Austin has become known for having some wonderful eateries. Recently there has become a huge trend in those eateries being on wheels and being mobile. I have to admit, I was slow to jump on the bandwagon. I figured that good food shouldn’t come from a “roach coach” but rather a brick-and-mortar storefront. I was proved very very wrong when I started my new job and discovered that there was an organic healthy food truck that served breakfast and lunch twice a week. Since I tried it I’ve been hooked!
When I learned about the Gypsy Picnic that was taking place this weekend and that Blenders & Bowls was going to be there I instantly decided I was going to go and take Alexis so that she could experience the joy of the acai bowl for herself!
We were incredibly lucky and the weather was a very mild 88* when we headed downtown after our nail appointments. We had the entire afternoon to spend together since Tommy had gone to the ranch to prepare some items for upcoming deer season (*cry*). We were pretty hungry so we knew we were headed to the right place.
Auditorium Shores is the area by the lake in downtown Austin where the event was being held. After we parked we were treated to a beautiful view of the Austin skyline and the gorgeous sky. We were pumped!
Look at that sky!
We had to stop and take the obligatory pictures at the entrance of the festival. The Airstream trailer made the entire picture complete. 
Nevermind the other people in the picture – they weren’t with us. Heh.
Smile - with the sun in your eyes.
Love this girl.
We didn’t get far into the festival before needing to stop and get hooked up with our first taste of yumm-ness. We made a bee-line for the vendor list. Upon looking at it we decided that we would forgo the vendors that we were familiar with and focus only on those that we hadn’t ever heard of or tried yet. With the exception of the entire reason that we were there – Blenders & Bowls. All of the vendors had a couple of items that were their signature dishes. They offered those for $3 or less and then had some regular sized options as well.
The first trailer we came upon was Spartan Pizza. They had a veggie option so we picked up a couple of those and snapped a pic before wolfing it down.
One veggie option - yes, please!
Cheese with green peppers & onions. Not typically my favorite but it was very tasty. Their cheese was delicious!
We both gave this trailer a thumbs up! We’ll definitely be searching them out and ordering from them again. Tommy would love it!
We mozied on down and looked for our next victim. But not before stopping to take in the beautiful skyline. We thought it would be a nice moment for some pictures. I wanted Alexis to ask someone to take a picture of us together but she wouldn’t trust anyone with her camera. Heh. Can’t say I blame her… So we just have separate pictures.
Pretty skyline - prettier girl
FYI - that used to be grass under our feet. You know, before the drought and all...
We wandered down a little ways and passed up some vendors with some pretty long lines. We figured they were probably pretty good but we made a mental note to find them around town. We weren’t really in the mood to wait.
Our next taste was over at mmmpanadas. Their had me sold with their $1 sample of mushroom and spinach empanada! Alexis and I each got one and boy were we impressed!
$1? Are you for real??
Not a great picture of the empanada but check out Alexis' manicure!
My manicure isn't as impressive so you can see the empanada here.... It was YUMMY!
These were incredibly delicious! I don’t think I’ve ever had an empanada that wasn’t filled with fruit so this was a nice change. I know, I know…I need to branch out more. I’m trying!
We walked around for a good while after this just taking in the crowd and the whole scene. There were alot of people but it wasn’t too crowded – it was just right.
People and blue skies
There were also a couple of trees to lounge under.
What is a gypsy festival without a makeshift marching band?
Anyone that knows me, knows that I’m a sucker for dogs. I absolutely love going to festivals like these because there are always bound to be a large number of dogs in attendance. This one was no exception!
I didn't get to pet these but I really wanted to. I simply admired from a distance. And took pictures. Yes, I'm a dog stalker.
Was there a place for dogs to get some treats and some water? Well, of course there was!
Because after all...dogs are people too!
Okay, okay – I know this wasn’t a dog festival. Back to the food, Nicole
Our next stop was to another couple of trailers we had never heard of -
86 This & Peach Tortilla
We divided and conquered here since the line for Peached Tortilla was a little longer than 86 This! I ran over and got an order of the fries from 86 This while Alexis held our place in the other line.
Fries are good. But these were even better than good! Two ketchup-covered thumbs up!
Then she stepped out of line to munch on the fries and catch me in the act of ordering! I got the Szechuan Veggie Taco which was the only veggie friendly option on the sample menu.
Smile Mom!
It looks like it would taste good....but it didn't. Not at all. Major bummer.
What can I say about this taco? Um, the tortilla was good. Other than that – the veggies were not my favorite flavor. It should have tasted like szechuan but it didn’t taste like any szechuan flavor I’ve ever had. I decided to forgo it and move on to something else.
Adorable truck, though!
The next adventure was over at Short Bus Subs. Look at this set up!!
Doesn't it make you want to pull up a chair and stay awhile? Cutest truck of the day, for sure!
None of the sandwiches were veggie friendly so this one was all for Ali. She went with the Club sandwich sampler and she loved it. I would have loved it too, I bet!
No veggie options. Boo!
But if you did end up with a sample I bet you weren't disappointed! The portion was huge and it was stuffed with all kinds of meat. Very tasty bread, too. I did taste that for myself!
Finally we decided we had had enough and it was time to end our outing on a high note. I was very excited to treat Alexis to an acai bowl.
Adorable truck - nice and bright and easy to spot at the festival.
They were offering samples of their bowls but we skipped that option and went right for the creme de la creme – the full sized bowl!
Absolutely dreamy. This bowl is called The O.G.
Alexis made sure to get a shot from the side too so you could see the delicious layers.
You want one, right?
What’s in it? On the bottom is organic acai blended with apple juice. Then it’s topped with hemp granola, strawberries, bananas, chia seeds, bee pollen and drizzled with local Round Rock honey. All for about 350 calories according to one of the owners.
Alexis was blown away and fell in love instantly. This sweet bowl of perfection has shot up to my absolute favorite food right now. I’m fortunate enough that they come to my work twice a week. It makes it really easy since their food truck doesn’t exactly have a home. They do deliver, though!
The day was so much fun. We had a great time together and really enjoyed our people/dog watching too. It’s too bad Tommy couldn’t have come with us. We found something he really would have enjoyed.
Local breweries had their samples here too!
Maybe next year! Because I’m sure Alexis & I will be happy to go back!
Austin just seems so amazing! Minus the summers. When the husband gets rich, I want a winter home there!