I’ve fallen in love with Austin. It reminded me of LA or Portland but uniquely a hip city down south. I loved the retro neon signs and the string-lights outdoor dining. I saw so many adorable restaurants and shops with trendy logos. The houses were also uniquely custom built and looked super beautiful from the curb.

 People here are pretty hip (yes, hipsters galore) but also trendy, health-conscious and liberal. Austinites seem to also love puns and graffiti walls. The Uber drivers are the most friendliest and chattiest I’ve ever met.

Austin just had this unique modern wild west vibe to it. Maybe it was the desert-like cacti landscape and classic signs for the local saloon. I just love it.

Sights

Barton Springs was this unique outdoor natural spring pool. It was perfect for a hot summer day and unlike any place I’ve ever visited.

South Congress is a small neighborhood lined with unique shops and restaurants. It’s worth checking out and having dinner there.

6th street was closed for SXSW but that area is lined with bars. This is where live music and nightlife is at. Food trucks are plentiful that it starts to resemble street food in Asia.

In my opinion, Capitol State building was nothing special but an iconic symbol of Texas.

Food

Aside from all the brainfood from SXSW, I was impressed with the food I ate in Austin! Maybe because I had no expectations or never heard about the food scene in Austin but most of the meals I had were on-par with my top foodie cities like LA or New York.

While it’s not a city for Asian food, I didn’t expect there to be such great ramen from Ramen Tatsu-Ya or Korean rice bowls from Chi-Lantro.

Tacos and barbecue were must-eats and they lived up to my expectations. Torchy’s Tacos was fine but I felt Pueblo Viejo was more authentic. I didn’t do the 4-hr wait for Franklin BBQ’s brisket but instead had Stiles Switch BBQ and the brisket was delicious. I never knew brisket could taste this good…

Gus’ Southern Fried Chicken was deserving of the hype… crispy, moist and not to greasy. Gourdough’s donuts desserts were delicious and not overwhelming sweet.

It wasn’t just unhealthy eats at Austin. There were so many healthy spots that were really great —Flower Child and Picnik were delicious. I also had a great Acai Bowl and smoothie from Blenders and Bowls.

I’ll definitely be back again to eat more, see more and just hangout in this hip fun city. I have to go back and share this experience with Chi.