Summertime is upon us and we have been craving Lobster rolls in a big way. We were told by several people to go to Perla's because they make the best. So an opportunity came up where we could "feed two birds with one scone" (we feel this is much nicer than saying "kill two birds with one stone," don't you agree?) because we need to use a groupon that we bought for Easely Amused (a painting studio that teaches art classes and no artistic ability is required, thank goodness!) before it expired. Not only do they encourage you to bring friends, have fun and let your creative juices flow, but it's BYOB!! How FUN! - and to us that translates into Bring Your Own Box. You go online, pick a date and are told what type of class to expect. Our class happened to be Pet Picasso Night and that was "purrfect" because we LOVE pets, especially our furry dog children; so we were thrilled to be able to try and paint their portraits (try being the operative word). All we have to do is show up with a picture of our pet and our box of wine and they supply the rest. How cool is that? So back to Perla's... since we were going to be downtown for the paint class, we thought we would go there for an early lunch and eighty-six our lobster roll craving. We arrive at Perla's located @1400 S Congress Ave., Austin, TX and right away the outdoor patio is inviting, but it's hot so we decide to sit inside. As soon as we walk in it immediately smells of seafood and reminds us of being at an outdoor fish market. The decor is beachy, very cool and quite calming. As we sit at the bar, we can just about feel the sand beneath our feet and makes us want to kick off our shoes and run our toes through it. The only thing missing at this point is a fruity drink in our hand and the sound of seagulls. Our waiter comes over and introduces himself then insists we try the drink special of a frozen mint julep. Oh man, he's already got our number and of course we oblige.
Looking at the menu we immediately let our waiter know that we will be having the lobster roll, but are waiting on a friend to show up before we order. The frozen mint julep is very refreshing and going down nicely as we just sit and talk and enjoy our surroundings. Once our friend shows up, he orders an appetizer of Oysters on the half shell that he and Richelle both really enjoyed (Jenn no likey oysters) and a second round of mint juleps. When our waiter returns we are surprised when two prickly pear margaritas show up instead
We look at the drinks, then at each other a bit confused, and say that's not what we ordered - but they are pretty and pink and look very tasty, so we say it's okay we'll drink them. We don't want any cocktails going to waste on our account. Then all three of us order the lobster roll with shoe string fries ($28.00) - that's comparable to New York City prices. We both used to live in NYC and miss our favorite lobster roll place called Mary's Fish Camp located @ 64 Charles St., NY, NY. Their rolls are the BEST in our opinion and are a piece of seafood heaven. Actually everything we have ever tried there is outstanding and we frequented this tiny establishment quite often. As we order the lobster roll at Perla's, Jenn can't get Mary's lobster roll off her brain because that is essentially what she wants right now and is pretty certain that's not what she is going to get. She even asks Richelle, "should we split one?" to which she replies, "nah, let's just go for it and get our own." Jenn says, "what the hell, okay" and then asks the waiter,"are they really good?" and of course he replies, "yes everyone loves them, but we do occasionally get people from Maine and the East Coast who have said, they've had better". Oh HELL, he just burst Jenn's bubble and now she knows for sure that she is going to be disappointed because she's one of "those people". One of those East Coasters, even though she was born and raised in Texas, who lived in NYC for 10 years and frequently ate at Mary's Fish Camp. She hesitates for a second thinking she may cancel that order and then decides to try it because that's the only way she's ever going to find out how good they really are or aren't. It comes out beautifully presented and actually comes topped with a good amount of lobster, but right away we notice it isn't really a mayonnaise based lobster salad, but basically just lobster meat on a bun with bibb lettuce and a side of drawn butter.
Then the first bite - drum roll please and........ no cymbals. Sadly, it just wasn't what we were hoping for but it was good and fresh. One of Jenn's favorite things to eat is lobster with drawn butter, but that's not what she was here for. She was at Perla's with high expectations of a Mary's Fish Camp lobster roll DAMN IT!!! and therefore, was disappointed; but now she knows that's not what she will order again. We decide to end our lunch with two more mint juleps and that's what is actually delivered this time. When our waiter drops off the check, he tells us he didn't charge us for the prickly pear mistake and we thought that was nice because we drank and enjoyed them. Our overall experience at Perla's was satisfying so we will definitely come back and give it another try, as the rest of the menu sounds very appetizing, the drinks were yummy and the staff was very nice. Unfortunately it seems as though our quest to find a Mary's Fish Camp lobster roll in Austin, Tx is unobtainable. We bid adieu to our friend and realize that we still have some time to kill before our paint class. Looking down the street we spot Guero's Taco Bar and swear we can hear it calling our name (red rover, red rover, wine mavens come over) so we sashay on down for a margarita.
In the midst of drinking we realize we've lost track of time and now are running late, so down the hatch goes our drink and out the door we go. Thank goodness Easely Amused - located @ 2324 S. Lamar Blvd. Austin, TX is close by and we arrive on time super excited to paint. We meet up with five of our girlfriends and take seats next to each other in front of a blank canvas. A paper plate is front of each canvas with the colors black and white. We are told to add at least five or six more colors that we would like to use in our painting and then our instructor, Bridget, begins to instruct us.
This is a "Picasso Portrait" so it's supposed to be an abstract cartoon-ish like painting full of shapes and colors. It's not supposed to look exactly like your pet, but be a representation of how you see them through your eyes. Jenn's thinking, "well thank god it's not supposed to look exactly like my dog because this is my first time at a paint class"- and as much as she lives in her own little unrealistic unicorn filled world and would love to believe she is talented enough to be able to sit down and paint a masterpiece on her first try (with the help of fairy dust - a.k.a. vino) she knows very well that this is not going to happen because, dare we say the word... it's reality.
Richelle has had art class in school so she's like, "I got this". Jenn is nervous because she doesn't want to mess up. She really wants to do her beautiful, movie star pup justice, but knows she must shake the fear and take the plunge.
Meanwhile, Richelle and the rest of the girls are painting away at warp speed and doing a beautiful job. Their pup portraits are all looking fantastic - really fantastic!
Jenn is thinking, "how can this be? how can all my friends be so talented at painting and I suck?" She is happy for them because all of their paintings are amazing and look exactly like the colorful Picasso dogs that they are supposed to. While hers looks like, well, a pig-dog.
She even gets up and walks around the room to admire the rest of the class' work - looking for that one other person who sucks as bad as she does, but nope there's not one. Really? Wow! Well, good for everyone else that they have talent. Jenn sits down and continues to work on her piece as all her friends each offer words of encouragement and say how they love her painting. All she can think of is, "my dog is gonna kill me when I get home after she sees this monstrosity." At the end of class, we all take pictures with our paintings and vow we will do this again.
It turned out to be a blast and a great way to spend the evening with our girlfriends. So if you are looking for a fun, unique experience for yourself or with friends, give Easely Amused a call. You will not be disappointed (unless maybe you happen to be the one painting a pig-dog Ha-Ha-Ha). Once we arrive home with our masterpieces, Richelle immediately hangs hers over her bed and rightly so, because it's that damn good.
Jenn unveils hers to her pooch lying on the floor by the couch and asks, "so what do you think?" Her pup raises it's head, cocks it to the side then raises one eyebrow before getting up and walking over to give her momma a big, fat, sweet, juicy, wet, kiss on the face. Awe, there's that unconditional love and seal of approval that makes everything right in the world. Jenn loves and appreciates her painting after that, because she now knows that her interpretation of the painting is no longer that of pig-dog, but wondrously human-dog with the soulful eyes.
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