' side project, The Happiness Project ... which is an exploration of the tones and rhythm in how we talk ... was kind of like the coolest thing ever. Imagine a saxophone imitating the way you talk... perfectly.

Sigh.

And then I finally watched The Breakfast Club last night... shut up. I'm telling you I have a lot to catch up on. Anyway, for those of you who didn't know... Emilio Estevez is Charlie Sheen's brother and Martin Sheen's son. He just didn't sell out to a white-people name. Although, I think Sheen is a pretty cool last name. And Emilio is a pretty sweet first one. Emilio Sheen. Ha... no. I learned all this in Spanish 508K... yup.

By the way,

THE MOPAC SANDWICH AT WHOLE FOODS = OMG!?!?!!?!

who's with me.

x,

Frances

Tea & Company

This is where I'm interning this semester. Very yummy. :)

Jen & Kathryn's 21st birthday party at FINO. My opinion, an overly pretentious restaurant with food that does not serve up to the pretentiousness... haha. But the food is still good. Just not worth being pretentious about... does that make any sense?

Chorizo-stuffed mushrooms. SO amazing.

Crab, Avocado & Espelette Pepper Bruschetta. Also very good.

Calamari. duh. Is it possible to have really bad or really good calamari?

FINO Paella: Saffron rice with Shrimp, Littleneck Clams & Mussels, Calamari, Tomato, Lemon & Paprika. Too lemon-y. But still good.

Birthday girls!

More pictures up later when I get film developed...

Now... I have to go to Broken Social Scene! :)

x,

Frances