We had plans to go out with Andy and Lisa Saturday night. So that left an entire day to go drink...I mean explore...downtown before what would end up being a fantastic gong show of a night. This is the day I fondly refer to as, “The Day Desirae Got Drunk Four Times In One Day”. Girl has wicked metabolism. After having a couple drinks in the room we decided we better get lunch before we drank anymore. Since Desirae had never been to Austin, we went to 6th Street so she could check it out during the day before experiencing it at night. We started at B.D. Riley's. I have a mild love affair with B.D.’s: It was the first bar in Austin I ever went to, it’s an Irish pub (always a plus in my book), they have some great beers on tap, and they have a DIY Quesadilla menu. I know, I know...an Irish pub with a quesadilla menu? Trust me. It’s amazing. And yes, I know what a good quesadilla is...I’m from Arizona. Just try it.
While we were there, we noticed that one of my favorite bands, the Eric Tessmer Band, was scheduled to play there later that night. Not only are they one of my favorite bands, but they’re the first band I ever saw play in Austin, at the first bar I ever went to. At that point I figured we’d probably end the night where we started the day. And we were totally ok with that.
After a couple drinks we moved on to the Blind Pig Pub. Desirae noticed they have a rooftop patio and wanted to check it out. When we got upstairs the first thing we noticed was that they have Giant Jenga. This is always a winning discovery when Desirae and I are out together. Not to brag or anything, but we kind of kick ass at Giant Jenga. After stopping at the bar to get a couple cans of Shiner Bock, we commandeered a Jenga table and pretty soon we had a small crowd watching and actually cheering as we played. That was slightly odd but pretty funny. Eventually a couple of guys who were in town from Seattle asked to join us for a game. We made a “loser buys” bet and spent the rest of our time at the Blind Pig dominating Jenga and therefore drinking for free. The guys were great sports about it. As it was getting closer to the time we needed to head back to the hotel to get ready for the night, Desirae decided she wanted to check out a few more bars. For the sake of time we completed a quick bar hop down 6th, implementing a “one shot” rule for each bar.
A short time later we were back at the hotel with a cab on the way to take us to Pflugerville (about 20-30 minutes north of Downtown) to meet up with Andy and Lisa. Lisa’s sister and brother-in-law joined us for dinner at a great place called PBK Stem & Stein. This place has a wonderful patio and great food. I had the Soup & Sammie. The Soup du Jour was a Tomato Bisque, which made it a perfect combo. And at the waiters recommendation I added some arugula to the sandwich. I really liked this place and would highly recommend it.
We enjoyed a couple drinks and fun conversation before walking around the corner to a bar for some karaoke because, why not? I honestly can’t remember the name of the bar, but we had a blast. Desirae danced, I sang, we all drank. It was good times.
After a couple hours and several pitchers of beer, Andy, Desirae and I started back downtown to catch the end of Eric Tessmer’s set at B.D. Riley’s. We got there with about 45 minutes left in the set, which was just enough time for another round of drinks. Have I mentioned I love this bar? And the band killed it as always. By the time they were done playing it was almost last call, so we walked next door for one last round of shots, which Eric joined us for, before calling it a night. Or so we thought. Before going back to the hotel we opted to stop at a place I call “The Pizza Window” because I have no idea what the name of it actually is. But if you want to check it out, it’s a few doors down from Friends. It has some of the best pizza I’ve ever drunk eaten. And watching Desirae take in the awesome drunken shit show that is 6th Street on a Saturday night was entertaining in of itself. She immediately declared she liked it better at night. Not shocking.
We got back to the hotel and rather than hang out in the room, we grabbed a couple beers and sat on the tailgate of Andy’s truck for awhile...because tailgates are one of my favorite things. No seriously, I actually wrote a poem about tailgates for a high school english class, I’m that fond of them (I got an A on it too!). Pretty soon it was apparent the sun would be coming up soon so it was time to catch a few hours of sleep before the next day’s adventures. This was one of my favorite days I’ve ever spent in Austin. And it was the perfect way to introduce Desirae to the city.
Me & Des on the rooftop at Blind Pig Pub
Desiare dancing at the karaoke bar
Desirae, Lisa and I
Andy and Lisa singing
Eric Tessmer Band at B.D. Riley's
Me, Eric & Andy at Friend's
6th Street
Sitting on the tailgate
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