A Good Wednesday from the Rockin' Tomato to The Tavern

Last night, I got in touch with an old friend that I have been trying to keep in better contact with. We hung out quite a bit when I first moved up here a little over a year ago and then we just kind of lots touch. He suggested we meet up somewhere that had food, so my first thought was Pluckers.

I crave wings all the time, and rarely make it to the Pluckers on South Lamar. We arrived at practically the same time and started to approach the building, noticing how frickin’ packed the place was. Turning my attention to the marquee, I discovered that Wednesday is live trivia night at Pluckers. The place was packed and didn’t look like somewhere that we would be able to talk.

I had heard time and time again how great the wings were at the Rockin’ Tomato (3003 S. Lamar, 78704), so I figured we could just go there instead since it was relatively close.

The Rockin’ Tomato is located right next door to the Old Alligator Grill, but fortunately hasn’t lost its low-rent charm. Walking in to the smell of pizza pies being cooked to perfection, a typical Austin vibe was certainly palpable. From the dreadlocked young woman behind the counter to the groups of friends playing pool at one of their two tables, the atmosphere was one of familiarity even though my friend and I hardly qualified as locals.

Another young woman behind the counter said she’d be right with us and we let her know we were fine with that. Then a man (who I’m assuming was the manager) came up without looking at either one of us and started adjusting credit card tips without saying a word.

That lasted for about five minutes as the line grew behind us.

We were eventually helped and placed our order: 2 baskets of 10 hot wings, stuffed jalapenos, and a pitcher of Fat Tire. Splitting the tab down the middle, I paid roughly twenty bucks including a four dollar tip to the cashier.

Our food arrived rather quickly and was good for the most part. The stuffed jalapenos were very similar to the frozen variety you can pick up at Sonic or Jack-in-the-Box, but I can’t honestly say that I expected something homemade. The wings, however, were a completely different story.

When I got my first whiff of the wings, my eyes began to water. I took my first bite—amazing! The wings themselves appeared to be grilled rather than fried or baked and were then tossed in the sauce. My low expectations were completely overridden by an all-out sensory explosion and some of the best damn wings I’ve had in a very long time. The Fat Tire was the perfect beer to wash down the flavor and I actually wanted to order another basket.

The scene in the place felt comfortable and my friend and I were able to have a conversation without any difficulties. Some of my favorite bands—The Misfits, Suicidal Tendencies, Social Distortion, to name a few—were on the jukebox and had been selected by other patrons. In all, it was my kind of scene to say the least.

We could tell something was getting ready to begin after a while, and there was no patio to retire to, so we decided to leave the Rockin’ Tomato and move up a little further north for a couple more drinks.

My friend and I settled on The Tavern, a building that has been an Austin landmark since 1916. It was originally a grocery store, and then later became a steakhouse that supposedly once housed a speakeasy and brothel upstairs. When prohibition was repealed, The Tavern began in earnest.

In 2002, the building no longer met city code requirements, but has now been fully restored to its former glory. We shared a couple of pitchers of Fat Tire and two shots of Don Julio Blanco; in all the prices were fair and the service commendable.

Wednesdays, however, is a live trivia night at The Tavern as well, which would be fine if we had wanted to play games. Moving out to the upstairs deck, we figured we could get away from the loudspeaker, but it was being piped outside as well. My friend and I managed to ignore it after a while, but the place eventually shut down at midnight, far earlier than we had actually expected. Thursday through Saturday, The Tavern does stay open until 2:00am.

Ultimately, we finished our night at Flying Saucer in The Triangle, which will more than likely get a post of its own in the near future. Service was amazing, the pickle popcorn tasty, the car bombs went down smoothly, and the Live Oak Big Bark was cold and hearty—a great way to end a great day.