Young Couple Is Austin a fit? (Houston, Dallas: rental car, apartment, rental)

[Idlewile]

Originally Posted by chigirl5221

Would Dallas be a better fit? I just don't like how flat Dallas is. We are huge into working out. But we also love to dress up and go out for a highend meal.

Comparing the two, based on your overall requirements, Dallas.

[centraleastaustinite]

Originally Posted by scm53

My millennial kids were down this weekend. They live in the West Loop. My SIL says every time they come down, people ask them about Austin. He says he tells all of them that the town is just like a big Wicker Park.

FWIW. And OBTW -- most of our "high end food" doesn't come from a food truck. Qui, Uchi, Jeffery's, Lenoir, Congress, The Carillon, Barley Swine, Fabi and Rosi, Contigo ... Not a transmission in the bunch

Qui started on wheels... Bryce Gilmore of Odd Duck & Barley Swine had a truck first... plenty of ambitious chefs here experiment with their menus from a truck, build a following & then open a high end restaurant. Kind of smart from a business plan perspective & we're lucky to have that here. The Chicago aldermen have been blocking food trucks forever bc a few of them own restaurant chains & don't want to compete.

[UKWildcat1981]

Austin is a popular moving place for people all over the world and the US now. Austin TX is an awesome city to live if you can get a good paying job. One my favorite cities to visit in the USA, love their food and their culture. It is also a very laid back but welcoming and friendly place. One of the few cities in the US where gorgeous women have good personalities and will give you the time of day, nothing like other big US cities like NYC, Chicago and LA. Austin is a groovy place but I am bias because my gf is and her family is from Austin and they rock.

[scm53]

Originally Posted by centraleastaustinite

Qui started on wheels... Bryce Gilmore of Odd Duck & Barley Swine had a truck first... plenty of ambitious chefs here experiment with their menus from a truck, build a following & then open a high end restaurant.

Qui did not "start on wheels". After culinary school, he went to work at Uchi, and was promoted to Uchiko before he and a partner started ESK.

Certainly, some creative food comes out of our food trucks. But nothing supports the idea that "most of our cutting edge food comes from food trucks" - an insult to the fifteen or twenty brick and mortar restaurants that are better than the best food truck in town.

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by AustinDude360

I think you are a better fit for Dallas if you like high end stuff. Austin is more loose. Visit both and see which one you like. Dallas cost of living is cheaper and jobs are plenty over there. One thing you will miss here in Austin is malls. Dallas has incredible malls. Dallas would also fit your workplace criteria as in Austin the workplace can be very casual.

Does anyone really miss malls?

I HATE malls.

[hoffdano]

There is nothing to prevent the OP from dressing up in Austin. You just don't have to. Go to a trendy place - and you will see some stylish people. The kind that drive a German car, not a blingy Escalade. Might stand out a bit too amongst the jeans crowd.

[centraleastaustinite]

If you'll notice I did say in my original response :

Originally Posted by centraleastaustinite

There are dozens of delicious high end restaurants but you'll find many patrons dressed in jeans.

Sheesh!

I love Austin's local food truck culture. And I love that I can go out for a prix fixe meal at the likes of Wink, Chez Nous, Lenoir, Barley Swine, etc for a fraction of what it costs to go out for a similar caliber meal in Chicago.

It's not an insult for crying out loud

[Austin97]

There are very few high end restaurants in austin. But we have a lot of great 3* restaurants. Maybe one or two 4* although Im not sure which ones they would be. The places that are really nice seem to have terrible food. The places that have great food are not that upscale.

[hoffdano]

Originally Posted by Austin97

There are very few high end restaurants in austin. But we have a lot of great 3* restaurants. Maybe one or two 4* although Im not sure which ones they would be. The places that are really nice seem to have terrible food. The places that have great food are not that upscale.

I am curious what you consider to be a high end restaurant.

[clarksvillemom]

Of course there are opportunties to dress up in Austin. It's usually fine to wear nice jeans to the nicest of restaurants and you won't see a lot of "black tie balls" and super fancy galas like you would in Dallas or Houston, but we dress up all the time for a night out. I will say that Dallas (and Fort Worth by the way) has better musuems, art collections and the like. There is nothing in Austin like the Art Institute or even the Musuem of Industry and Science as there is in Chicago.