Café Con Monica

State Fair of Texas

I love a good state fair so AJS and I were pretty excited to check out the State Fair of Texas.

Since I posted Fall Bucket List Ideas I have been trying to tick items off even though the beginning of the school year is crazy and Austin weather is not cooperative for Fall things. I’m looking at you 90° in October.

Deep Fried Everything

Everyone knows that if you are going to the State Fair you are going to eat some deep fried foods. I have never. AND I mean never seen so many fried food options in one place.

Because we went over 2 days here is what we ate:

  • Fletcher’s Corn Dogs
  • Chicken Fried Bacon
  • Big Red Chicken Bread
  • Deep Fried S’mores
  • Deep Fried Brownie

Yes. All of that. My favorites were the corn and the brownie!

My native Texan coworkers were adamant that we get the corn dogs specifically from Fletchers and that we take a picture with Big Tex. *side note here: he is kinda creepy looking*

Fun Fact: The State Fair of Texas is packed on Indigenous People’s Day since the kids are out of school. We did not plan for all the people, though, of course, that is why I was able to go on a Monday.

Turns out the entire thing is huge! We spent the first night just walking around and trying to get a feel for where everything was. Even with that we found a few things we didn’t see on the second day.

Our Favorites

Of course, AJS loved the auto show. I am hoping to not purchase a car anytime soon but mine is getting old so it was kind of nice to see what is out there right now.

There was an illumination & dance show in the evening that was really cute. Lots of lights, fireworks, and music!

We got to see Billy Ray Cyrus. Texas does not disappoint. Turns out he was playing the night we were going and I was so excited. Nothing like a little Achy Breaky Heart to round out your Sunday night.

You can thank AJS for his inability to take a nice photo of me for this one.

We had a really great time and definitely plan to go next year!

Do you have a State fair near you? What is your favorite deep fried food?

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5 Great Chicken & Waffles Spots In Austin

What better way to show my love of food than sharing 5 Great Chicken & Waffle spots in Austin? Combine my love of food and exploring where I live and BAM we got a post about great places to eat in Austin!

You can see my other Austin Eats posts here.

I love sweet & savory food combos and Chicken & Waffles is a perfect brunch food. There are plenty…I mean Plenty of places in Austin that offer Chicken & Waffles on their menu but today I am sharing 5 great places that I have tried so far.

Grand Lux Cafe

I shared my love of their chicken & waffles on my Instagram awhile ago but I will rave here again. Fantastic. I usually order their Lemon pancakes but I wanted to try something different and I am so glad I did since this place is pretty much across the street from us. It comes with Maple Butter sauce and pecans. Clearly if you are on a diet this meal is going to kick your cheat day off.

Finley’s Round Rock

I just tried this place out a couple weeks ago even though I’d heard of it a few times since they are one of the few bars that play all the Chicago sports games. The waffle was kind of plain but still fluffy with crunchy bits on the edges. The chicken was super crispy, which I love, and it is served with honey instead of syrup so you only need a little bit of honey to go a long way. Also, they have a bloody mary bar and that makes me a really happy person.

Wild Chix

First, the decor in this tiny place is adorable. They have eclectic art, some interesting seating (including a swing) and some fun waffle sandwich options. I ordered the What the Cluck sandwich (pictured above) and it was delicious. The combo of maple glazed fried chicken and then sriracha mayo was a perfect sweet & savory mix.

Punchbowl Social

Turns out they have these in quite a few cities so I recommend checking if they are near you. Not only is the food delicious but they have games, bowling, karaoke, delicious drinks and a fun atmosphere. (I promise this is in no way paid I just really like the place) Instead of only the usual chicken breast this one had thigh as well. The waffle is fluffy and delicious and the chipotle citrus maple syrup had a tiny hint of spice.

Moonshine Grill

The chicken & waffles at this place was the only saving grace. We actually weren’t there for brunch but just a random evening that we wanted to try this much talked about restaurant. I didn’t order this but AJS did and since I did not enjoy my dish we mostly shared this one. The best part was the waffle, I think it had some kind of cornmeal in it which I love. Texture is everything guys. AJS really liked the chipotle gravy that I ate around since gravy usually has dairy in it. I’d definitely recommend this place for their drinks and this dish.

A Visit to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris

I had originally planned to post a fun travel post “How to talk about travel without sounding like a snob.” but I thought that considering what happened at Notre Dame Cathedral on Monday I would rather move up my post and share my feelings about it. After all, isn’t that what this blog is for?

A month ago to date yesterday my mom, brother, AJS and I trekked to Notre Dame from our hotel after 14 hours of travel. We knew that we wanted to get there and thought it would be a perfect first stop in our whirlwind 3 days in Paris.

My brother is the know all of historical Paris everything. It was like traveling with an encyclopedia and I loved it. He has been obsessed with Notre Dame for many years (thank you Hunchback of Notre Dame) and knows so many details that we wouldn’t have known otherwise.

Even though we knew we wouldn’t be going up into the tower we wanted to see inside. Luckily the line wasn’t terrible and we were inside in 10 minutes. We actually were really happy we choose the time we did because there was an evening mass going on and it was really nice to observe.

Ill be the first to admit I am easily impressed by historical sites. I love the beauty of older buildings and the intricacies and details that go into the work to build them. It was quiet inside aside from hushed voices and the Priest conducting mass.

We grew up Catholic so I have visited many catholic churches in a few countries at this point but really none I have visited compare to Notre Dame. It sounds like lip service but it really is a gorgeous structure and that is without taking into account the art and the statues everywhere.

AJS text me a news link showing that Notre Dame was on fire as I was wrapping up a meeting. I immediately put my phone down because I was worried I’d start to cry. Once I got to my office I started trying to find information and my heart just hurt. The video of the spire falling was so heartbreaking. I hate to be that person who acts like Notre Dame burning in any way genuinely effects my life, because I know that in reality, it doesn’t. It is just sad, it makes me so sad that something so beautiful has sustained so much damage.

Yes, they will rebuild. But while it’s great it will be rebuilt in its likeness there are parts of the roof, of the structure that have been there since Notre Dame was built. 800 year old wooden beams in the forest (the roof rafters) are likely gone. They can rebuild but they can’t replace what is lost.

I am incredibly happy to see that there were many artifacts that they thought were completely gone that were able to be salvaged, that the structure itself withstood such a raining fire and that service personnel in France are so amazing and courageous for the work they put in to contain the fire and put it out as quickly as they could.

Thanks for listening to my thoughts. Have you visited Notre Dame, I’d love to hear about it.

If you are able and willing please think about donating to Friends of Notre Dame to help with the long road to rebuilding that is ahead of them.

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