Frances "Fern" S.'s Profile

I am sorry to do this to you, 24 Diner, but I gotta downgrade your stars. Why? Because prices went up, the hash no longer comes with a fresh fruit bowl, and it has de-evolved into a salty, greasy mess. What happened? : (

Friendly staff, but big downside is that they don't stock that much womens gear.  (And what they do have doesn't look too good.) Their in-store brand BiLT is iffy at best. I bought a $20 pair of leather BiLT gloves for my motorcycle class, and by the end of the 4 hour field session, the backs of my hands were red and irritated from the inside stitching. Terrible design, I cannot wear those gloves again. Not a bad place, but there are better shops in town for sure.

I am so confused. A month ago, I was in the market for a scooter. I checked out a few places around town, had my heart set on a Honda Ruckus (which I found out are sorta impossible to find), and went to Urban Moto on a whim after a fruitless search. I had read up on the Genuine Motor Company and wasn't too crazy about their scooters, based on looks alone. Well, Val was exceedingly helpful and friendly, answered all my newbie questions, and even let me test ride a few scooters. Long story short, I was pleased with the customer service, changed my mind about Genuine, and walked out of there with a 2012 Buddy (and accessories). Val bid us a goodbye, until 500 miles, when I was to come back for a tune-up and oil change.

Fast forward to today, where I am at about 533 miles and counting. I've called their shop in the past week, left a message, attempted to email them- and got an automated email back saying that the address was not valid. What the heck?? I still love my Buddy, but I cannot be tied down to one shop for repair, and to be honest, I expected better service and not a total dropping off the face of the earth no response. Based on one of the reviews below, I am going to check out Horsepower Farm this week to get the necessary work done.

I just bought a cute little red Buddy scooter, and wanted to be good and legal. I looked around for a weekend class to take and settled on Austin Moto Academy because it was relatively central and has a neat coat of arms : )

In this 100 degree weather, I opted to take their weekend Basic Rider Class, riding in the morning and classroom session in the afternoon. Turned out to be a smart move (burning up in long sleeves!), and I'm so thankful they offered this schedule. I had an awesome instructor, Just, who went through the MSF curriculum quickly, but efficiently. No falling asleep here! She was also a very supportive and patient instructor on the field, and explained each technique fully and many times so that it was drilled into our heads (Slow, Look, Push, Roll!). I was only 1 of the 2 scooter riders, and felt like I got the instruction I needed and never felt like she was only teaching the motorcyclists. My other classmates were from all different walks of life, and we had a blast taking the class together. It was also neat that they share space with Austin Studios, as we got to walk past a set in construction. After the class, I passed the DMV test with flying colors and got my license.

I cannot recommend this class highly enough!

I'm a new scooter rider and I decided to do some research to try and find some decent looking gear. After a short while browsing online megastores, it quickly grew clear to me that 98% motorcycle jackets designed for women looked like crappy, less technical versions of the mens. Lame!! The only brand that I found that met my expectations was the Dutch brand REV'IT. I looked up their dealers, and found that the only place in town that had them was Lone Star Cycles. I scooted over there and found a great selection of REV'IT gear, and a very helpful and friendly manager, Kathy. With her patient assistance, I bought a pair of leather summer REV'IT monster gloves on sale, and the womens Tornado mesh jacket I had my eye on. Even though I do not own a motorcycle and am not part of the demographic who would ever purchase a BMW or Triumph (or touring) bike, I had a very positive experience here.

I've checked out a number of other motorcycle shops in town and I will recommend this as the best place to go!

Took my kitty here when he had been abnormally lethargic for a few days. I didn't have an appointment, but the staff squeezed me in; I only waited about 20 minutes. Dr. Cotnam took a look at him and couldn't find anything wrong. When I got home, I was worried and asked my husband about it, and he looked closer and found fleas. Then I went back the next day and bought some (pricey) flea medication. How a vet cannot tell if an animal has fleas is beyond me. Despite this egregious oversight, I still go here because the staff is friendly and it is 2 minutes from my house. But from reading these reviews, if one of my cats had a major issue, I would probably go somewhere else.

Stopped by this place on a 30 mile group ride out to the airport. Inside is like stepping back into time. Inside, you may find knick knacks, dusty old paperbacks, tools, junk food, and other random stuffs. Outside, there are friendly cats lounging on cardboard boxes. And defunct gas pumps and a really rusty old truck. If you are ever in this area, you should stop by for a soda.

I've passed by this place a number of times and gazed wistfully at the lunch patrons sitting on the patio. (I love it when people sit outside restaurants and eat! It's so European and really improves the texture of downtown.) I did a little research on Yelp and was puzzled by the average 3 star review; some people adored the food, some people found the service offensive. I got the chance to check it out on my lunch break today, and i'm surprised to say that Annie's is perfectly centered in the "OK" category. I ordered the roasted vegetable pizza and caesar salad, sampled my friend's bowtie pasta, and got a slice of cranberry lemon bread to go. Nothing was spectacular, nothing was god awful. (To the person who thinks Annie's has the best pizza in town, I urge you to go try actual pizza establishments.) There were some slightly brown, wilted lettuce pieces in my salad, which was unfortunate. The pizza was not bad; it just tasted like peppery veggies, cheese, and olive oil on chewy bread.

The food looked upscale, but the flavors and ingredients were seriously lacking in creativity and passion. I got the impression that the chef's merely followed recipes, and eschewed going out on a limb. Definitely did not taste any love in this food either. Also, I am a huge dessert fan, so it takes a lot for a baked good to impress me. See: Barrie Cullinan. Why eat something if it's not freaking amazing? Apparently nobody else in that packed room was asking themselves that question.

The whole place felt like a semi-fancy cafeteria at table-service prices, and it was loud (like a cafeteria). Only bright side is that the staff is really friendly and our food came out quickly. There aren't too many lunch establishments downtown and while I did not feel impressed upon by Annie's, I might consider returning for that very reason.

I've been to Noble Pig all of 3 times, and I'm so lucky to have started my new job right across the street from it.

The first time I went to grab a jar of house made pickles for my foodie cousin for Xmas. I picked the spicy variety, and boy, are they spicy! I liked them, but the non-spicy kind is much more mild and munchable. They also sell cake jars here, which are a fairly new addition to Austin's dessert scene.

The 2nd time I got the BLT sandwich. The house smoked bacon is not the measly crispy strips you find in normal BLTs. No, it is full-on thick slabs of pork belly. It had a good balance of fat to lean meat, unlike the pork belly slider at Odd Duck, which is too rich for my palate. The tomatoes were also roasted to moist perfection. I also snagged a small jar of the spiced chocolate pudding,  which was super creamy, dense and spiced. The anise came on pretty strong, which is great if you like anise (and black licorice, absinthe, aquavit...). Anise is one of the spices featured in the 5 spice oatmeal as well. My husband ordered the duck pastrami sandwich, and the few bites I took of it were amazing. I had never had duck pastrami before, and instead of being heavy or greasy, it was tender, light, and paired well with the thinly sliced rye pickles and Russian sauce. We struck up a conversation with the friendly owner and chef, John Bates, who was more than happy to chat about his business and food technique.

The 3rd time I went I got the Noble Pig and added rye pickles. Super tasty blend of smoked meats. I accidentally got it with mayo, and although I never eat sandwiches with mayo, this tasted so awesome I didn't care. Originally, I had wanted to get the duck pastrami sandwich, but John explained to me that the smoker was acting up today. He admitted that he would never want to serve a subpar sandwich, so that's why it was off the menu today. Such devotion! I also got a side of the country potato salad, which was very uniquely seasoned. I saw whole mustard seeds, bits of egg white, and detected a prominent presence of thyme (?).

I have no doubts that I'll be back again soon to give John my business. I hear the daily specials are pretty tasty- today's is a brisket sandwich with cheddar and a sprinkling of jalapenos, with au jus. If you consider yourself a food lover and want to have your taste buds tickled by expertly house made ingredients and challenged by unconventional spices and seasonings, then you must give Noble Pig a try. The denizens and nine-to-fivers in this area really should thank John for creating a small oasis in this desert of fine breakfast and lunch establishments that is North Austin.

long lines for mediocre trailers.

the good trailers stayed out of gypsy picnic for a reason...

if you're going to do this again, have good bands, more trailers, and make sure it's held somewhere that has space/parking for both.

really, really crappy guys.
i love food trailers so much, but this was awful enough to make me walk literally five miles away to find another non-participating trailer to eat at.

if you can convince anyone to let you do this again next year, don't screw it up again.