Days Go By

I can feel ’em flying. (sing it, y’all)

Clearly my Tuesday post didn’t happen. But what did happen was:

I actually went on a run;

I made some lovely cranberry scones for breakfast;

I cooked my favorite quinoa recipe;

I spent most of the day with the three sweet angels I babysit;

I watched Anastasia for the first time ever;

and I participated in a CAAKE house Beyoncé dance party, prompted by this video.

It was a full day. 

Tomorrow our hand built table arrives (thanks Dad), I’m trying a new breakfast spot with some dear friends and I’m one day closer to the start of school. 

I’ll be here listening to Keith Urban and wishing summer was just a week longer. 

-A

 

Brunch for All and All for Brunch

My friends and I, as do any set of good friends, love brunch. This summer has been full of coffee shop adventures that have recently morphed into full-blown dressy brunch affairs. Today I thought I would share two of our early-ish morning adventures for my fellow brunch lovers (that means everyone, right?).

First up, we have Chez Zee!

Started in 1989 by Sharon Watkins, this quaint Austin restaurant features a live Jazz pianist and Christmas lights twinkling everywhere.

The Chez Zee piano.

Serving every meal imaginable, the choice is difficult to make, but after waiting for nearly an hour (make a reservation!), our growling stomachs were calmed by hot croissants with incredible strawberry butter brought to the table. I would have been fine with a basket of those flaky pastries, but the show must go on!

I ordered the Challah Bread French Toast Platter, which came with 2 eggs, a cup of fruit and country potatoes. It was good, but honestly I don’t really remember it. This isn’t the first brunch place I’d think to recommend compared to some of the others I’ve tried because it’s a little too heavy and sweet for my taste, especially at breakfast! They are famous for their desserts though, so a late-evening sweets run is definitely in order.

My most recent brunch excursion was memorable for sure, both for the occasion and the food! For Ashley’s 21st birthday we went to Annie’s Cafe on Congress. We went on Sunday morning, so we found free street parking (!!!) and we made sure to go right at 9:30 when Annie’s opened so we wouldn’t have another long wait like at Chez Zee (Annie’s doesn’t take brunch reservations).

A few years older than Chez Zee, Annie’s was opened in 1982 and I’m so glad it’s still around today! Simple, fresh and boasting impeccable branding design, I would definitely recommend this to anyone living in or visiting Austin.

We started off with two orders of beignets, which were warm, fluffy and coated in powdered sugar. I also got coffee, which was delicious. My breakfast meal of choice was the fried egg sandwich. Y’all, the egg was cooked to perfection: it burst in my mouth with all it’s fresh yolky goodness. Add bacon, cheese and fresh, thick sourdough and I was on cloud nine. And the potatoes it came with were deliciously seasoned.

Now for two culinary moments of recognition:

A. For the best egg sandwich I’ve ever eaten, at 24 Diner after a UT football game. The egg sandwich was on a WAFFLE. And it was life-changing. Nothing will ever compare. Go eat it.

B. For the birthday dessert our sweet waitress at Annie’s brought Ashley! Talk about life-changing. Just when I thought I couldn’t eat another bite, my mouth met this dessert:

That is a chocolate caramel tart, topped with berries and sea salt. The pastry melted in my mouth, the chocolate and caramel were soft and melty, and the salt was the perfect addition. Job well done, Annie’s. I will be back.

These mouth-watering breakfast foods have inspired me to continue the breakfast-themed posts for the rest of the week. Look for a round-up of coffee shops I’ve tried this summer on Tuesday and a post about breakfasts at the CAAKE house on Thursday!

See you fellow breakfast-lovers soon…

A