It has some nice grassy areas to bask in the sun and some good play areas for young children to splash. The diving board in the middle seemed to be a hit. On the south end, you can enter it like a zero-entry pool or beach, but beware of the slippery algae. A kind experienced local swimmer there pointed out that there was a path that had been cleaned off (white rather than greenish) that wasn’t too slippery. We were very thankful, considering we didn’t want to drop our young children on the rocks.

You may have to be used to cooler water to enjoy swimming here. It wasn’t a problem for my kids after a few minutes, but I’m kind of a cold-water wimp, so I prefer a pool — or maybe a jacuzzi!

Pros:
Inexpensive
Grassy areas
Beautiful, surrounded by green trees
Nature experience, including small fish swimming around your feet
Zero entry on the sides
Great view of downtown
Conveniently located in Zilker Park

Cons:
Cold water (relative I know!)
Parking was pretty full
A bit of a walk to the kids area, which is tricky with little ones
Slippery
Algae floating around your legs

One of the best lattes I have found in Austin comes from Caffe Medici. I’m not an espresso afficianado, but I’ve had enough lattes to form opinions. One thing I know — latte art matters. It’s not just that it makes the coffee look pretty. It also shows that the milk was steamed to the right texture. I’ve had 3-4 lattes at Medici, and they have nailed it everytime as far as texture, and art, goes.

They have two locations, one on Lynn, and one on The Drag, across from UT, where Metro Coffee used to be. I’ve not been to the Guadalupe location, at least not since Medici took it over. But I have been to Lynn. The great coffee comes with a price, because parking and table space is usually at a premium. I’ve found that if I don’t get there before mid morning, I’m usually out of luck.

I’ve been spending as much time at Sodade as anywhere else because they score high in my primary criteria — they make one of the best (and cheapest) lattes I’ve had in the city. It’s certainly the best latte within ten minutes of our house. The staff is very friendly and the atmosphere is fairly quiet and relaxed. I never have trouble focusing here. The wifi is spotty at times, although they seem to have gotten that sorted out. (Even when it isn’t working, it is never a problem to pick up the signal from the restaurant next door. Ssshh.)

Bonus points go to Sodade for having a twitter account! Pay them a visit…just don’t take my table.

Up first in the grand coffee tour is Genuine Joe. It’s a good sized shop with an outdoor patio, three different indoor rooms, and a variety of furniture. This means you can usually find a spot to fit your mood, from a couch in a quiet corner to a table amidst all the action. The music I’ve heard is a decent mix…which means it doesn’t include any oldies or country.

Out of three visits, I’ve had one average drink, and two pretty good drinks. The latte I had on my second visit just seemed like hot flavored milk. Today, my latte had a nice texture to it. I have visited a few places where I like the lattes better (which I’ll share in time). But, I don’t like to be confined to one or two spots, so Genuine Joe is a place I’ll visit often.

The waiter was helpful, the Dr. Pepper glass was large, and the food didn’t take long. Most important was what I ordered. I figured that I was in a diner, so I could have breakfast for lunch. More importantly, I was in Austin, so I could have breakfast tacos for lunch. I ordered Oscar’s Favorite, and I’ve got to tell you, I think I Oscar and I could be friends. Each taco was two corn tortillas filled with fried potatoes, bacon, pico and cheese. I probably shouldn’t eat that every day for lunch, but I know I will be eating it again!

One look at the parking lot as we pulled in told us that we weren’t the only ones ready to enjoy this evening. Once we got in, it wasn’t that bad. Sometimes I don’t like huge crowds, but this one didn’t bother me at all. The wait for ice cream was short and there were plenty of tables both inside and out to choose from.

After engorging their bellies and enlarging their smiles, the kids were ready to play on the playground. Again, it was full of kids, but not so much that they were climbing on each other. Well, there were one or two instances… The kids ran and slid and danced and hid while we were serenaded by the Marshall Ford Swing Band.

Central Market offers live music every Friday, Saturday and Sunday evening and a movie in the park every other Wednesday night. Visit their events page for the full rundown.

I wasn’t familiar with Redbrick — it wasn’t something we had in Seattle. But, since I ate there, I’ve discovered it’s a franchise that’s opening around the country. I’m always up for pizza, so I as more than willing to give it a shot.

The setup for RedBrick is great with TVs all over the place showing SportsCenter or the NFL Network. Best of all, there are remotes around coded to each TV, so you can change the channel at your table if you feel the urge. The menu had a good selection and was reasonable priced for pizza and a drink.

I ordered one of my standards — a BBQ chicken pizza. I was a little confused that it had mushrooms on it, as I don’t think I’ve seen that before. I ordered it without the fungus. They left the mushrooms on and left off the red onions. When I took it back up to point out the mistake, I wasn’t impressed with their suggestion for me to just pick off the mushrooms. They did agree to remake it and the person who brought it to me seemed more apologetic.

Overall, I’d be willing to go back. But I’m sure there are lots of pizza places to try in Austin, so I might need to wait until I’ve made the rounds to see what else is out there.

Part of our motivation was to give our little ones some idea of consistency. Our family regularly visits bookstores and the Apple store. Seeing the Borders and the Apple store at the domain gave our kids a sense of something familiar in a new place. (And to be honest, I needed to scope out the Apple store to make sure it would be up to snuff. It was.)

We settled in at the little courtyard and play area near Starbucks. Our kids played with our friends’ kids and made many new friends along the way. We settled in for some great conversation and enjoyed the warm evening while live jazz played across the way. Knowing that there are plenty of outdoor evening activities like this was part of why we wanted to move to Austin. We came home that evening reminded of how happy we were to be here.

We have a few allergy issues in our family, so it is always interesting to see how different restaurants handle that. Sago did okay, but it seemed like the restaurant was new enough that this isn’t an issue they had dealt with much. The server got the manager involved, and he was helpful.

I think the most notable thing for us was that it wasn’t a very kid friendly restaurant. They had high chairs, but no booster seats. There was not a kids menu or anything to occupy our kids like the crayons and coloring pages that many restaurants offer while waiting for food. The chips kept them happy…but ruined their appetites. Maybe Sago isn’t geared to be kid friendly, or maybe it’s just the reality of the general clientele of the restaurants in the Triangle.

The food was okay, but it didn’t wow us. It certainly wasn’t bad, but with all of the options for Mexican that we’ve seen in Austin, I don’t think we’ll be rushing back.