The first time I ever voted in the Austin Chronicle’s Best of Poll was in 2003. I was waiting for an $8 haircut near the UT campus when I picked up my very first “Best of Austin” ballot issue. Mid-haircut, I was wishing that I had skipped the Drag and consulted the 2002 poll results for a salon recommendation.

I was eighteen years old then, and I had never voted in anything besides my high school’s student council elections, so my choices for this thing were a Big Deal. I spent a week poring over the ballot, and the moment I mailed it in was one of the first times I felt like I belonged in Austin. This year, I am submitting my ballot online, but I have spent just as much time thinking about which businesses to mention. My friend Jodi at Tasty Touring recently published some of her picks for the poll, so I thought I’d do the same here on my blog. Jodi won last year’s award for “Best Food Blogger” (I voted for her!) and she was kind enough to mention my friend Megan’s blog, Stetted and my blog, The Austin Gastronomist, for this year’s honor. There are hundreds of outstanding food bloggers in Austin, and regardless of the outcome of the poll, the fact that our collective importance is recognized by the Chronicle is thrilling.

A full list of my votes is posted below. Take a look! If you live in Austin, or feel strongly about keeping Austin weird, I hope that you’ll take some time to vote in the poll yourself. (Do it soon– the deadline is July 18th.) Then come back and tell me what you chose! What was your wildcard? What did I get wrong? Which all-important category did I skip? After all, half of the fun of this poll is talking with friends about what makes Austin such a great place to be.

 

ARCHITECTURE AND LODGING

ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT

FOOD AND DRINK

KIDS

MEDIA

OUTDOOR AND RECREATION

POLITICS AND PERSONALITIES

SERVICES

SHOPPING

WILDCARDS