Mccormick and Schmick's
Seafood Restaurant



We found out about Austin Restaurant week a little late, but did manage to make it out to McCormick and Schmicks to sample their dinner menu.  If you haven't heard of this restaurant week, you should definitely make room for it on your calendar the next time.  The food is always amazing for pretty decent prices (usually for at least 3 courses).


We started off with Fried calamari with sweet Thai chili glaze and sesame seeds and Brushetta with roasted mushrooms and a balsamic glaze.  Both were decent.

For our main entrees, we had the Top Sirloin topped with fried oysters and a gorgonzola cream sauce and the Wasabi Pea Crusted Mahi Mahi with sesame seed sushi rice.  I am not easily impressed by steaks, but McCormick's did well.  I also enjoyed the mahi mahi dish, although I did find the sushi rice a bit overwhelming.  There was a lot of it and the taste was very strong.

The last course is usually my favorite, and I was not disappointed.  We had one creme brulee and a heath bar brownie with caramel sauce and mocha fudge ice cream.  Nevertheless, there were no leftovers of either.

The service was impeccable as you would expect and the restaurant was surprisingly empty and quiet which was nice for our little date.  The pictures did not turn out well in the dim lighting, but the food was delightful.  All in all, a very good first experience with Austin Restaurant week.


                    

MuMu Score:

Need my next bonus check to return again...

B.D. Rileys
Traditional Irish Pub


Food: We started off with some nice cold beer as it was a very hot day; it's starting to get hot in Austin!  We ordered one Woodchuck Cider and a Kilkenny Irish Cream Ale which were  filling.  However, we still had to order food!  For eats, we had an order of Bangers & Mash and one of my all-time favorites: Shepherd's Pie.  We thoroughly enjoyed both.  They both came out fast and were piping hot.  I thought the Shepherd's Pie's 
                       mashed potatoes were perfectly                          browned; it was amazing.


Atmosphere: This place was definitely going for the "hole in the wall" feel and even had live music that day, albeit an old man with his keyboard and mic. It was still lovely to have something to listen to as we took in the pub-like surroundings with dozens of knick-knacks overtaking the walls.

Service: The waitress was friendly, and as I mentioned before, the food was out fast.  This is definitely a place that I feel many frequent, especially if they live close.  I feel that the staff know many of the locals by name.

MuMu Score:

Maybe if we're in the neighborhood again...