Austin Activities
Alternate Title: “How P and I went to Whole Foods Three Times in Less Than 24 Hours”
Alternate Title Two: “Texas Winters Rock”
Hi everyone! I’m back from my weekend in Texas and it was an absolute blast. I believe when I left you Friday P was at work and I was hanging out until he got off. He ended up getting relieved a little early, so we grabbed a quick lunch and hopped in the car to drive up to Austin.
Once in Austin, we went on a 3-mile run/walk along the river to shake out our legs. It took almost an hour because I insisted on stopping at sundown to watch the bats fly out from under the bridge (Read more on the Austin bats here), but the bats never came.
We had parked at Whole Foods so we went inside to grab dinner. Salmon and a bunch of hot bar goodies for both of us.
I will stop now and tell you the main reasons P and I go to Whole Foods for almost every meal when we are in Austin:
- P has one teeny grocery store where he lives so Whole Foods is a real treat for him
- You can get anything you want (especially at this Whole Foods since it’s the original and is huge)
- The sushi
- There is parking, and it’s tough to find Parking in downtown Austin
- It’s close to the river and we usually go on a run or walk
- There are no lines
- No reservations are needed, which is good because we never have set plans
- Sparkling water assortment (both of us have a strange love for sparkling water).
What’s one restaurant you find yourself going to again and again?
Anyway, after dinner I told P I was going to need some gelato and wine, and he happily obliged. No chocolate for me due to lent (P of course got chocolate chip and dark chocolate mint), but I LOVED my classic vanilla and salted caramel. The glass of cab put me in a fantastically giddy mood.
Then we watched some Say Yes To The Dress and passed out. I definitely won that night.
Saturday we lounged around a bit before heading to a late breakfast at our favorite spot (and pretty much the only place we eat in Austin besides Whole Foods), the Driscoll Hotel 1886 Cafe. P loves it there, and it did not disappoint. P got what I usually get (egg white omelette with goat cheese and roasted potatoes – want to recreate at home) and I was feeling oatmeal with berries and almonds.
Another highlight? A smoothie P ordered that had cinnamon granola blended right in. So delicious.
After breakfast we digested while walking around the farmer’s market. It was so cute and made me wish I lived there to buy some goodies! We did sample a local goat cheese, vegan mac ‘n cheez, green juice, and fruity drink thingy.
It was chilly in the morning, but turning into the most beautiful day. Thank you Texas winter.
Time to hit the YMCA for a workout. (PS – first workout is free!) P grew up on the water, surfs, played college water polo and grad school triathlon, so he is a big swimmer. He hadn’t been able to get in a good swim in a few days and so really wanted to use the Y’s pool. While he swam, I did the Best Body Bootcamp arm workout I skipped on Friday.
After the gym we got lunch at…duh duh duh WHOLE FOODS! P was craving their roast beef and gorgonzola sandwich and I wanted to try the vegetarian section I found the day before. I ordered a hummus wrap with a side of avocado kale salad.
Reason #4298 I love my boyfriend? Within 2 seconds of walking to the counter, he said “I have to get a slice of that raw apple pie.“ He does not discriminate when it comes to food – vegan cookies there are his fav!
SO GOOD! It tasted like a crumble LaraBar crust filled with cinnamon sugar cream.
We tried to go to Zelker park after lunch, but the traffic was awful I think due to pre-marathon activities. If I had known ahead of time I’d be going to Austin, I would have totally tried to run the half! Unfortunately we had to get back early on Sunday.
Instead we went to the marina and rented kayaks for an hour. It was relaxed and fun, but definitely an arm workout! I have a blister on my hand…that makes me hardcore, right? Or really bad at kayaking?
No pics on the water since I don’t trust my phone in a boat, but here we are in our awesome life jackets after:
We were running low on time so ditched our dinner plans (we had reservations at Z’Tejas) and went straight to 5pm Mass. After Mass we were both pretty beat and when discussing dinner, both started laughing knowing we really just wanted to go to Whole Foods. (That’d be the third time in less than 24 hours.)
Sushi and hot bar was picked up (I was all about the teriyaki sweet potatoes) and brought back to the hotel to lounge in bed and watch Harry Potter. Pitch Perfect was first choice, but it was $17 to rent!?
I also had a vanilla Arctic Zero in bed, and the passed out before 10pm. A pretty perfect night.
In the morning we were up to head back to go to a friend’s daughter’s baptism, and I am currently writing from the Houston airport on another long layover before I get back to St. Louis.
Phew – tons of activities (so much room for activities! – name that movie) in just a day. I really really love Austin.
- Have you ever been to Austin?
Posts you may have missed while I was gone:
Five Things Friday A Blog Lesson my Boyfriend Taught MeStuff My Dad Says Part 2 Favorite Hamstring Stretches Video
Stepbrothers!! Love that film!
Looks like you had an awesome weekend! : )
I haven’t been to Austin before but it’s one of the top 3 places I hope to get to in the next year. I’ve heard nothing but incredible things about it!
Stepbrothers!!!! Hahaha.. Great movie! I have family in Austin and San Antonio! Love both places! Have you ever been to the San Antonio Riverwalk?!?!? Very nice!
What an awesome, fun weekend!
Austin is at the very top of my list of cities in the US I want to visit, I am going to try and go this summer!
Haha I can so relate to your Whole Foods love. I could probably eat there every darn day if I could afford it! That is so cool that you all got to frequent the original! (That makes it totally acceptable right
)
I live in Austin and LOVE it! I’m glad you guys had a good time! No shame in frequenting Whole Foods. We probably do one date night there per month, and we ALWAYS take visiting friends/ family there. If you want to mix it up next time, try 24 Diner right across the street.
Come back after June for the bats! It’s just the wrong time of year right now. August is the best time… after the babies have grown enough to take flight with the adults.
Oh my gosh you had a busy weekend! P is cute
I love the whole foods mac and cheese. I would eat there at every meal if it were acceptable I think. It’s nice that you both care so much about your health. That way he understands the desire to work out and live a healthy lifestyle. Salted caramel ice cream is my favorite!!
I live about 15 minutes from a ginormous Whole Foods, and just tried out their hot bar on Friday! ‘Twas delicious.
salted caramel gelato??? MMM!! who needs chocolate??? haha! and i could go to whole foods everyday – no justification needed!
Whole Foods is very romantic!
Glad you guys had a wonderful weekend together!
What an amazing weekend!!! Sounds like you two had a blast with some amazing treats/meals. You seem to be doing very well Clare! Such balanced and filling meals … With exercise and I hope NO GUILT!
good for you! A loving relationship, and family… What more do you need!? Exactly what the nutrition school tells us to do! What was your favorite meal of the weekend!? 
I have never been to Austin but the farmers market and warm weather sounds really nice! I’m so glad you two had such a fun weekend together! I would eat at Whole Foods all the time too if I was lucky enough to live near one!
$17 to rent Pitch Perfect? Sooo not worth it! Although, I spent almost that much on salads from Whole Foods before… It looks like you had a gorgeous, fabulous, romantic weekend. Perfection!
i love austin & that gigantic Whole Foods! the first time i visited that WF, i went twice in 24 hrs, hah.
Sounds like a fun low key weekend! I love Austin, such a cute little city with so many outdoor activities. My Catholic parents would have killed me if I shared a room with a guy before marriage and wrote about it. They must be very progressive, lucky you. : )
I love whole foods, but I have never ever gotten a meal there to eat at that time. I always just purchase groceries…hmmm maybe this weekend I will try out the food they make!!
you go to whole foods but have never gotten a meal from there? YOU ARE CRAZY!!! and have great self control. go now!
Sounds Fun! My sister lives in Austin and I love going to visit her because the FOOD THERE IS AMAZING. The whole foods is awesome, but next time you must try some other places. Tamale House is soooo good. Also, what is Arctic Zero? Is this something I am missing out on?
It’s a “healthier” ice cream product sold at whole foods. I say “healthy” because that’s debatable, but it’s dairy free and lower calorie for a big serving! Nice for an “I just want to veg and eat” moment:)
I miss living near a Wholefoods. Seriously, they should come to Australia (especially because I adore their brown rice sushi).
Girl you didn’t even come close to experiencing the city! Austin has such diverse cuisine and such a diverse culture. Go try some mexican food! Go watch line dancers at a bar! Whole Foods is somewhere you frequent regularly, be adventurous while you’re young. Don’t let the fear of straying from clean eating or regular exercise habits hold you back! Trust me, you won’t regret the things you did, rather the things you never did nor try.
Had nothin to do with wanting to eat healthy (we got ice cream and cookies!) but I know we are missing some great places! We will have to make a point to explore more.
I really want to visit Austin! I love how you guys did sooo much in a fairly short amount of time! I’m also jealous that its warm enough to kayak and do other outdoor activities. It is FREEZING! in NYC today.
I’ve never been to Austin, but I’ve heard great things from my Dallas friends. And I have been guilty of eating all 3 meals at Whole Foods in one day (when I’m on the road for work and one is close, I’m all over it!)
-AJ
FitTravelerAJ.blogspot.com
Wanted to try Arctic Zero but its sooo expensive
We made the mistake of renting a $17 movie when we were on our honeymoon. It was really the only way to watch a movie in our hotel room, and I had no idea it’d be that expensive! I ended up falling asleep halfway through it. Oh well, you only get one honeymoon, I say
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