Yoshi Ramen is open for business! Stacy Chen, owner of Veggie Heaven, has opened a new ramen shop near UT and Hyde Park. Chen was inspired to open Yoshi Ramen in part of her grandmother whom had her own ramen business in Japan. From Dan Dan noodles to bubble tea to Austin’s first(?) ramen burger (which will be available around February 15) Yoshi Ramen has many options you’re sure to love — they even have ramen for vegans. So if you’re anything like me and like to order based on Instagram aesthetic, you need to stop by this quirky space for some beautiful pictures, good eats and a fun atmosphere.
I had a great time trying a couple of the ramen options on the menu, leaving highly impressed, I definitely will be back and have recommend Yoshi Ramen to all my friends. I’m super stoked to try the Ramen Burger and add it to my Instagram feed (wink wink)!
See ya there!
Yoshi Ramen
3320 Harmon Ave
Austin, TX 78705
512.243.6161
There’s a new Tex-Mex contender in town, and I officially am head over heels. Cyclone Anaya’s is a Houston native that has finally ventured their way to the 512. It’s no secret The Domain is one of the fastest growing attractions in the city and Cyclone Anaya’s will fit right in. By adding more food and more fun, I’m officially adding Cyclone’s to the top of my list and here’s why…
The Interior + Exterior
When you first walk in you are immediately mesmerized by a giant, custom made, metal marquee reading “ATX.” I seriously need one of these signs in my apartment! You will also see lanterns hanging around with actual cyclone-fires spinning on the inside, make sure to look up! Also, adding a piece of the original location, the Tex Mex chain has a rectangular sign hanging along the wall reading, “Cyclone Anaya’s Inn Mexican Food.” As you can tell a lot of time and love was put into the interior for this location. The exterior also has some fine details, with a huge patio and a fire place, you are sure to enjoy the vibes as much you will enjoy the food.
Cyclone Anaya’s prides themselves on having an open kitchen. This is where the customer has the ability of peeking into the kitchen and cooks (in Spanish you say “La Cocina”), where you can see the food being served to order and the flour tortillas and rotisserie chicken being made in real time.
Now we get to the best part: the food. By the way, huge shoutout to Chef Jason for introducing me to some of the best menu items Cyclone Anaya’s has to offer — I was highly impressed!
FOR STARTERS
Chile Con Queso with Taco MeatFried PlantainsCampechana (new to the menu)Nachos (1/2 chicken, 1/2 beef)
MAIN ENTREES
Taco Al CarbonBeef Brisket Tacos topped with Purple SlawBeef BurritoTop: Summer Special: beef enchilada, beef crispy taco and a chalupa served with guacamole Bottom: Enchiladas Anaya’s: gourmet enchiladas, two red corn tortillas filled with charbroiled marinated chicken or beef fajita in a tasty blend of cheese, mushrooms, onions and topped with chile ancho sauce and melted cheese
DESSERT
Tres Leches
Overall,
I highly recommend Cyclone Anaya’s
Quality Tex-Mex
Officially on my top 3 places for Tex-Mex in Austin
You guys! If you follow me on social media you know that I have an obsession with BRUNCH. Every week I anticipate eating some chicken and waffles, pancakes, or eggs Benedict over coffee on a beautiful sunfilled weekend! I wanted you guys to take a look at Cane Rosso’s new brunch menu, it’s the first time Cane Rosso offers brunch — so you know it’s a big milestone for them!
Last weekend I visited the pizzeria located in Sunset Valley, and left with a full stomach and pure happiness… I mean they have fruity pebble waffles! Scroll down for some yummy pictures and make sure to visit Cane Rosso when you get a chance!
See ya there!
Cane Rosso
4715 S Lamar Blvd #103
Sunset Valley, TX 78745
512.904.0534
On January 12th I visited Modern Market’s new, downtown location for their soft-soft-opening where I was ecstatic to get a first look. If you recall from my last post, a resolution of mine is to eat better in 2018, so I’m really excited to add Modern Market to my rotation! Modern Market is a healthy, fast casual restaurant located adjacent to the Frost Bank Tower. If you’re vegan, vegetarian or simply like to eat clean, Modern Market is for you!
Everyone working here is happy to serve you, full of smiles and knowledgable on their menu items. I was fortunate enough to meet Chef Josh where he explained to me his vision for Modern Market and where he gets his appreciation for eating well and how happy he is to feed the city of Austin. Josh was happy to introduce me to his new creation: the Curry Salmon Bowl. This warm heirloom rice, with sustainable salmon, braised kale, coconut sweet potato curry, toasted coconut and green curry was heavenly!
Curry Salmon Bowl
I also had the pleasure of meeting Maddie, the assistant general manager for the Modern Market downtown, Austin location. Maddie is excited to be downtown and could not be happier about this new location — Soul Cycle is right next door! She has a strong passion for educating people on eating better and it shows through her sincerity and outgoing personality. The menu features vegetarian and vegan options that are highlighted with an asterisk and you can make any item vegan or vegetarian by removing the protein, asking for no cheese and/or replacing regular cheese with daiya (a highly popular vegan cheese).
So if you’re looking for a healthy spot downtown, just finished a ride at Soul Cycle, a run on Town Lake or simply want to impress your friends and family with high quality healthy eats, go to Modern Market. Don’t forget to grab a cookie for desert!
Thai Coconut Salad BowlPulled Pork Banh Mi Toasted SandwichCrimini Kale Brick Oven Pizza (vegan)
See ya there!
Modern Market
401 Congress Avenue
Austin, TX 78701
With 2017 coming to an end, I can’t help but be thankful for all of the changes (good and bad) that have helped me grow as a person these past 12 months. I’m also really grateful for all of the opportunities that have come my way since launching ITSMARKYATX. I’ve always had a fond for detail, photography and writing in general — if you recall from my first blog post, creating content has always been a passion of mine, from being Editor of my high school newspaper to being part of the yearbook committee — and I didn’t really know how to channel my creative energy into my daily life as an adult. Working in tech a lot of things are very black and white, thankfully, my blog has helped me paint all the colors that were missing from my life.
For 2018, I have a lot of goals in mind and I figured I could write this blog post to help jot all of my resolutions down! In the case that I get a creative slump (as I often do) I can look back on this post and remind myself all of the great things I had in mind…
Resolutions
Try to have more fun with family and friends by taking time to live in the moment
I can do this by putting my phone down from time to time, and not feeling the need to put every single second online is a huge goal of mine. Challenge accepted.
I really want to get into writing Yelp reviews and eventually becoming a Yelp Elite
Yelp can be a tricky application because you not only have to write really good reviews, you have to constantly provide feedback that people want to read and see.
Of course, this would add yet another social app to be on top of, so we will see how the year goes…
Moderation, Awareness and Consciousness
I definitely need to be more aware of what I put inside my body… being a food blogger makes it difficult to “eat well” but by simply being more conscious and aware of what I’m eating will make me a lot happier, not to mention healthier.
Yoga! Yoga! Yoga!
I currently have been having some muscle spasms in my back, and have been really, really stressed out lately….. I’m trying to figure out the root of this stress and have considered going to see a therapist. Trying to relax your mind from overthinking too much is harder than you’d think… pray for me y’all… I always try to keep it positive but lately I’ve been in a huge funk and my hormones are definitely off balance.
My doctor has highly recommended for me to do yoga, and I plan on jumping on the bang wagon more seriously in 2018.
Find a Church
I really want to find a church I can attend regularly in Austin that will accept me for who I am. If you have any recommendations let me know.
Self Care
Wether it be through more exercise, exfoliations, massages, facials, getting rid of toxic relationships, saying “no” more or taking a soothing bath from time to time, 2018 will be all about taking care of my body and mind. God’s will.
Blog MORE
A huge resolution of mine is to be more active on my blog!
I have to say that when I started blogging I didn’t expect it to grow as fast as it has, what went from a hobby has turned into something bigger than myself and I would not have it any other way! I have made some great friends and have been able to experience some really good eats and experiences that I would have not been able to do on my own — for that I am forever grateful for the people who “follow” me online and for the people in my life that have encouraged me to follow what seems to come so naturally to me.
So thank YOU! To say I have been holding myself back for some time is an understatement. I was really afraid of opening up to strangers because of my own self doubt and insecurities (I grew up Catholic, okay!), but I’m learning to love myself more and more each day, something I truly feel I would have never been able to feel had it not been for my blog and the hundreds of virtual interactions I make with all of you.
The Year of Happiness
Like Ru Paul says, “If you can’t love yourself, how the hell you gonna love somebody else?” a quote that has stuck with me since first watching Ru Paul’s Drag Race in college. It has truly become a life mantra of mine.
Post More Raw Photos
I’ve learned that people don’t care about the perfect tweaks and touches. I’m excited to post more raw, in-the-moment photos, like the way I used to when I first started Instagram. I want to stop critiquing my work so harshly and just have fun with my content. I’m excited!
Say “I Love You” more to family and friends
I want to be more active as a content creator
I want to show all of you more of what Austin has to offer by creating authentic photos and really fun blog posts that better introduce you to who I am as a person and what I like to do in my city.
A weird obsession I’ve had since say high school (think Laguna Beach era) has been to be a really energetic, positive person that people can follow online, someone you can reach out to whenever you need a recommendation of what to eat and do — blogging has definitely done that for and I absolutely love it.
I love when you guys ask me for a food recommendation, or some tips on “where to go for Tex-Mex,” it really makes my heart warm. So thank you, and never be afraid to ask me for a rec!
I want to take each blog post more professionally. It’s all about the layout!
Mindfulness
I need to get better at saving my money and stop making useless transactions! Until I’m making a triple digit income I’ll start to care a bit less, but for now I have to stay mindful.
An app that has helped me stay up-to-date on all of my spending has been the Mint App, check it out in the App Store if you need help budgeting your hard earned cash. #notsponsored
Thanks to everyone who continues to support my blog shenanigans and foodie adventures around Austin, Texas. All of you have touched my heart in more ways than one, thank you for being my friend.
In 2018 I want to produce a more eclectic variety of content on my blog, I really want to bring a lot of fun and different posts on @markyatx. Obviously, blogging is a big passion of mine (now) and it has really changed the game for me. Originally, I intended on being a life and style blogger, I would currently say that I am more of a food blogger with a fashion forward edge, but on 2018 I plan on mixing the best of both worlds.
With that said some blog (and Instagram) posts that I plan on putting out in 2018 include:
Happy Monday, y’all! The weekend is over and I wanted to share some of my weekend-eats throughout the city. It is no secret that I like to stay loyal to eating/buying local throughout Austin, so in @MarkyATX-fashion, I visited a few trendy spots around town.
Saturday morning, I visited Sa Tén Coffee and Eats, located inside Canopy over on Springdale. Canopy is an East Austin warehouse that has been redeveloped to showcase local art and host creatives alike.
I grabbed a cappuccino to help kick start my morning. Sa Tén has recently partnered with Rosen’s Bagel Co., to provide some traditional bagels and inventive schemers to enhance your bagel experience! I didn’t grab a bagel (this time) I was still full from dinner the night before, but definitely grab one if you’re ever in the area!
Sa Tén Coffee and Eats
916 Springdale, Bldg 3, Ste 101
Austin, TX 78702
Mon – Sun: 7am-10pm
512-524-1544
For #brunch, I went to Unit D Pizzeria — one of my favorite spots to grab pizza — I was invited by Shalou, the owner, and accompanied by my friend Taylor. I was there to test drive Unit D’s new Weekend Lunch! I definitely saved my appetite that day, and was excited to try some of the new sandwiches added to the menu! You can really taste all the love and flavor in each bite when you’re at Unit-D!
Caesar salad with Anchovies
I started with the Caesar salad, and ordered a couple sandwiches and a sausage pizza with egg! Unit D has been testing adding eggs to their pies, and when Shalou asked if I was interested in sampling one, I said “yes” with no hesitation.
A Croissant Sandwich, the best!Turkey SandwichSausage Pizza with Egg on top
Later that evening, I went down to East Austin to sample 1606 East. 1606 East is a food trailer park on the East Side, from Mediterranean, to Poke, the eatery has some really good food, for a really good time.
Food Trailers include:
BLACKENED DRAGON – from chicken, to vegan cauliflower chicken, you don’t want to skip this food truck
AUSTIN HALAL – absolutely loved their humus and falafel’s
POKE ME LONG TIME – funny name, delicious, freaking Poke
TAMALES VITAL – not kidding, these were some high end, authentic tamales
1606 East — Food Truck Park
1606 East 6th St.
Austin, Texas 78702
SUNDAY
Sunday I woke up at 8am, and traveled down to one of my favorite coffee spots on South Congress: Mañana Coffee Juice and Bakeshop.
Drip Coffee from Mañana
Unfortunately, for the rest of the day I forgot my Canon, but did have a few eats around town that I would like to mention. For brunch, I went to Bouldin Creek Cafe with my friends Tyler and Michael. Afterwards, we went to Moojo on Guadalupe, Michael wanted a cookie ice cream sandwich. Tyler and I were craving Bubble Tea, so we went to my favorite spot for squishy pearls: Coco’s Cafe. I ordered a large Avocado Smoothie with extra pearls, and Tyler ordered a small without pearls. Once we each had a treat of our own, we walked over to the brand new mini-Target (which was so freaking awesome by the way, I was so close to buying a Nintendo Switch) and wandered aimlessly wishing we were still in college… simpler times!
Overall, I had a great weekend with friends and can’t believe how quickly the weekend always flies by.
I hope everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving, eat lots of food and enjoy your time with friends and family.
Snooze an A.M. Eatery has a new Fall menu — and it’s totally worth tasting!
Snooze has the coolest interior design
Snooze is one of the best brunch restaurants in Austin, and I’m here to tell you why! When they first opened back in 2015 on North Lamar, the hype was real and this brunch-only chain quickly became a brunching phenomenon. Snooze did so well in the few months they were open, they had to open a second location on South Lamar! Now if that doesn’t prove this place rocks, I don’t know what will… If you live and eat in Austin, you probably know the culinary scene is one of the best in the country — and Snooze is no exception. Typically, you will be waiting in a 30 minute to 2 hour wait (it is that good) and they offer free coffee and games of Jenga while you wait. Currently, Snooze has a new fall menu that is totally worth your while……
Snooze offers a game of Jenga while you wait
On Tuesday, I visited Snooze’s South Lamar location to try some new fall menu items, I was accompanied by my friend Rachel who runs a food Instagram account: 512 Bites. We decided to go on a Tuesday morning, before heading into work. Normally I don’t have time for a sit-down breakfast, but I really wanted to a) sample these new dishes to showcase them on social media and b) didn’t feel like waiting hours in line on a Saturday.
You can seat yourself at the bar, here the wait time is much shorter as you don’t have to put your name on a list and the seats are first-come-first-serve.Coffee and cream to start my morning
Rachel and I decided to seat ourselves outside, where the lighting was best to take all of our foodie pictures. We quickly ordered some coffees to keep us warm — it was a chilly morning! For breakfast we had 2 dishes off the new fall menu and some pancakes. We started with the I like you E’Lote Benedict, consisting of elote corn quinoa cakes topped with poached cage free eggs, chili lime hollandaise, cotija cheese and roasted corn salsa. We also had the Steak + Eggs Benny, consisting of seared hanger steak medallions atop roasted poblano cheddar grit cakes with asparagus, roasted mushrooms and tomato topped with poached cage free eggs, smoked cheddar hollandaise and gremolata. Lastly, Rachel and I shared a Pancake Flight! I was mostly excited to have something sweet that morning, not to mention Snooze has the best pancakes in town! When you order a Pancake Flight you get to pick three of the pancakes from the menu and get to enjoy the best of all worlds.
Right: Steak + Eggs Benny Left: I like you E’Lote BenedictPancake Flight
Our Pancake Flight came with the new fall menu item, Bourbon Street Pumpkin Pancake. This flavor was especially yummy, it consisted of a pumpkin buttermilk pancake topped with bourbon pecan jam, sweet cream cheese drizzle, whipped mascarpone and mocha crumble. The Flight also had the Pineapple Upside Down Pancake, which is a buttermilk pancake with caramelized pineapple chunks, housemade vanilla crème anglaise and cinnamon butter. Thirdly, we had the Pancake of the Day, that day it was a Key Lime Pie flavored pancake (tasted just like my childhood)!
Bourbon Street Pumpkin Pancakes
Our breakfast was consumed way too quickly, Rachel and I enjoyed every second of our meal, we were re able to catch up over brunch and really enjoyed these new fall menu items. And although, the wait can be long on weekends just remember Snooze offers a) free games of Jenga while you wait b) free coffee while you wait and c) has the best pancake combinations in town. So run, don’t walk!
