Yesterday, GLS and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary. That morning, I came downstairs to find a dozen red roses and him preparing lox and bagels for breakfast.
That afternoon, we cruised north on Lamar to the new M.T. Market at the new Chinatown Center. Having once lived one El-stop north of Chicago's Chinatown (and visited often), we're especially excited about this development. GLS is Japanese-American on his mom's side, and grew up eating some of the ingredients featured there that aren't available in most groceries.
Various items that caught my eye included quail eggs in water, boiled lotus seeds, Thai red rice (pretty!), and the live Tilapia and Catfish (they also had lobster). The prices were great--big gulf shrimp at $4.49/lb. You could also buy big--anyone hungry for a 6 lb/2 onz. can of straw mushrooms? GLS picked up a gallon of Kikkoman Soy Sauce, which we use practically every day--it was heavy, like carrying around a can of motor oil. The store also includes a large housewares section, primarily kitchenware. The clientele was diverse, but predominately Asian (there's a sizable and quickly growing population in north Austin).
The rest of the development is filling in, though there are still plenty of storefronts available. I'm eager to try the Asian BBQ restaurant, and I found myself charmed by some of the Asian dresses in the shop next to the grocery store. I'll be back.
That evening, we dined at Sullivan's. GLS and I split the lump crab meat appetizer. An iceberg wedge with blue cheese dressing came with his steak and with my lobster. We split the greenbeans, he had mashed potatoes, and we split complimentary berries for dessert.
