#41: Gino's East

The Bar

Gino's East. 214 E 6th St, Austin, TX 78701

Visited 2/15/17 @ 8pm.

UPDATE: Gino's East has closed.

The Drink

Eye-talian margarita. Lunazul tequila, triple sec, sweet and sour, lime, and Disaronno amaretto. $7.

Our bartender was from the Northeast, with an accent to match, and this was her creation. I've used Lunazul tequila before, when I was trying to make Trudy's Mexican martinis at home, and it's a really solid mid-tier tequila. This drink closely resembles the one from Trudy's with the substitution of the Cointreau for a side glass of amaretto, which was specifically chosen because she "wanted to drink like an old Italian man". I am part Italian, but before I descend into my bocce-playing dotage, I want to enjoy a few more drinks like this first. I drained part of the margarita, poured the amaretto in, and enjoyed the almond flavor it gave to the remainder. It reminded me of the almond cookies my Italian relatives in New York make, which, as it happens, are nearly identical to Mexican wedding cookies, so this drink was a happy union of the two cultures. If only all cultural interactions could be done via cookies and alcoholic beverages, I think the world would be a lot happier.

The Crew

Rome, Travis, Aaron.

Notes

Fuck the haters, I love deep dish pizza. It's not the same kind of pizza as New York style pizza, but it doesn't have to be, and as long as the breath of freedom still flows through the lungs of America, I will continue to transfer deep dish pizza to the stomach of Aaron as vigorously as possible. Gino's East is one of the handful of Chicago pizza joints who competes for the essentially bogus title of "original deep dish pizza". I've eaten at one of the ones in Chicago but, for reasons of laziness, never at the Austin location, which has been open for a year or two. It's obviously more of a restaurant than a bar, tucked underneath the staircase to The Parish, but on a Wednesday night we had no issues at all strolling in for our round and then departing. They are one of the few places on Sixth where you can hear Emerson, Lake & Palmer wafting gently from the speakers. We didn't eat here, but I was strongly tempted to. This location also maintains the pro-graffiti tradition of the Chicago locations, which meshes nicely with Austin's affinity for the same. Another great cultural connection.