Roaring Fork, Austin

Today we took the in-laws to a fabulous new restaurant in Austin called "The Roaring Fork". The Roaring Fork is located down a winding little road across the freeway from the Domain Shopping Plaza. The location makes the restaurant a little hard to find, but the location is right on Quarry Lake so it's worth finding!!

I love the contemporary architecture of the building, with that beautiful old tree out front!

Here's a look at the interior -

and that's just half of the dining area! There is a second dining room with a large bar in the center of the room on the other side. Plus... there is a wonderful large patio area outside that looks right out on the lake!I would LOVE to sit outside on the cool evening just sippin' on a cocktail or glass of wine.



It was about 97 degrees today and even with a breeze it was a bit too much to sit out there for lunch, we decided on a table inside.



The Roaring Fork is known for it's Huckleberry Rita

So you know I had to order one!!!! My first sip was a little hard to get through the straw because there were fresh chunks of huckleberry in the bottom of the glass. I've never had huckleberry before but I sure love it in my ritas!

Behind my rita to the left is a plate of 4 fresh mini cinnamon buns - so much better than having rolls to start a meal!! I think they only bring out the cinnamon buns during brunch hours, I wonder what they bring out at dinner?



We started with the tuna tar tar with fresh mango, avocado, cilantro and cilantro vinaigrette, served stacked with toast points (not pictured)

The tuna was really fresh and the flavors were really well balanced. You could tell that this was just mixed together in the kitchen moments before it was sent out to the table. This was a nice large portion that the four of us shared.


Then we tried one of the Roaring Fork's signature appetizers - the fried avocado with spicy crab remoulade. We asked for the crab remoulade to be served on the side since Q is allergic to shellfish.

First of all I think we all can agree that just about anything tastes better when it's fried, but who knew fried avocado could be this good!!
Here's a shot of the avocado cut in half -
The avocado was surrounded by that nice crispy coating with all that creamy goodness on the inside. The spicy crab was the perfect topping too! The appetizer was soooo rich and delicious that I really didn't need to eat much more - but the entrees all sounded so good I had to order one.


My father-in-law ordered the slow roasted pork shoulder "carnitas" (oh how I miss tex-mex!!!)
That is a large portion of super moist and perfectly roasted pork with flour tortillas and all the fixins you need to make your own tacos.


My mother-in-law ordered the Mahi Mahi fish tacos which came with fresh flour tortillas, avocado, roasted tomoato salsa, a beautiful side of black beans with tomato and cilantro.
The Mahi Mahi had a nice grilled flavor and once you squeeze the grilled lime (nice touch) on the fish enveloped by the fresh veggies, the bouquet of flavors come alive. MIL loves to eat lightly and this dish was perfect (and she still had enough for take away). If you're the type that likes a colorful plate, then you will be excited to know several primary colors were represented, which always impresses the MIL.

The prize of the meal according to Q was the Cedar Plank Salmon. The salmon arrived straight out the oven (still hot) presented on the cedar plank with the exact right amount of Teriyaki BBQ sauce. He ordered it medium. It was cooked so perfectly the fork was enough to separate the delicate flesh.
The teriyaki was like candy but not too sweet and just the right tang. The sides were chilled string bean salad topped by a light sprinkle of cheese, and red onions splashed with a vinaigrette. At first he was surprise to find it was cold, but it was a compliment to the buoyant flavors of the salmon.


I ordered the French Dip Ribeye Sliders. They came with a "Kettle" of lightly coated french fries. The onion au jus and horseradish cream came on the side.
It came medium rare and so juicy it didn't need the au jus. I'm not sure I even dipped it. If you like beef and want to be more adventurous than a burger, this is a good alternative. Plus, sliders are great for sharing! I ate one and took the other two home and ended up eating them for dinner. (and they were still delish!)

The dessert: Creme Brulee, a favorite of ours. This ample serving was shared by the foursome.
Not everyone gets this dish right, but Roaring Fork has a winner here! The candied crust was crispy, as it should have been, torched but not scorched. The blueberries and strawberries with mint were fresh and sweet. I love Creme Brulee, (can you tell?) and this creme was a smooth rich custard, the perfect ending to our meal.

Just beyond the fence (behind us) is a joggin path that surrounds the lake.
Q's parents content after the delicious meal.

Attention SWSX attendees, I bet you could rent this patio (or even the whole place) for an evening.

twitter - http://twitter.com/RF_Austin
web - http://www.eddiev.com/
address - 10850 Stonelake Boulevard, Austin
phone - 512.342.2700

The Roaring Fork also has locations in downtown Austin, San Antonio and Scottsdale AZ -


and finally check out this shot of the restaurant at night -

I think I'm going back for another huckleberry rita - see you there!