I realize it's a little later in the day than I usually post the Fried-day blog, but here it is nonetheless.
I've written about fried catfish on Fried-day, and I've also written about Lone Star Tavern on Fried-day, but I've never written about Lone Star Tavern's fried catfish on Fried-day.
The hotel bar is the social blank canvas of our world. Anything could happen in a hotel bar or nothing could happen. It all depends on the quantity and color of paint available, I suppose.
Also hotel bars usually feel modern, but they're as old as anything still thriving in the modern world. For as long as their have been hotels and inns, there's been the intrigue of who you might see in a hotel bar. Earlier this year, I entered a hotel bar in San Antonio where Teddy Roosevelt brought his Rough Riders once upon a time.
The hotel bar might be the most mystical and alluring of all drinking establishments.
In Tina Fey's book "Bossypants" she relates what it felt like to write a sketch for Saturday Night Live that she knew was a flop and then the cruelty of having to watch that sketch actually air.
But she made a profound point. She wrote "You can go back to panning for gold on Monday."
That's kind of how I feel about my own writing some days. And so it's only fair and honest to say that's kind of how I feel about trying to put together the "Month In Reviews" this month. So I've pulled out a couple of great things, but mostly we're going to go back to panning for gold in May.
Two years ago, I spent the spring and summer in another country. I played golf and became a regular at the world's best golf pub. It was, at times, something like heaven.
But I still missed home, which is to say I missed Texas and Mexican food.
I knew all along I would dedicate a Fried-day blog to donuts.
By the way, there is a variety of ways to spell donuts or doughnuts (preferred Wikipedia spelling) or Do-Nuts (the Shipley spelling). I'm going with donuts. It's just easier, you know?
So today was the day that donuts made their Fried-debut (that's Fried-day combined with debut). I think it's completely appropriate that the Fried-day donuts were purchased before 6:15 in the morning and taken directly to a church.
Today will end with an encore.
Not for me. Though I do intend to be pretty fantastic today. Today will, for me anyway, near its conclusion with the crowd at The Drum in Austin calling for the Black Keys to play an encore.
Between now and then, I'm going to need energy, so I began my day with breakfast at Taqueria Mi Jalisco, where I ordered huevos rancheros.
After a long weekend, it's back to work.
Wait, was it a long weekend? I guess Friday wasn't technically a holiday at all, but it still kind of felt like one. And then it was so nice outside that I'm just assuming that all of you hit Saturday as hard as I did. More on that in a blog later today.
But since it's Monday and I'm assuming everyone had a good weekend, I'm therefore also assuming that everyone needs some incentive to get through this week. Have no fear. I have just the thing — the Cafe Homestead farm to table dinner coming up on Saturday.
There's two ways to make a great burger.
Make it exotic and/or make it cohesive. The former description, obviously, means to put something like a fried egg or goat cheese or liquified gold on it. The latter description might be confusing, so I'll offer a little more of an explanation. If a burger has excellent ingredients AND it can be eaten without falling apart, then that makes it a better burger.
It's tax day, I guess.
Actually, apparently taxes aren't late as long as they are mailed by tomorrow. This is what I'm hearing and choosing to trust.
Nevertheless, I think tax day is a day when everyone deserves to treat themselves to a cupcake. I had a chocolate one (pictured) at The Olive Branch. I'm not saying tax day is stressful for everyone because I'm sure there are a lot of people who are fastidious and don't even think about it.
Thank yous need to be said.
Thank you to Janet Cherry, proprietor of the cottage bakery Cherry On Top, which provided the birthday cake for our WacoFork birthday party on Saturday evening. Cherry's half vanilla-half chocolate sheet cake with the WacoFork design in the icing was a big hit at the party. Make a note that Cherry On Top is now listed in our directory, so if you need a great tasting cake that also looks fantastic, or you're jonesing for some cupcakes made specifically for you, call Cherry On Top.
