We are staying here, at Hotel Ella. Pretty cool place, and just a couple of blocks from campus. They have a very strange statue out front.
The original old house is the main building, with restaurant and bar downstairs, and a ballroom upstairs for weddings and events. Love the wrap-around veranda.
The rooms and pool area are back behind the big house.
Dinner last night was here:
Lenoir is a French restaurant that I'd read about in Edible Austin a long time ago, stuck the name under a magnet on my refrigerator door, then promptly forgot about. I love, love, loved the atmosphere -- especially sitting up at the communal bar and chatting with the people around us. The food, though, wasn't quite what I was expecting. In fact, I'm not even sure you could call it French. I think they probably use French techniques, but they like to play fast and loose with the ingredients.
This freshly made naan with a green tomato chutney was delish.
This was a sweet potato-stuffed pasta with crumbled amaretti and little marshmallow meringues, which was kind of sweet for a main course, but I adored the crunchy kale with browned butter sauce that came with it.
John loved his goat schwarma served on a mint marigold crepe.
This Napoleon I had for dessert had a ricotta and roquefort filling, which wasn't sweet at all. Maybe I should have had it as my main course and the sweet pasta for dessert! Anyhoo, I loved it that they had a prix fixe menu that was based on local ingredients and changed weekly, but I probably wouldn't go there unless you are an adventurous eater.
Afterwards we came back to the hotel bar for a beer/hot tea and some people watching, then headed back to our room and found one of these on each nightstand.
Don't you just love a hotel that leaves goodies on your nightstand?
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