The following is a list of restaurants/pubs I’ve been in while in Austin:

• Chuggin Monkey – Already mentioned in a previous entry. It’s all about the backyard patio/balcony in my book.
• Dona Emilia – Fantastic salmon. Also, get the Sangria.
• Buffalo Wild Wings – Standard bar fare, but pretty good. I sampled the popcorn shrimp and the potato skins.
• Paradise – Nice atmosphere for a get-together, but it really wasn’t my favorite place. I guess I didn’t like the noise.
• Bouldin Creek – This is by far the hippiest place I’ve been to in Austin. This was where the Austin Metblog Meetup was. Very good vegetarian food. I highly recommend the grilled cheese sandwich with basil.
• Shady Grove – Get the breaded deep-fried catfish. ‘Nuff said.
• Salt Lick BBQ (in Driftwood, TX) – Holy smokes, this is some kick ass barbecue. We literally stuffed ourselves with brisket, ribs, sausage, and all the veg trimmings.
• Cafe DeVille – Relaxed laid-back atmosphere with couches in the yard. Nice touch.
• Side Bar – I didn’t like the dense smokey bar so much, but I did like the backyard patio. I’m noticing a pattern in my preference for bars — there has to be a backyard area where it isn’t so dark and smoky.
• Red Eyed Fly – Awesome back patio area, which gave me the feeling of being in a cabin in the middle of the woods. There was a covered area for the stage show, and an uncovered area for mingling about.

Once I find links to the above places, I’ll fit them in.