New Laotian Dinner + Swim Club Preview 🏊♀️
June 27, 2024
Hi Y'all!
I'm excited about all the new spots opening in Austin right now, which mostly feels like cocktail bars, swim clubs, and causal Asian eateries like you'll see below. In the meantime, I actually escaped to Europe last minute (ridiculous statement, I know) because I'm treating myself after being in business for 6 years with my own PR company — and 13 for my personal brand, Chekmark Eats — after a really event-heavy spring and before I start two new projects in August. The other day, my friend Jacoby asked me what my biggest piece of advice would be to my younger self when I first started my company, and my answer was to take real vacations — it doesn't count if you are working remote and checking your email! When you run a business in the service industry for clients and you're trying to meet every single person in town like I did 6 years ago, you might forget to take a chill pill until you hit burn-out. While it might be difficult to feel like you can step away, I'd say I've now learned that this time you take stepping away enriches your creativity by putting it back into yourself and making sure you can hang throughout the rest of the year — this probably can be applied to relationships and anything else you are working hard toward! Now with that being said, if you have been feeling like starting your own brand or going out on your own or putting your art out into the world finally, this is your encouragement to GO FOR IT!
~AR
NEW RESTAURANT REC
Lao'd Bar
Asian food is my favorite cuisine, so I was glad to see this new Laotian spot open in Austin because the only other Laotian restaurant I’ve been to is Khe-Yo! The shelves are full of knick knacks, elephant lamps, beer bottles, and the dining room holds colorful floral tables and blue stools, but we sat at the bar and ordered there. They have frozen drinks, one alcoholic and one non-alcoholic, and they’re cooking all the food out of the SXSE food truck in the back, which was the owner’s original concept if you ever tried it. My favorite things on the menu came from the grill. The Ribeye Steak Skewer with Lao barbecue sauce and pickled cabbage was so tender that it easily fell off the skewer with one bite into my mouth, and combined with the Chicken Thigh Skewer with yellow curry and chimichurri, those were the two best bites that I could not stop eating — we actually shared them, but I wish I had my own of each one! I’ve been craving red meat lately, and I would go back just for those skewers since they’re so tender and made with quality meat. Other highlights are the Classic Lahb with sauteed ground chicken that surprisingly wasn’t too spicy and served as a huge portion, and the Crispy Fried Rice with red curry and Jasmine rice. Because it’s far east, we paired our meal here with a pickleball playdate at Other Racquet to make a day of it.
HIKING REC
River Place Nature Trail
This is the ONLY hiking trail in Austin. There, I said it. As an avid hiker, this to me means elevation, views, and a new type of topography throughout your journey, not just walking on a flat trail near trees. Now, I’m not knocking the Greenbelt or Town Lake trail, which I walk about 3 times a week, I’m just saying River Place Nature Trail, which is a 6-mile in and out trail with more than 5,000 built in steps from the natural wood/trees and an uphill path that ends with a view over the trees, is the best hike in town. I love hearing my heart pumping, the creeks with water trickling, and a new thing to see at every turn as you complete the climb. It’s about a 30 min drive from downtown but the last 10 minutes is windy throughout the neighborhood so it’s also a very soothing drive. I like to do a combination of run/walk and it’s about 1 hour 45 min with that or 3 hours just walking.
BAR REC
Swim Club
When I saw the branding and pool views of the new Swim Club, my heart leaped and my eyes stuck onto my phone screen with excitement! Where did this place come from, and Travis Tober from my favorite bar, Nickel City, is a part of it? A friend of mine was on the opening team and invited me in last Friday for a little dipping preview, and I wasn't sure if I was going to love it or think it was a tad cheesy. The hotel lobby of the Downright, which is the old Sheraton, is pretty bright, and the coffee shop makeover feels hip. Head downstairs, where disco-style designs transport you into the Swim Club with wallpaper and disco photographs, and then you'll walk through a lounge area with a pool table into the main restaurant and bar area that used to be the former hotel's actual pool. Your mouth kind of drops taking in all the unique design in a way that is so original you can't compare it to anything else you've seen in Austin in a good way. I jumped straight in the water while others hung out inside the space with the DJ, food, and drinks, but you can enjoy all of this outside on the lawn chairs sitting atop the hot pink painted floor or in the water, where you can peek into the dining room! I ran into my friend Eleanor, who makes the best videos in town, and I can't stop laughing at all the moves she caught of me slipping and sliding in the pool. To access Swim Club, either book a dining reservation in the dining room (for pizza, tacos, sandwiches) and then hang at the pool free of charge, or book a pool spot through Resort Pass. Go for the Skinny Dippin’ Cocktail, with coconut-washed mezcal, strawberry-infused Aperol, lime, and ginger turmeric, and someone please tell me how the frozen Aperol Slush or frozen Oaxacan on Water turns out! Since I went before it opened, I can't say what the vibe will actually be like, but I'm interested to see what kind of crowd hangs out here. There is so much pink, so if you're a single straight guy, I’m guessing your odds of finding a date are going to be superb!
SOUP DUMPLING REC
Dumpling World
I LOVE dumplings — soup dumplings and shrimp and chive are my favorite, especially when they have just the right thinness that isn’t too thick and a little crunch on the outside, like it's been struck with love from an extra hot pan — but not deep fried! Dumpling World just opened in the Triangle from Sugar Land, and I went with my chef friends Jo Chan and Amanda Rockman to check out this new spot with several styles categorized by: Soup, Steamed, Boiled, Spicy and Sour, Pot Stickers, Pan Fried, and then a whole noodle section. Yeah, I know that's a lot to choose from. You order off a QR code (boooo), but honestly, it's fine here, and the food comes out fast so you can pound those dumplings. I loved the soup dumplings, but I still think Lin and Qi serve the best in town — I like their sauce pairing more. Since I like my dumpling "crust" (if you will) on the thinner side, I'd pass on the Steamed and try the Spicy and Sour for something new and brothy. The Pan Fried Pork Soup Bun excited me the most as I've never had a contraption like this. It was like a little cake with some crunch on the bottom, but still soft on the top, and filled with liquid and meat. I'm still on the hunt to find a place who makes better dumplings than Lin!
SHOP REC
Lovecraft
I find recommending shopping in Austin for visitors to be a bit tough because I don't want to send them to the Domain, and we don’t have that many local boutiques/designers like other larger cities, which I prefer. Reformation is my favorite store, and I do love our vintage selections! I recently took a friend visiting me to Lovecraft, and it def gave me a little pep in my step seeing the best earrings I’ve seen in town, a lot of metalwork and gold jewelry, some beauty products, swimsuits, and summer wear. If you have friends in town, this is an easy place to hit up, along with Kindred Spirits, Takeheart, and Charm School Vintage all on the same block that isn’t South Congress.
PR + MARKETING
Love&Cookies Opening
Nearly four months after the opening of Love&Cookies’ flagship location on South Lamar, we’re thankful to the media at Austin Monthly, Tribeza, Austin Business Journal, Austin Lifestyle Magazine, Do512, Fox 7 and more for covering our opening. We opened the bakery with a line out the door at 9 a.m. opening day thanks to @WhenWhereWhatAustin, and we doubled the @GetLoveandCookies instagram followers after preparing a detailed step-by-step Instagram strategy and guide for the team. We also hosted a preview party with interactive elements to garner social media buzz and to introduce the community to owner Ashley Cameron the day before opening. Over the month of May, we partnered with the Cafe at the Loren to offer a selection of treats at the popular hotel, and we’re very excited for a few new items coming soon. If you have an event coming up, you have to order their cute custom Jenny Cakes, or try the cookie cake that has been flying off the shelves after @365ThingsAustin shared it to announce our opening!
NIGHT OUT REC
Visitant Social Club
This place IS CRAZY. A couple weekends ago on Saturday, a group of 6 of us Ubered here to what we thought was Project Disco, but all the doors were shut — even though it said open — and we've since learned from the staff that it is only for private parties. We meandered into the backyard for a few, piddling to figure out where to go instead, when all of a sudden, Kenzie walked up to the truck in the back and noticed that they were in fact playing music inside. I pressured Nate to open the back of the truck door, accidentally surprising the staff, and then we saw that this hidden truck had a bar to serve us! What a normal person does is ring their doorbell to go in with their group, but we didn't see it. We also didn't have a reservation on a Saturday at 10 p.m. but since it was empty, they sat us. They only had 4 batched cocktails to choose from, however, they served them with light-up glasses so that was fun! It's intimate and they played amazing music from my teen days like Usher, Robyn, and other things that made us sing and dance in our seats. The drinks were very sweet, and we didn't love them, but it was a fun experience to try and since we had a group, it was worth it. I wouldn't go here on a date or with one other person though, but I would laugh all night with close friends.
ENTERTAINING REC
Tinned Fish Party
A friend messaged me to ask how to eat tinned fish after she saw my tinned fish party at my house, so I figured I’d do a dedicated section here to share. Everyone knows I love the brand Fishwife. I often eat it right out of the tin on a plate with a fork without anything else, but when I’m “cooking” a nourishing meal for myself, I add pickled veggies, homemade creamy coconut rice, sauteed kale, chickpeas, and edamame to craft an “everything but the kitchen sink” kind of bowl. For my party in particular, one friend brought a whole smoked salmon, another brought homemade English muffins, and I put out the Sardines and Smoked Trout from Fishwife, Octopus from my Lisbon trip, and Mussels from Jose Gourmet I first tried at LoLo. The accouterments on the table included: crackers, nuts, fresh tomatoes, sliced radishes, peaches, cucumbers, olives, baked carrots, and my homemade chimichurri to make a fun spread with something for everyone. I find that at some parties, there’s just chips and guac and unhealthy things, but having fish and veggies and crackers makes this feel like you’re eating a real meal and not just empty snacking, so I recommend it for your next party spread, and just ask everyone to bring a tin to add. It was really sweet that so many of my friends who weren’t sure what “tinned fish” was were very excited to buy and bring some!