Pickin’ and Grinnin’

Sir Paul would no doubt approve of Easy Pickin’s, a much-needed vegetarian alternative to South Austin’s BBQ, Tex-Mex, and meat-munching restaurants. Although it has been around a few months, I knew nothing about it until Thursday when my vegan neighbor and I pulled into the driveway at the same time. She had this big cheesin’ smile on her face and gripped a menu like it was a winning Powerball ticket. “It’s true, Easy Pickin’s is finally open!,” she said, displaying their tri-fold menu printed on unbleached, recycled paper. “It’s by Creatures, in that little group of shops on the corner of South First and Mary.” I was starving and it was lunchtime, so I braved the South First war zone in hope of something different than Thundercloud or Chango’s.

It wasn’t clear exactly where the restaurant is located, although there is a small white and black banner above the old taco shack that reads, “Easy Pickin’s Now Open!” But the curtains were closed in the windows and I couldn’t see any lights on inside. As I crossed the parking lot, I approached two guys having a smoke next to a teeny-tiny storefront. They confirmed that I was at the right place and they were indeed open. In fact, after extinguishing their cigarettes, they would be making my food. Strike one. Upon entrance, you realize quickly that Easy Pickin’s is only carry-out, as there are no chairs or tables, just a display case and chrome food station (like you would see at Papa John’s, for example). It smelled great and everything appeared to be clean and fresh–unlike the facade of the building. The guys were really friendly and said that business wasn’t excellent but word is out. Like all the stores on South First, they’re trying to make it to December, when construction should be either finished or south of Ben White.

Now, let’s talk food. They got a lot of it. We’re talking appetizers like Pesto Neopolitan pizza, mediterranean platter (hummus, baba ghanoush, tabouli, etc.) and spring rolls. It took me about five minutes to decide what kind of sandwich to get as there were over ten to choose from. Should I get the Oyster Mushroom Po-Boy or Portabella? Maybe I’ll try the soy meatball sub. But my introduction to EP was obvious: I would try The Big Pimpy, a soy burger topped with cheese, beans, chili, corn chips, onion, jalapenos, with pickles and mustard. Snoop Dog would be proud. For about $7.00 I would get a huge sandwich, along with a side of pasta salad, cucumber salad, or something similar. I went with tabouli. Surprisingly, it was handed to me in a huge plastic container in a plastic bag. After dodging heavy machinery and ankle-destroying holes along South First, I was home within minutes. The verdict: the burger did not taste like a thawed Boca or Morningstar pattie–it was delicious and loaded with toppings. They didn’t skimp on the tabouli either. Washed down with ice-cold Coca Cola Classic, my first Easy Pickin’s experience was pimptastic.

July 26th, 2003