There’s more to the Austin food scene than simply going to a restaurant for a fabulous meal. Aficionados can take a trip, learn to bake, or even hunt and cook their own hog.
El Naranjo: Culinary Trips
From Rainey Street to South Lamar, El Naranjo has been serving up Oaxacan cuisine in Austin for years. While each plate is a metaphorical journey south of the border, they also offer actual culinary trips to several places in Mexico: Michoacán, Yucatán, Mexico City, and of course, Oaxaca. The trips are 7-day, 6-night immersions, sampling food, crafts, and more. The ultimate way to ingest a delicious culture.
elnaranjorestaurant.com/culinary-tripsBarton Springs Mill Baking Classes
Not only does Barton Springs Mill sell high-quality flours and grains, as well as housing Abby Jane Bakeshop, they also host cooking classes from some of the best bakers and pastry chefs in Central Texas. From baguettes to crepes to pastas and more, these classes offer regular folks the chance to learn techniques they can take home to amaze family and friends. Keep your eyes open, and you just might find Abby Jane herself teaching a class from time to time.
bartonspringsmill.com/collections/cooking-classes
New School of Traditional Cookery: Hunt, Butcher, Cook
Going hunting is one thing. Going hunting with Jesse Griffiths of renowned restaurant Dai Due is another. Griffiths takes groups out into the wild to hunt for hogs and deer. He then teaches them how to butcher those animals as well as turn the meat into delicious dishes worthy of his own establishment. It’s a tip-to-tail journey that will mold any city slicker into a self-sufficient purveyor of meat.
newschooloftraditionalcookery.com
Hot Luck Fest
Of all the food festivals Austin hosts each year, Hot Luck might be the most intense, packing dozens of chefs and musicians into three days from the folks behind Franklin Barbecue, Mohawk, and Feast Portland. Held each Memorial Day weekend, Hot Luck doesn’t get much better than Thursday’s “Hi, How Are You?” event at Franklin Barbecue itself. While tickets for individual events will eventually go on sale, for now you can snap up the Whole Enchilada Pass at a steep discount: $495 per person, or $990 for two adults and two kids.
hotluckfest.comTeppanTX: Hibachi at Home
There’s nothing like sitting around the communal table-grill of a Japanese steakhouse and watching a chef slice, dice, and fry up some delicious teppanyaki cuisine. TeppanTX brings that experience into homes and backyards in Austin and San Antonio. Now there’s no reason to leave the house when you want to see a stacked onion choo choo train or get a piece of shrimp tossed into your mouth.
teppantx.comThis article appears in Gift Guide 2023.