Image courtesy of belgianwaffle.co

Now that spring has sprung, we are out in force, exploring the city before the sweltering summer comes upon us. Join us on our weekly culinary adventures with Restaurant Wednesday, when we share newly-discovered tasty bites from across the city. 

Austin welcomes a new food truck in town that has the potential to turn a breakfast staple, the waffle, into a savory lunch or a rich dessert. The Belgian Waffle Co trailer will make you never want to eat an Eggo again—one taste of their unforgettable Waffles de Liege and you will be sold! The perfect combination of crispy, soft and delicious, these waffles are the stuff of dreams.

Pastry chefs are constantly pushing the envelope today, whether it's apple spheres, courtesy of molecular gastronomy, at Alinea or remarkably delicious tobacco cream at Uchiko. Sometimes, however, the best desserts are the simplest, the tried and true. In fact, I'll be the first to confess that second only to chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cupcakes satisfy my sweet tooth the best.

Image courtesy of Skinnytaste.com 

My fellow meat-lovers, Christmas has come early. As if us foodies needed another reason to get excited about April (Austin FOOD & WINE Festival, anyone?), the Austin Food & Wine Alliance will be hosting a meat-centric culinary throwdown of epic proportions. Featuring some of Austin’s favorite chefs and nationally-recognized meet aficionados, including Aaron Franklin (Franklin Barbecue), Ned Elliott (Foreign & Domestic) and Jesse Griffiths (Dai Due), Live Fire! promises to be a sizzling event to remember.

I once ate a carrot that I had personally plucked from the grounds of a local Austin farm. It doesn't sound like much, but the instant I took a bite of bright orange, delicate vegetable, I could taste the difference between this carrot and store bought ones — it was crispy, sweet and left my mouth watering for more of the rare and fresh flavor. On May 10, the Sustainable Food Center will celebrate this startling beauty of organic food during its fourth annual Farm to Plate fundraiser, featuring more than 25 top Central Texas chefs. 

Foodies, whet your appetites: Austin Restaurant Week begins this Sunday and promises to be a mouthwatering two weeks celebrating Austin’s vibrant culinary scene!

I have to admit that the only thing holding me back from becoming a vegetarian is my love for bacon. The crispy, crunchy strips are great by themselves and perfectly complement salads, burgers, and even those sweet and salty bacon donuts that can be found at Gourdoughs. Luckily, The Takedown, a competition that allows self-taught cooks to bring in their brilliant creations for the chance to win money and prizes, shares my love for bacon AND decided Austin would be the perfect place to hold the 3rd Annual Bacon Takedown.

SXSW is drawing nearer, which means music lovers are carefully planning their lineup for this year’s festival season. As for me, I’m getting into the festival spirit foodie-style, seeking out the culinary hotspots that will be celebrating SXSW with panache – because nothing goes better with good food than good music! After the jump is a roundup of dining options that will satisfy both the music lover and the foodie.

After cupcakes, frozen yogurt might be one of the most persistent trends in the dessert world. Austin is no exception in the fro-yo craze, which prides itself in being a “healthy” alternative dessert – until, of course, it's topped with gummy worms, sprinkles and chocolate syrup. But let’s face it. What we all really want is the real stuff: ice cream.Whether you are digging your spoon into a tub of Rocky Road indoors on a cold day or licking the melting liquid off a cone by the pool, nothing can replace this decadent classic.

If we went out to eat together, you might look at my order and think, "What is she eating?" The answer? I'm eating like a cavewoman. 

Named for the paleolithic era of time, the basic premise of the Paleo diet is that if cavemen didn't eat it, then I shouldn't eat it (though protein powder is a notable exception). The rules are simple, the application challenging: