Out of the country!

Going to be out of the country for the next couple of weeks, I'll try to keep you guys posted.. but expect more updates and posts in August!
Thanks!
- Movies and Meals

'The Tree of Life'

       Written & directed by Terrence Malick and starring Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, 'Tree of Life' was sure to be an amazing production with high Oscar expectations. Although the trailers released did not shed much light on the plot or story line, I was excited to see it.

       With the guilt of his brother's teenage death heavy on his mind, Jack (Penn) looks back on his adventurous childhood, reflecting on his upbringing and family dynamic. His father (Pitt) was a stern  disciplinary who always made jack feel like he was never loved. Tensions with his father still exist today, and as Jack looks back at the guilt and grief his parents endured over his brother's untimely death, he tries to imagine what losing a child was like for them. While his father was strict and aggressive towards Jack and his brothers, his mother was quite the opposite - showering love onto her boys and allowing them to grow up free and rambunctious. His mother and father never did see eye-to-eye on parenting, but it was the stark contrast of discipline and love that made Jack into the successful man he is today "Father, Mother. Always you wrestle inside me. Always you will".
       'The Tree of Life' was a very deep and telling film. The cinematography was possibly one of the most stunning and interesting I have seen. The movie was littered with quick cuts to beautiful scenes spanning any situation, but always with a relevant theme. From shaky and honest scenes of Jack and his brothers playing in the front yard, cuts to the cosmos with distant and vibrant nebulas and stellar clusters, and flashes of nature's beauty or an architectural wonder. It was similar to a carousal of the beautiful and wondrous images one acquires throughout their life, flashing throughout the entirety of the film.

       With the likes of Brad Pitt and Sean Penn, I knew the performances in the film would be great, but in my eyes the great performances did not come from Pitt and Penn, but two unexpected actors. Jessica Chastain, playing the Jack's mother, and Hunter McCracken, who played Young Jack. Chastain's portrayal of grief was painfully realistic, as she morned for the death of her boy. As the film chronicled the life of her children, you could understand the genuine growth and love Chastain portrayed due to her exceptional performance. I was blow away by the honest and natural performances given by both child actors in the film, Mccracken, and Laramine Eppler (who played Jack's younger brother). They were believable and did an incredible job for 'Tree' to be their first project, ever.


      The film did an amazing job of portraying the growth and life of the O'Brien family. Such small and humanistic situations are portrayed during the boy's childhood, things that everybody can relate to and say, "Oh, I remember when I was a kid and used to do/think that!". Overall, the film was strangely fresh and raw. It had a true essence of nostalgia that simply mirrored the flittering and flashing memories that we think back to.
       I walked out of the theater and for the next day or two was stuck with the images and quotes from the movie. It really does make the viewer look into their own life and reflect on themselves. I really enjoyed the movie and thought it was a perfectly executed performance by the actors and writer-director Terrence Malick. I haven't given too many movies 5/5, but this deep and philosophical drama deserves it! ★★★★★

Dallas: rise nº1

I felt like I was in Southern France when I sat down at my table at rise nº1. The charming and rustic Southern France atmosphere was infectious. Every detail from the silverware to the service was perfect. The water was served in plain wine bottles and the glasses were wine bottles with the large divot on the bottom that had been cut where the neck begins and fashioned into perfect cups - I was infatuated with them! Rise nº1 is a French restaurant that has a very unique and particular cuisine -- soufflés. From entrees to appetizers, they have about twenty different soufflés on their menu ranging from classic Chocolate to Escargot or Jambon & Gruyere.

Wine bottle water glasses! Check out their online store to purchase

I ordered the rise nº1 salad for an appetizer, it is a light starter salad of baby greens, blue cheese, roasted pecans, Granny Smith apples & a pecan vinaigrette. To begin, we also got an order of the Artichoke Andrée for the table, which is a MUST HAVE when you go to rise nº1! Its a steamed artichoke served with the 'Hedda's family sauce', a light creamy and buttery sauce.

The Artichoke Andrée

 For my entree I ordered the Southwest Chicken soufflé. I was surprised how quick it came out - despite soufflés notorious slow reputation. It was unbelievable. I'm not going to lie...I love a good cheese or chocolate soufflé, but was skeptical about the more unorthodox soufflés. The Southwest Chicken was great. It was light and fluffy, but packed with flavor and much more filling than I imagined it would be. The texture of the top of was great, adding a little crunch... but the green chile salsa sitting on the top was my favorite. It really brought the dish together, giving it a little spice.

My Southwest Chicken Soufflé! SO good

I was FULL by they time it came to dessert, but couldn't pass it up! I ordered the apricot soufflé, and was blown away. I would go back to rise nº1 solely for the apricot dessert.. I really enjoyed rise nº1 because of its uniqueness and originality. With such a diverse menu, I can't wait to try the other options (but I think I'll have to get the apricot soufflé!). Overall I give rise nº1 5/5 stars! ★★★★★

Click HERE for rise nº1's online menu

Jack Allen's Kitchen

I did not realize until I got there, but Jack Allen's Kitchen was created and started by Chef Jack Gilmore, who was the head chef of Z-tejas. I could see some resemblance of character in the dishes after I learned this. Jack Allen's Kitchen is a take on modern American cuisine, and prides itself on their use of local and organic ingredients (the waiter told us the restaurant gets most all their ingredients from local farmer's markets). A sampler of homemade pimento cheese was given to us to snack on while browsing the amazing menu. For starters I chose the Baja Style Fish Tacos and Bacon Wrapped Texas Quail - and it was hard to narrow it down to two. From the Beef Rib Quesadillas to their Blue Crab Gratin, the selection of appatizers at Jack's was pretty stacked! I am a HUGE fan of fish tacos, but very selective and somewhat picky when it comes down to it. Two came with the order, and you are definitely getting your money's worth. Topped with avocado, pico de gallo, and JAK's slaw the tacos wrapped in a corn tortilla were delicious, and quite filling as well. The Quail was the appetizer I was most excited about. Six drumsticks came beautifully loaded with jalapeno and peach jam and bound with bacon and a small green fig salad on the side. The sweetness of the peach jam and the spice of the jalapeno jam clashed, but everything was brought together with the saltiness of the bacon and tenderness of the quail. 

Although it is an appetizer, I ordered the Spinach Gorgonzola Ravioli as my entree. They have a great selection of salads, burgers, tacos, and "chicken-fried anything"(including a chicken-fried beef rib!?), but the ravioli caught my eye. The ravioli came with walnut pesto cream sauce topped with grated Parmesan, dashes of a chipotle puree for a kick, and came with a side of ciabatta bread. The sauce covered all the ravioli, and I had to do a little fishing in order to claim my mouth-treasure -- but i wouldn't have it any other way, the sauce was amazing. The pesto was not 'too nutty' and really went well with gorgonzola. I really enjoyed the atmosphere at Jack Allen's; they had a very fun patio and bar outside that would be perfect for their happy hour. Overall, Jack Allen's Kitchen was a fresh, and great spot. 4/5 stars!★★★★☆

Jack Allen's Kitchen: menu

Don't Worry, Flip Happy!

I'm not the biggest crêpe fan, at least compared to my mother... but I certainly do like them. I've always liked dessert crêpes, but not a fan of having crêpe as an entrée because i see them more as a sort of pancake rather than tortilla. But thats just my food logic. I went to Flip Happy Crêpes over the weekend and was pretty impressed! Flip Happy has a prime location and set up right on the corner of Jessie and Butler, tucked away close to the P. Terry's Burger Stand on South Lamar. One thing that food carts seem to be lacking is ample tables or parking, but Flip Happy had more than enough of both of these, which was nice. I ordered the Roasted Chicken Crêpe and the Cinnamon & Sugar Crêpe for dessert. One thing I did find out the hard way was that they only take cash, but luckily there is a convenience store on the end of the block -- but it was not that convenient.

My Roasted Chicken Crêpe

The Roasted Chicken Crêpe was good, but I was not dying over it. It came with Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onions, and a Garlic aioli. All of these ingredients are amazing but just didn't work well. There was too much Goat Cheese, and it was a bit overpowering. I couldn't really taste the Garlic aioli, and the color and consistency of my crêpe was sort of bland. It was good, but I probably wouldn't order it again, rather choosing something new on the menu for next time. I don't mean to be too hard on the Roasted Chicken Crêpe, but its friend, the Cinnamon & Sugar Crêpe redeemed Flip Happy in my eyes!

This might of been the best dessert crêpe I've ever had (including those while I was in Germany and France last summer!). This was no typical dessert crêpe! The inside of the crêpe was folded with Cream Cheese frosting and Cinnamon while the top was littered with Toasted Coconut and Almonds and generously dusted with Powdered Sugar. The warm crêpe was delightful. All of the flavors melted and meshed together so well. It is worth going to Flip Happy solely for this. Although I was not a biggest fan of the Roasted Chicken, I will probably be back in the next week to get the Cinnamon & Sugar Crêpe again.. and will probably try a different entree. If you enjoy a good, quality crêpe you definitely need to make a trip down to Flip Happy Crêpes, you won't be disappointed! I'm going to give them 3.5/5 stars! ★★★✬☆

Check out there blog/menu here!

Walton's Fancy & Staple

Going into Walton's I had high expectations, knowing that it was started by the same people that brought us Bess Bistro (right down the street). What a refreshing menu and atmosphere! Walton's is the perfect place for coffee or lunch and wears several impressive hats. With full bakery, deli, coffee menus Walton's has much to offer, and lets not forget about the fully-stocked flower store in the back! All aspects of the restaurant/deli mesh really well together, and the atmosphere is able to blend a classic and modern French feel. The Deli menu has a range of sandwiches and salads that boast organic and exceptional ingredients. I asked what their most popular sandwich was, and the woman said the Roast Beef Bleu was the most popular and her personal favorite. I had already been eyeing the sandwich - so it was a done deal. The Roast Beef Blue came with Gorgonzola, Red Onions, Watercress, with a horseradish aioli all on Rye.

My Roast Beef Bleu!

They had my favorite flavor of Zapp's Potato Chips :Voodoo (a secret cajun twist of flavors)... I was in heaven. The sandwich came out piping hot, and I could already tell I was going to love it. The toasted rye bread was lightly buttered and glistened just enough so I knew it wasn't soggy.  I probably should of waited a minute or three before indulging myself, but I just couldn't wait. The Rye was amazing, and I am not personally a big Rye fan. The sandwich complemented itself nicely, the Gorgonzola was not too overpowering, while the horseradish aioli gave a fresh, spice aftertaste that was perfect with the roast beef. This was one of my favorite sandwiches in Austin thus far, up there with the likes of Fricano's Deli! I would recommend Walton's, a perfect place for lunch or for a quality coffee stop - I can't wait to go again 5/5 ★★★★★!