austin food and wine festival

Amongst the things not on this listicle that I also learned in Austin this past weekend: Andrew Zimmern is very good at plugging his website andrewzimmern.com; and comedian Michael Ian Black orders salads at McDonald's. Neither of these made the cut, but find out what did.

Jesse Herman, though biased like the parent cheering section at a t-ball game, speaks the truth. “Austin has become the most exciting food city in the U.S.,” says the former New Yorker who moved to Texas to open restaurants. We recently caught up with him to talk about Austin and find out why he recommends spending the last weekend in April in Austin.

Many New Yorkers dream of picking up and trying for a slightly easier lifestyle in another city or town, but few successful ones actually do it. Rene Ortiz and Laura Sawicki, the chefs at Austin's acclaimed La Condesa, are taking up Sinatra on the notion that "if you can make it there you can make it anywhere." Video interview and more after the jump.