Austin, baby!

"Only a rank degenerate would drive 1,500 miles across Texas without eating a chicken-fried steak." —Larry McMurtry

We're travelling to Austin, Texas, (departing wednesday) to attend a wedding. Of course, I have my own agenda.

(Side note: I will actually be in the wedding as a groomsman. Obviously, this doesn't speak well of the groom, who is a "professional" artist, whose only redeeming quality is his inexplicable charm and attractiveness to women clearly above his station-in this case, a gorgeous nubile young blonde neurosurgeon) I hate him, but I definitely want to dance with HER at the reception.

Stay tuned for the usual blizzard of sub-standard photo essays, useless information and self-satisfied gloating upon my return.

Chicken-fried steak is known as the (unofficial) state dish of Texas.
If chicken-fried steak sounds suspiciously like Wiener schnitzel, you are correct in your assumption. German immigrants to Texas are credited with crafting this variation, but instead of using veal, these early Texans made it with the more readily available beef. And as the cuts of meat were a bit tough, the process of tenderizing, battering, frying and coating it in gravy rendered it more palatable.