Texas – Houston, Austin, Lubbock
Important note: This entry is part of a series covering our recent USA Road Trip. It is not written as a guide, but more as journal entries, since – you will notice if you bother to read them – we barely spent a day in each place we visited, except for New Orleans (two days). It is simply impossible (and unfair) to each town or city, for us to make any judgements whatsoever, without spending enough time to properly explore many, if not all, that they have to offer. Nevertheless, if you decide to continue reading – buckle up – we hope you enjoy the ride.
Texas is the second largest state in the US, covering 268,596 miles. Over three days, we drove the entire width of Texas, moving diagonally up, westward – with Houston as our first stop from New Orleans, followed by Austin, and eventually Lubbock – before exiting the state into Albuquerque, New Mexico.
From New Orleans to Lubbock, we covered about 884 miles on the I-10 West, driving over 15 hours, which we split over three days.
Except for Austin, Houston and Lubbock were really merely stepping stones on our way to Los Angeles, so we had no specific itinerary when we arrived. Looking back, we should have spent more time in Houston and Austin – at least to visit the Houston Space Center; and for Austin, to eat in more than one barbecue joint!
Table of Contents
Click here if you’d like to check out the overview of our epic USA Road Trip!
Houston
Houston is the most populous city in Texas, and the fourth most populous in the country. It is also the largest city in the US by total area.
Getting there
Houston is 354 miles (570 kilometres) from New Orleans, and we reached Downtown Houston just before 6pm in the evening – the journey taking quite a bit longer than the 5 and a half hours suggested by Google Maps, as we stopped for lunch at a Waffle House gas station.
We were excited just to be able to experience what it was like to eat in a diner, especially since we were on an “American road trip”. It made the trip feel more authentic – and our excitement was so obvious, much to the amusement of the diner staff, who joined us for a picture.
Our Accommodation
We checked into the Hyatt Place Houston Downtown, which, as its name indicates, is located in the heart of the city – and conveniently just a stroll away from many restaurants and other business establishments.
Things we did in Houston
Since we had only a couple of hours left before dark, we decided to explore the downtown area. We were a little surprised to find downtown Houston to be quite empty of the normal crowd one typically associates with big cities, but we figured it might be that since we were only a couple of days away from Christmas, most locals would probably be away on vacation, or at home with their families.
The Rice Hotel
As we walked about, we stumbled across The Rice Hotel – where John F. Kennedy stayed and even gave a few remarks, the day before he was assassinated.
Brasa’s
Walking around, we came across a fancy-looking steak restaurant – Brasa’s – a Brazilian Churrascaria. We did not realise when we sat down that this was a buffet-only restaurant – meaning one price per person ($55 not including tax and tips) for unlimited food (drinks not included). We weren’t planning to eat a lot that night, but since we found ourselves at a buffet (a not so cheap one at that), we stuffed ourselves silly.
Sunnys
After consuming an enormous amount of meat, we continued walking around, looking for a place to get a nightcap. We passed by Sunnys, saw that they sold $5 frozen drinks, so we each ordered the same thing.
We had a great time at Sunnys. The bar tender was pretty cool and seemed to be on a first-name basis with many of the patrons, and the customers in general were pretty laid back and just having a good time.
Christ Church Cathedral
Just across our hotel was the historic Christ Church Cathedral, established on March 16, 1839, when Texas was still an independent republic. After breakfast the following day, just before we checked out, we decided to head on over the take a look.
Austin
From a culinary standpoint, Austin is the place you want to be if you are a certified carnivore, especially of the barbecued kind. Considered the home of real Texas barbecue, you will find a countless array of barbecue restaurants scattered all over the city. Of course, Austin has so much more to offer other than just a tasty plate of barbecue; it is also known for its music. In fact, it is known as the Live Music Capital of the World. But since we only had an afternoon in Austin, we focused on priority number one: to eat meat – lots of it.
Getting there
We drove for about three hours on the I-10 W to State Highway 71 W to our next hotel in Austin.
Our accommodation
We chose another Hyatt hotel – this time the Hyatt House Austin on Neches Street, which is also smack dab in the middle of the city.
Things we did in Austin
Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que
A family-owned and operated restaurant, Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que, is located on Congress Avenue, it is conveniently situated in the heart of Austin, serving beef brisket and ribs, chicken, pork ribs, turkey and sausages. Unfortunately, they did not serve brisket (or they ran out) at the time; however, they still had their humungous beef ribs, chicken, sausages, pork ribs. We ordered them all – one Flintstone-sized beef rib for each of us, along with a whole rack of pork ribs, half a chicken, sausages, with coleslaw and a salad. It was free-seating, and on each table you will find massive jars of pickled jalapeños, which we thoroughly enjoyed pairing with all the meat. We also ordered a couple of bottles of wine.
A short drive around Austin
After a hearty meal at Cooper’s we decided to explore downtown Austin to burn off some of those calories.
We ran into the Saint Mary Cathedral. Completed in 1874, it was built in a Victorian design, and it reminded me of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, especially the upper-middle part of the facade. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on 2nd April, 1973.
After a few more aimless minutes of driving around the city, we decided to call it a day and head back to our hotel.
Thoughts on Austin
One of our biggest regrets was not staying at least one more day in Austin. We wanted to try other barbecue joints – particularly Black’s and Franklin Barbecue. We never got to eat beef brisket – which was the number one thing we wanted to try, but Cooper’s had run out when we dined there. So while we enjoyed our meatfest at Cooper’s it did not feel complete without the real star of the show.
Lubbock
Instead of driving directly to Albuquerque, we cut the trip in half and decided on Lubbock, which is almost precisely at the halfway point towards Albuquerque in New Mexico.
We had zero knowledge and expectations of Lubbock – it’s not exactly a tourist destination – and as we entered the city and towards our hotel, we were surprised at how silent and empty it seemed. We arrived in the early evening, around 6pm, so it was strange to see so many buildings and homes looking empty. There were barely any cars on the road, and we only saw a couple of people outside. It reminded us of scenes from apocalyptic movies – of abandoned towns and neighbourhoods.
Getting there
It was long drive from Austin to Lubbock – about 8 hours – significantly more than the six that was indicated on Google Maps, via State Hwy 71 W. Admittedly, we did stop for gas and lunch along the way.
Lunch break
Our accommodation
We booked another Hyatt – Hyatt Place Lubbock – and just like the place in which it is situated, activity inside was almost non-existent. There were a few cars parked in the lot in front of the hotel; when we checked in, there was one receptionist, who (we found out a bit later), had been tasked to do everything – from checking in guests, bar tending, cleaning up and customer service.
Things we did in Lubbock
We decided to stay at the hotel – hanging out at the dining area near the reception with our leftover barbecue from Coopers, and a few bottles of wine we bought along the way. The receptionist/bar tender, allowed us to use their microwave, plates, wine glasses and silverware for our food and drinks.
Overall Impressions
Texas is a massive state, and we breezed through in only three days. Needless to say, we didn’t even scratch the surface of what the state has to offer. Looking back, we should stayed a little longer in Houston and Austin, but as it was, we enjoyed our time while we were there.