Archive for category: Austin

Ambience: French – in addition you could describe Justine’s as Hipster, Romantic, Classy, Trendy, Intimate

OUR LOVELY HOSTESS: Allison Berguin, France

Pierre will set up an area outside for us, with heaters if it is cold.
From 6-8pm. We told him to expect 30-40 ppl since it is already Dec.

NOTE: we need to stay in the area reserved outside and NOT have people sit in the restaurant or take chairs from tables as there may be customers waiting to dine. We can order food and drinks, we will have a waitress for our group only. She will be there for 2 hours working for us. If people wish to stay and eat, they must check with the host and request a table.(RECOMMENDED). JUST IN CASE, BRING WARM JACKET – even with heaters it may be slightly chilly!
Mondays are probably NOT their busy busy days especially in Dec so we may get very lucky – have more room to wiggle in that case.

Pierre Pelegrin and his wife, Justine Gilcrease created a menu based on French classics, thus beginning what seemed to friends and family to be an interminable process of converting a 1937 bungalow on East Fifth Street into a restaurant.
The buzz about Justine’s went viral even before the restaurant opened. Pelegrin, a former waiter at Chez Nous, and Gilcrease, an artist, cast a wide social net, and news about their restaurant began percolating through the rumor filters months in advance. Jjustine’s opening was so anticipated during the two years PIerre and Justine spent remodeling that cars would drive by frequently to check on its progress.

About Justine’s: A French story d’amour
“The inspiration behind this family-friendly, late night bistro begins with bit of a love story. Justine Gilcrease was raised in California, but lived some time in Brussels, where she learned French. She came to Austin to visit a friend and met Pierre Pellegrin, a French national. They struck up a conversation in French that lasted into the night and fell in love.”
Quote from theaustintimes.com – Article and photos by Katie Warner.
Read the above article

EXTENDED HAPPY HOUR SPECIAL FOR EUROCIRCLE GUESTS- Everyone is Welcome!

OUR HOSTS FOR THIS CASUAL EUROCIRCLE EVENT:
Thanks to all the lovely hosts and organizations for joining us!

Allison Berguin, France, Wells Fargo
Aline Hanle, France, www.consciouscatalystconsulting.com and www.impressionoftheSoul.com
Adnan Khaleel, UK
Marie Cloutier, J hilburn (custom made men’s shirts etc! Really cool stuff!)
Edrik Kovach, Hungary
Marek Peczeniuk and Beata Zadrozna, Poland, www.austinpolishsociety.org
Henrik Johansson, Sweden, SACC and www.boundlessnetwork.com /Swedish American Chamber of Commerce TX www.sacctx.com
Antonia Warren Garcia-Vaso, Spain, www.casadeespanaaustin.com
Joanna, www.meetup.com/austin-euro/
Kamilla Khabibrakhmanova, Russia
Niki and Paul Haarman, Spain/NL/USA, The Renaissance Companies
Jonathan Green, UK, www.greeninc.com (motor sports broadcaster F1 etc)
Heli Esker, Finland, Zip Realty/Author
Kaisa Kokkonen, Finland, www.EuroCircle.net
www.Questionmine.com Team (Jon Rogers, Lance Shuldberg and Gary Spirer)

SPECIALS:
Here are some suggestion for special offers BEER-
Harp $3 Ireland
Smithwicks $3 England
New Belgium Sahti $3…(Sahti is a traditional Finish rye alebrewed with Juniper-this is a pretty popular beer here)
These are all in 20 oz Imperial pints
.Maudite $9 Canada
St Bernardus 8 and 12 $9 Belgium
Maredsous Triple $9 Belgium
These are served in 16 oz glasses

WINE-
White Chateau Bonnet Entre-deux-mer 2010 $4gl France
Sparkling Perelada rose cava nv $5gl Spain
Rose Bieler 2010 $4gl France
Red Menguante Granacha $4gl Spain
Red Les Fontanelles Pinot Noir 2009 $4gl France

LIQUOR-
Jagermiester $2 Germany
Jose Cuervo Gold $2 Mexico

FOOD-
Calamari $6
Small Mussels $6
Small Bangers and Mash $6

Jeffrey Kuhn, owner of Hank’s Garage , spent decades in the service industry. (dabbling a bit in finance and real estate too). He’s bootstrapped this enterprise himself and spent about 12 months gutting the space by himself. The building used to be a legit garage run by a mechanic named “Hank” almost 75 years ago.

Hank’s Garage is located at 115 San Jacinto (half block north of the Four Seasons), the renovation dresses up the outside of the building. I looked at some of the old photos..what a difference!

Quote from the www.thrillist.com:
Belgium’s known for three things: beer, mussels, and The Muscles from Brussels. Unless you count being the capital of the EU, and if you know who “The Muscles” refers to, you almost certainly don’t. Bringing Belgium’s edible stars to ATX, Hank’s Garage.

Helmed by a beer nerd who noticed Austin’s unfilled Flemish/Walloon niche, Hank’s is an open-kitchen, hardwood gastropub with a cozy back patio on which to suckle the nectar of their 32 taps, 33 if you count what you’re gonna do to dat ass…tap him, and ask if he really needs that second chair for his laptop. The knowledgeable barkeeps offer samples to help you choose from said copious spouts, which include high-ABV dark ivory and ruby purple varieties from St. Bernardus, raspberry-tinged Framboise Lambic, shockingly sour Duchesse de Bourgogne, and the “certified Trappist” Chimay, meaning it’s made under the direction of monks, though with their debilitating OCD it’s a miracle they can even get out of the cot in the morning. They’ve also got an array of Belgian-stylers, like Ft. Worth’s Rahr Ugly Pug, and Cooperstown’s Ommegang Hennepin — a beer Ty Cobb’s allowed to drink, but Pete Rose isn’t.

The evolving menu includes pommes frites with a slew of sauces (from smoked paprika mayo to dill creme fraiche) and toppers (chili cheese, chicken tikka masala, duck fat…), mussels in tomato saffron broth, steak (also with frites), and a St. Bernardus-marinated Beef Carbonnade, likely to result in emissions that neither your muscles nor bureaucrats from Brussels could cap.

They say success is all about who you know. It takes a lot of persistence, it takes a lot of drive, but expanding one’s network is always easier with a cocktail in hand. Why not loosen our ties, let our hair down and enjoy a few Martinis by Piranha Killer Sushi (Kevin, their manager says they are hard to beat) at EuroCircle’s Private Downtown Party this Saturday evening, on May 14th. Great company, beautiful surrounding…and lovely hosts to help you to meet new people!

Featured Hosts:
– Antonia Warren Vaso-Garcia, Spain, Founder of Casa de Espana, Realtor
– Anders Eriksson, Sweden, Owner of Polo Tennis Club _
– Heli Esker, Finland, Cook Book Author, Editor, Realtor
– Kaisa Kokkonen, Finland, EuroCircle Founder, ex-lawyer
– Gary Spirer, USA, IYD International, Author, Investment Banker, Real Estate Investor, Speaker, Serial Entrepreneur

Beverages and sushi is catered by Piranha Killer Sushi

Gift Bags: Lumene USA is kindly donating all of our attendees a lovely giftbag, each are about $80 retail value. www.lumeneusa.com

This luxury high-rise downtown apartment building provides a luxurious and prestigious lifestyle through its incredible location and dynamic views of downtown Austin, the Texas State Capitol, Lady Bird Lake and the Texas Hill Country. Beyond the high-end appointments, vibrant colors and innovative designs inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, you’ll find this building is a world of exploration and indulgence. Its location right on the water.

From a coffee connoisseur to anyone – Medici has likely the two best coffee shops in Austin. And now they are opening a brand-new 3rd location in downtown Austin, at the chic and trendy Austonian.
Join us to explore the great coffee drinks, wine and beer (and sandwiches) at this lovely new location scheduled to open at the end of this week (March 7 – 12).

Aaron Vollmer and Jean Pierre, of Runa Workshop, designed their new Austonian space. They have brought some unique ideas and design while still keeping the essentials of Medici (downstairs and mezzanine ..and some outdoor space as well)

EXTRA GIFT: the first 20 people 1) who RSVP and 2) show up will get a special gift (retail value between $20 – 50)

RSVP strongly recommended because we will RESERVE some space based on your firm response.
(note: SXWS makes it busy)

We can stay longer (than 8.30 pm) if we want or move somewhere else for late night dinner like Malaga, The Congress, Annie’s etc)

PARKING: They do not expect the city to be SUPER busy YET this Saturday but if so Austonian has valet parking on Congress Avenue side that you can use.

Your hosts:
Shabnam Miller
Kaisa Kokkonen