Last month, we stupidly tried to go see a movie at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar without buying our tickets ahead of time. "Hey," we said, in the manner of morons, "The Fantastic Mr. Fox has been open for three weeks! Surely," we continued, while chewing our cud like particularly dumb cows, "Surely, the 7:00 show on a Saturday won't be SOLD OUT, not at one of the most popular theaters in TOWN."
And guess what? Sold out! Who woulda guessed? So we bought tickets for the 10:00 screening and retreated to the Highball to ruminate over how to occupy ourselves for three hours.
Over passable Manhattans, we talked about options in the neighborhood. That's when we remembered the wonderful Victoria at La Boîte (another place we desperately need to revisit and blog) telling us about the brand new wine bar at a home decor store a few blocks away called Aviary.
So down the street we went. I've never been in a wine bar that sells decorative pillows and lovely furniture, or for that matter, a home decor store with a bar selling intriguing wines from Argentina and beers from Alsace. But now that I've been to one, I highly recommend others follow Aviary's lead.
The store is supercool, selling all sorts of little knickknacks and beautiful things for people with homes in need of decoration. They also have a huge collection of those awesome bags by Harveys made from recycled seatbelts, which I would totally have a collection of if I had money falling from my ears.
And of course the place has a cute little bar right in the middle. And if the bar is full, you can sit in one of the other seating areas on stylish chairs that are, incidentally, for sale. I asked Logan to peruse the beer and wine menu while I took a look around.
Aviary has a small selection of beer and wine for sale, along with plates of charcuterie made by Daniel Hunt of A Noble Beast. Daniel just so happened to be there that night, and we chatted with him for a while about his preserved meats. He sources only locally, from places like Richardson Farms (who is popping up more and more, it seems) and Sebastian at Countryside Farms. His business is brand new, and I wish him well!
Actual Charcuterie after the jump:
We ordered a small charcuterie plate, and so got to choose three of Daniel's products. For $10, this was a really good deal. There is cheese available too, for you vegetarians and people who want to cut down on the amount of meat in your snacking.
We had, from top to bottom, the "piquant" saucisson sec, which was spicy, porky, and fatty in the European style; pork terrine, nicely textured with a bit of sweetness; and rabbit rillettes, which were a bit dry but seasoned very well. Yum.
The folks running the place were really nice, and the bar would be a comfortable spot to while away a few hours. It was especially fun chatting with Marco about the store and the neighborhood. They're even bringing in live DJ's on Wednesdays, though you'll have to call to find out exactly whom.
Of course the bill was precious, just like the pretty plates and designer wine glasses. Bask in the chicness of the library checkout card.
So thanks for a lovely evening, Aviary! Next time we see a movie at the Alamo, maybe we'll show up an hour early just so we can have some charcuterie and a glass of wine or beer with you guys. And we'll definitely buy tickets beforehand.
Aviary is located at 2110 S. Lamar in Austin, TX, just south of the intersection of Lamar and Oltorf. 512.916.4445.
Also, funny that I should put up this post today. I just got an email from Aviary with information about their weekly happy hour specials for January, and some of them are quite good. Half price bottles of wine on Wednesday? Shyeah! The list is available here.
