Must Have This: Happy Hour

Friday last, we were taken, as is fairly frequently the case, out for beverages. It had been quite a week, what with a light snow and rolling blackouts doting the Texas countryside. The days had been long, the nights had been cold, and we were absolutely ready for a drink. The time had come for Happy Hour.

Happy Hour, by it's very own self, deserves a Must Have This post. What's not to love? The work day is over (at last), the bright young things (and some a little less than young, but still bright) are out and about, the sky is lovely (that purple!) and the bartender has just set down an exquisite cocktail in front of us (and it's about time). And of course, what make this particular time so particularly happy is that it's done for markedly less coin than if one had engaged in the same scenario on a Saturday, or even later in the same evening perhaps.

So to downtown we were whisked, ready to enjoy a bite and a beverage (or two or five), parking be damned. Having moved to Austin only 5 months ago, there are still a plethora of restaurants we have not yet been to, although we are making a concerted effort to remedy this situation. (read about Trace, a restaurant we are terribly excited to try as told by the lovely Austin Eavesdropper)

Our destination was Malaga, the wine and tapas bar. (We find it distressing that we do not have pictures of our own to offer of the trip- our device woes are ongoing, but hopefully they will be remedied in the near future. The picture below is from their website) The idea of tapas is cosmopolitan and playful and a touch seductive, we think- eating from the same plate, the give and take of sharing, and also wine (of course). Malaga did not disappoint in fulfilling our expectations.



The space is quite big, but feels surprisingly intimate once a majority of the tables are full. The colors are rich and exotic and warm- evoking images of Morocco and spice merchants. We were surprised by the number of waitstaff, as well as their fluidity- while one specific waitress always took the order, plates were delivered by many different persons, and more than one stopped by the table to assure our comfort and enjoyment. In any event, we felt well taken care of, which is exactly our preference.

The stars of Happy Hour -aside your host- are the drink specials. Malaga has quite an array of them- and there's something for every taste. A wide variety of specialty cocktails are available for $5, as well as varying beers for varying discounts. We, however, drank wine- select glasses are quite a find at $4.50. The most seductive offering is the pairing of a glass of wine and a tapas plate for $8. The tapas available are hardly your average happy hour bar fare- not a single tapas on the list is fried, and everything we tried was incredibly delicious (the pincho moruno (pork bites) and albondigas en tomate (meatballs in tomato sauce) were our favorites). Our one complaint? Happy hour is only from 5 to 7PM, so we encourage you to make the most of it.

Malaga is located at 440 W 2nd St in Austin.

Must Have This: Concert

The highly-publicised relocation of Austin City Limits finds the live music show in the still-smelling-of-construction Moody Theater in the base of the still-blocking-traffic-due-to-construction W Hotel and Residences (which is also home to the expectantly-not-smelling-of-construction restaurant Trace, which we cannot wait to try) (also, we have to say, while we love that Austin has a W- and we would like to hear the explaination why Houston does not- and we do find the building moderately agreeable, we are curious as to the lack of advertising- how are we to recognize this particular building as a W property?) (this paragraph, we are finding, is terribly parenthetical) (we just felt it worth pointing out) (so there) (we digress)

Coming up in two weeks are two Must See tapings: Willie Nelson (on Sunday 2/13) and Robyn the following Thursday (2/17). While you may have heard of Mr. Nelson (and his recent extracuricular activities), you may not have heard of Robyn. This, we think, is a low down dirty shame.

Robyn is a Swedish pop singer who we have loved since 1997's "Show Me Love". The time between that particular song and this particular taping is certainly an interesting story, and she has put out some delectable music in that time, but we will let you google those things should you choose. (We will say that 2008's Robyn is an incredibly solid album and very much worth a listen or a few)

We will, however, strongly encourage you to attend her performance (and for those of you located otherwheres, this is the schedule of dates- we do know she plays Dallas 2/18 and Houston (!!!) 2/19) for the taping of ACL. Her recent Body Talk EPs and subsequent LP have caused quite a stir amongst critics, and were certainly in heavy rotation on our devices in 2010 (the LP is great, but both the EPs are equally excellent in their own rights).

And if our endorsement of the quality of her music wasn't enough, the tickets are only $15USD. We'll repeat that: fifteen dollars for an amazing live show. Great music, a true live performer and an inexpensive ticket? We cannot put it any plainer: GO SEE ROBYN.

For samples of her music, go here or here.


Post Script:We are infinitely excited to see that there is a W hotel opening in Taipei, one of our favorite international cities.

Must Have This: Event

We, like everyone else, love a good party. In addition to that rather obvious statement, we also, again like everyone else (or at least everyone else worth knowing and associating with), like to eat out. A good party just isn't good unless there are refreshments- eatables and drinkables befitting the occasion.

We are not quite sure what, exactly, the occasion is for Austin's Sip and Savor, but with over 35 restaurants and bars participating, we have decided said occasion is irrelevant. Similar to a "restaurant week," Sip and Savor encourages participating organizations to offer specialty drinks, chef's menus, or prix fixe meals. Where Sip and Savor differs is the list of participating organizations- they encourage everyone to participate- not only the more refined dining establishments (the general contenders of most "restaurant weeks"), but trailers, bars, casual spots, even Whole Foods.

So which bars and restaurants are participating? Go here for the complete list, as well as information about what the participant is offering.

And which are we the most excited about? We thought you'd never ask:


Judges' Hill Chef Rob Snow has created a 3 course prix fixe for $25/person that looks delicious. We can't decide which sounds better- the pecan-crusted trout or the Puerco Pibil (habenero and citrus braised pork).





Sagra This restaurant has been on our list for a minute now, and Sip and Savor is the perfect reason to go. A 3 course offering for $35/person that includes too many delicious options to choose from- among them butternut squash ravioli, scallops, filet mignon, gnocchi.






The Melting Pot We find fondue to be a curious, if captivating, method of dining. As a result, we were excited to see The Melting Pot listed as a participant. We were even more excited by the menu- 3 courses for $30/person- including the choice of goat cheese and ratatouille raviolis, peppercorn crusted New York strip, or chicken Provencal.



There are, of course, others that we are already familiar with on the list (Frank and Kerbey Lane for example) that we encourage supporting. In any event, do not idle in choosing- Sip and Savor only lasts through the 30th of January.