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Rob's Review
Magnolia
Cafe
So you think President Elect George W. Bush knows about
how to reach across party lies and embrace the disenfranchised as well as
the rich and powerful. Well, he must have learned by visiting Austin's most
bipartisan restaurant, the Magnolia Cafe at 1920 S. Congress. This place
embraces compassionate conservatives, red-necked NRA members, wild-eyed
liberals, and even Nader quoting Gore bashing green thumbed environmental
zealots. Why? Because the food and the ambiance, while they may seem at
times across purposes, just work.
I understand the President Elect covertly sends out for
Martian Landscapes, a wonderful potato and cheddar cheese concoction as well
as the veggie burger, an intriguing mixture of sprouts and other flora
pressed into a tantalizing yet healthy sandwich that puts anything at Mickey
D's to shame. Now how about that? I'm a liberal Gore voter, but Mr. Bush and
I have already begun to build a culinary consensus. Well, it's a start.
You've also got to try the Portobello quesadillas and
the Love Veggies. Those dishes are enough to bring any two divergent sides
together in blissful coexistence. And how about the Omelets? My favorite is
the Popeye. The star ingredient, of course, is the sautéed fresh spinach,
which along with the eggs and the cheese, make for a richly satisfying yet
caloric ally non-offensive entree.
Despite looking like a place that just has to be
vegetarian, you can get sausage and bacon, chicken, fish, all manners of
non-vegan sustenance at Magnolia. And it's all excellent. Yet, my absolute
favorite dish is the stir-fried vegetables over brown rice. Add tofu. You
cannot miss.
You know they say that Bill Clinton used to air lift
ribs from some BBQ joint in Arkansas to the White House. He just hadda have
'em.
Do you suppose W. might soon be sending secret
service contingents down to S. Congress with FED EX boxes????
You know, the place grows on you. And with the
landscape in Washington the president elect will soon have to negotiate, a
Magnolia Martian Landscape may just be what the doctor ordered.
I'm Rob Balon, relieved and delighted to have a new
president, and happier still to remind you about bipartisanship at its
ultimate best, the Magnolia Cafe.
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