A food lover’s journey through life, while discovering inspiring places and delicious bites along the way

Life lessons from tacos and salsa

 

     “Namaste,” I whisper as I bow my head to the floor.  I wipe the sweat from my brow and eagerly roll up my yoga mat.  It’s Saturday morning, and my stomach begins to growl as it anticipates our weekly ritual.  A 90- minute vinyasa class at Yoga Yoga followed by a walk around the corner to the beloved Austin staple, TacoDeli.  I don’t even have to wait in line since I proactively phoned in my order on the way to class two hours ago (the lines are atrocious after 10 a.m. on the weekends).  They know to have it ready for me promptly at 10:15 a.m.  Yes, I’m the person who has restaurant phone numbers saved in my cell phone and is greeted by name when the employee answers.  I have my priorities, people.  I know what I am, and I am at peace with that.  Now, just give me my tacos.  

 

     Some foodies live by the mantra of “trying something new” every time.  I, on the other hand, stick with what I know and love.  This week is no different.  A “Vaquero”(grilled corn, roasted peppers, and cheese on eggs) and a “Jess special” (migas, eggs, and jack cheese) on corn with a cup of coffee – black.  Oh, and did I mention my mild obsession (pun intended) with TacoDeli salsas?  Not only did I ask for an extra side of salsa to go with my tacos, but I went for the whole shebang and ordered two large to-go tubs with chips.  Yep, that’s right.  Two tubs.  Roughly 32 ounces of pure bliss in Tupperware.  I figure it won’t go to waste, and my hubby and I can snack on it through the week.  Ahem.  Okay, maybe it’ll last us a few days, but you get the point. Close family and friends know that half the reasonI exercise on a regular basis is to offset my caloric intake.  Life lesson #1, if you want to eat your tacos, you must exercise.  It’s that simple.  Or, you can starve yourself the rest of the week, but I prefer the former over the latter.

     As I take a sip of coffee and unwrap my first taco, I finally take a moment to look around the restaurant and take in my surroundings.  It’s the usual weekend crowd, young twenty-somethings nursing their Friday night hangovers with tortillas, parents feeding their soccer uniform clad seven years old, and fellow yogis and cyclists hungry for organic coffee and locally sourced Vital Farms eggs.  I start to feel guilty for a moment – here I am, sitting quietly in a bar-top stool, able to read my emails and peruse Instagram in peace.  I think about my sister-in-laws and friends with kids, and how different their Saturday mornings are from mine.  I would count my blessings to spend my weekend mornings with my own little ones, eating tacos over milk and coffee.  But for now, this is my life and the path I have been blessed with.  There have been some Saturday mornings when I engage in this ritual and catch a brief admiring gaze of a mom as she attempts to coax her baby into eating a bite of beans.  She looks up at me and sees a woman, about the same age, garbed in Lululemon yoga pants, drinking her coffee and eating her tacos in peace.  What she doesn’t know, is that maybe, just maybe, she was looking at a woman that struggled for years to get pregnant and have a baby of her own.  Life lesson #2, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.  I know the statement is overused and at times, cliche, but whoever came up with that saying knew what they were talking about.  Kudos to you, mystery author.  And so for today, I feel nourished in the fact that I can do vinyasa, drink coffee, and eat tacos on my own accord.  

     And so, as I finish the last bite of my avocado and eggs, I smile to myself.  I remember the most important life lesson of all from my Saturday morning rituals.  When the monotony of life gets in the way, you should just eat tacos and salsa (and do yoga).  

Foodie Finds   TacoDeli is an Austin staple, and frequented by locals and tourists alike.  They are known for their four award-winning salsas.  Each flavor has won first place in the Austin Hot Sauce Festival. You can check out more on the salsa recipes here. All of the tacos are handcrafted daily, made with the highest quality ingredients.  The eggs are sourced from local Vital Farms, and all of the chips and corn tortillas are made from organic masa.    For breakfast, try the house favorite Otto (beans, bacon, avocado and jack cheese) or vegetarians can feast on the El Popeye (eggs, spinach, and queso fresco).   For lunch, don’t miss out on their daily specials, including the DeliBelly (pork belly, avocado, cilantro, onion with honey tomatillo-serrano salsa) or Tikin XIC (achiote marinated grilled salmon with habanero onion escabeche). Five locations in Austin and one location in Dallas make it easy to stop by on your visit.  Bon Appetit!

TacoDeli (6 Locations)                             Yoga Yoga (4 Locations)   

Austin, Texas                                       Austin, Texas

Hours:  M-F 7-3 pm, Sat-Sun 8-3 pm                Open 7 days a week