The South Congress "Trailer Park"

For the last few weeks my writing class has been presenting on public relations trends in a variety of topic areas. Many of the groups (including my own, the “foodie” group), covered great local spots I had previously never heard of.

I noticed that one of the Austin gems covered in the presentations and in many of my classmates’ blogs was the famous South Congress Trailer Food Park. I had never heard of this concept until I moved to Austin, and I have to admit that I wasn’t too excited about the idea.

Having just ended a three-year vegan diet, I hadn't quite developed a taste for “county fair cuisine.” However, I couldn’t escape talk of this phenomenon and wanted to try something new, so I took Steve to test it out.

We went on a week-day and I was instantly won over by the easy access to an empty parking lot. My sights then turned to the line of restaurants in front of me. They weren’t greasy, hamburger joints with toothless employees as I had previously imagined- the venues were actually original and cute.

As we walked across the front of the food park we were at a loss for what to try first. Everything looked clean and appetizing and many of the trailers had unique dishes. In the end we settled for Mighty Cone, as the patrons there looked most satisfied with their purchases.

http://bit.ly/hgVXz0

 It was delicious. I would go back for their seasoned fries and special ketchup recipe alone. Even though I was under an umbrella eating food from a cone in 90 degree weather, I didn’t feel like I was eating a $5 meal. The whole experience was completely unique and made me proud to be “from” Austin.

I know I may be chased out of town for saying this, but usually “go local” Austinites annoy me (and yes I know that’s pretty much every person in Austin). I feel like a lot of them mistake “hipness” for originality and a connection to the Austin community. In their efforts to open their minds to different cuisines and local trends within Austin, many end up closing themselves off to the rest of Texas, and even the rest of the world.

However, this experience gave me new perspective and insight into the thoughts of many people I’d cast aside as Austin cliches. Maybe there is something to this obsession over searching out the most unique dining locales in the city- especially if it earns you a delicious and affordable meal in the process!

For dessert we headed over to “Coat and Thai,” an adorable little trailer serving Asian cuisine. Although I was a little disappointed that they didn’t have strawberry moochi ice cream as advertised, their mango flavor was delicious.

Even though the food was yummy and inexpensive, it was not what I liked most about the trailer food park. The atmosphere seemed made for Steve and I’s low key style and gave us a chance to do what we love best- people watch. Because there are so many different types of food in the food park and on South Congress in general, the area attracts many different types of people—the perfect conversation starters!

Fête de Monopoly!

So this week Steve and I kind of cheated. We didn’t go exploring a fun new date locale like we had planned, but we did have an awesome date in that did not involve Dr. House or Ken’s donuts.

Ever since a friend told me about a great night she’d had at a Monopoly party (sounds cheesy but please read on), I’ve been intrigued. The one she went to had a 20’s theme where fedoras and impromptu garter flasks could be spotted on most of the attendees. Although hers sounded super fun the thing that appealed to me about the idea of a "Monopoly Party" was its seeming flexibility. Sure this party had a 20’s theme- but wouldn’t Monopoly be just as fun in the 80’s, at an elementary school slumber party or even at a rave? 

http://bit.ly/fc6OYJ

I didn’t play Monopoly much growing up, but I did play a version of it called Parkology (where you buy national parks instead of boardwalks and railroads). I was a pretty competitive kid and no one really liked going up against me because I would beg them to continue to play long after their situation became hopeless. But if I could shelve my competitive spirit (at least just a little), this idea could really work.

I decided that my party wouldn’t have a set theme- I figured it would be more important for people to focus on bringing food and drinks then worrying about what to where.

In the short planning stage of this shindig I remembered a pretty funny ad in a Cheesecake Factory menu for a custom monopoly board featuring you and your special someone. I considered ordering a "Stasey" version (our friend's charming nickname for Steve and Casey) as a joke for a moment, but decided that it would be both expensive and a fast way to freak out my guests. So I opted for a more traditional "millennium" version that I already had.

So Steve and I invited a few friends and asked them each to bring a $10 to put towards the night’s winner.

The night went alright but I think everyone had forgotten how long Monopoly takes to finish (especially with 6 people to a board). If I had to do it again I think I would play different games like Risk or Life. Of course, in the end, it didn’t really matter what we played. The great thing about this party or “get together idea,” is that it is a cheap and fun group date and is a creative alternative to having friends "hang" at your house.

As I said before, this party idea could be adapted to serve anyone’s ends. It could entertain a group of any size, from a small party of four to a house full of 30 people playing on several boards. As long as you have food and drinks, it is a great and inexpensive way to keep you and your friends entertained for hours (plus it’s a great party alternative for those that are a little more “straight-edged”).