Caroline Kennedy will be at Serrano's this afternoon to campaign for Obama....

Photo from Obama’s rally at The Backyard by Romain Nayalkar for Austinist.comWith all eyes focused on Texas and what could well prove to be a kingmaking March 4 primary, the statewide political machine has kicked into full gear. Whether it's a happy hour, camp out, or fundraising poker tournament, there's something going on just about every day of the week for Obama or Clinton supporters. Even those still rooting for under-underdog Ron Paul have something......

If you haven’t headed over to Aster’s Ethiopian Restaurant, a small, vivid gem set on the tarnished strip of I-35 just north of Dean Keeton, think of this as an opportunity with your name on it. The hospitable folks at Aster’s are designating a night of sales to their longtime friend Lawrence Eguakun of World Beat Café notoriety, who was diagnosed with cancer one year ago and has been undergoing intensive treatment since. ...

Sagra (Italian) Location: 1610 San Antonio [map] Phone: (512) 535-3464 Cost: Apps ($6-$12), Pasta and Entrees ($9-$24 and market), Pizzas ($9-$12), Sides ($6), Salads ($7-$9) Atmosphere: Upscale but not uppity, the atmosphere at Sagra is understated and subtle - a classic modern Italian restaurant atmosphere, hold the stereotype. Food: The problem with some Italian food is that after you eat it, you're hungry again in three or four days. This can be especially true......

After a fantastic week of panels, parties and screenings, the Austin Film Festival will wrap up tonight with a screening of Sidney Lumet's highly anticipated Before the Devil Knows You're Dead. Lumet (the man behind films like Running on Empty, Serpico, and one of our favorite movies ever, Dog Day Afternoon) directs an unbelievably great cast including Albert Finney, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei and Philip Seymour Hoffman in this caper-gone-wrong thriller. We haven't had the......

Think male/female indie harmonies, and what comes to mind? Mates of State? Well, try letting your lips get comfortable with Arthur & Yu. They are the childhood nicknames of Seattle multi-instrumentalists Grant Olsen (Arthur) and Sonya Westcott (Yu), and their debut, In Camera, is an organic, acoustic folk delight. Flute sounds, wood blocks, glockenspiel and plenty of tambourine along with conventional rock elements create a sound that’s minimal yet layered. In Camera is not only......

Have you been wanting to eat out at a great restaurant lately but just needed a good reason? If so, then we've got just the reason to get you out of the house tonight. Dining for Life is Monday and Tuesday night and is a great, and very easy, way to help benefit Aids Services of Austin. More than 60 of Austin's best restaurants donate 15% of their dinner proceeds to AIDS Services of......

Mars Restaurant & Bar (Asian Fusion) Location: 1400 South Congress Avenue (map) Phone: (512) 472-3901 Cost: Brunch plates $4-6 dollars Atmosphere: Sleek, modern décor; airy and sunlit; nice people-watching from the spacious deck; attentive waitstaff Food: This just in: if you wake up on the weekend with a craving for a la carte Chinese hors d’ouevres, you no longer have to travel north of the river to get them! Mars, South Congress’ newest culinary addition,......

It’s time to channel the patio-dwelling, agua fresca-drinking short film lover inside of you, for Nueva Onda restaurant will be serving up some Purely Austin Shorts tomorrow night free of charge. All you have to do is show up, sit down, and stuff your face. The synopses of all four films sound promising and the line up is eclectic enough to suit a variety of tastes. The night begins with Room of Ghosts --......

Not to gush, but Satay Restaurant owner Dr. Foo Swasdee is simply the kind of person from whom our politicians and business leaders could learn a thing or twelve - especially in the selfless and admirable departments. After the 2004 tsunami, she returned to her native Thailand to assist in disaster relief efforts, and after returning to Austin continues to throw her muscle behind Thai Tsunami Orphanage. The Texas Asian Chamber of Commerce and Texas......

Ah, back to school – that magical time of year when students across town come back from those lazy days of summer and start emptying their wallets on books, parking tickets, and cover charges. So what's the best way to actually break the monotony of ramen and grilled cheese without going broke in the process? Four magic letters: BYOB. Thai Noodle House is nestled in at 2602 Guadalupe, just behind the 7-Eleven on the north......

Dale Rice over at the Statesman is reporting that a rash of vandalism has erupted among downtown restaurants because they serve foies gras, the pate made from the liver of geese who are force-fed. The vandalized restaurants comprise Aquarelle, Eddie V's Edgewater Grille, Fleming's, Restaurant Jezebel, Ruth's Chris Steak House, the Spaghetti Warehouse and Truluck's. Apparently, what's getting the restaurants' collective geese are obscenities spray-painted on their signs and doors. photo by cappellmeister on......

When summer arrives, most food and wine events disappear into the hot summer air, not to be seen again until fall. Thankfully, this year seems to be an exception to that rule. On Sunday the 15th, the Wine & Food Foundation is partnering with Mirabelle and Chef Michael Vilum to create a special summer foodie event. The Mirabelle dining room will host a 'sip and stroll' dinner featuring seven different dishes (three appetizers, three......

Unlike the recently discussed Westlake mothers driving with one hand and sipping wine with the other, the Austin Wine Festival is making it possible for you to combine the thrill of Texas roads with the taste of wine, all in a safely automobile-free environment. This Sunday night, watch The Wine Roads of Texas, a documentary from KLRU and Wes Marshall that tells the story of Texas wineries in an engaging and informative manner. Beginning in......

THURSDAY [19] benefit/music • Do512 and Direct Events co-host a benefit for Groundwork Music with Tammany Hall, The Boxing Lesson at La Zona Rosa (RSVP for Free Entry, $5 Cover Otherwise) books • "The Art of Travel and Travel Writing" with Lonely Planet writer Alex Hershey and Stephanie Elizondo Griest at Intellectual Property (5:00pm) books • The Texas Monthly Author Series presents Ian Rankin at BookPeople (7:00pm) film • Movies in the Park: "Talladega......

MONDAY [16] film • "The Life and Hard Times of Guy Terrifico" at Alamo Downtown books • Teen Sci-Fi writers Scott Westerfield and Justine Larbalestier at BookPeople (7:00pm) books • The Harlem Renaissance, a panel discussion with Cary D. Wintz, Martha Jane Nadell, and Shirley Thompson at The Harry Ransom Center (7:00pm) film • "A Clockwork Orange" at Alamo Downtown film • Jim Jarmusch's "Down By Law" at Alamo Village food • Central Market......

FRIDAY [13] fashion • RARE Magazine Spring Fling Fashion Show at The Belmont Hi-Lo (Moved due to rain) art/music • Take That!, a show of new images by Lance McMahan, plus music by Amanda Jones, Connie Ball, & Teddy and Marge at The Opera House (7-10pm) art • Hot and Cold: The Best of Canadian Contemporary Art at Art on 5th, 1501 W 5th (10am-6pm) art • Opening Reception for abstract paintings and encaustics......

The 57th Annual Austin Fine Arts Festival is set to showcase the creative powerhouse of Austin artistry Saturday and Sunday, April 14 and 15 at Republic Square Park. The festival will shine a light on the work of more than 220 visual artists as well as Grammy award winning musicians. The event will also feature artist demos, local food, and art activities. Tickets are $8, kids 12 and under get in free. Saturday's festivities run......

With all the recent responses, we get it - you're passionate about food. Austin is no longer a one chicken fried steak town with a burgeoning fine dining scene and three "best new chef" honorees by Food and Wine Magazine. In that spirit, the city has announced plans for its fifth annual industry-specific start-up conference: Ingredients for Success: Opening a Restaurant. The one-day forum, sponsored by the City of Austin Small Business Development Program......

The Austin Chronicle kicked off its 19th Annual Restaurant Poll yesterday with a ballot deadline of April 23. Each year the Chronicle covers all the bases from best comfort food to best bathrooms to best wine list. The results will be featured in the May 18 issue of the Chronicle. Here's who we're voting for: FAVORITE RESTAURANT One: El Gringo Two: Vespaio Enoteca Three: Uchi BEST DISHES Appetizers: The Bar at the Roaring Fork......

Sixty restaurants, thirty wineries, and you. This is perhaps the simplest way to describe the indulgence that is the Stars Across Texas tasting at the Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival. A veritable "who's who" of Texas restaurants each prepare small portions of signature dishes for guests to sample, making the most difficult choice simply what to eat before you run out of room. Last year, we had sushi tarts from Roy's, Shiner-braised......

For anyone in love with Mideast cuisine, your list just got one restaurant shorter. Owners of Ararat restaurant announced today that their last night of business will be this Saturday, March 24. No word on why they’re closing, but they’ll be going out with a bang, though, with a party in the backyard from 5pm-6am, complete with the Ararat Belly Dancers, live auction, Mideast food and beverages, live music by the Righteous Tidings, spoken......

With great weather, a social atmosphere, and big crowds, there were many good times to be had at last year's Texas Hill Country Wine and Food Festival Sunday Fair in Georgetown. Having braved the long drive, we found a huge, beautiful park filled with white tents full of salsa, BBQ, chocolate, tamales, and copious amounts of booze. This is probably one's best chance to experience the gluttony of the THCWFF at a moderate cost,......

Believe it or not, there's a bunch of activities going on around town this week other than SXSW. This week's IST List won't include our usual bevy of music and film events; for those, we recommend that you check out our Interactive Guide to SXSW Parties and the Other Side Guide, respectively. We'd also like to welcome LAist editor Tony Pierce and Gothamist arts editor Jen Carlson, both of whom will be joining us......

ME Television and the Austin Music Foundation continue to promote the best of the city’s promising up-and-coming acts at Antone’s on Thursdays. After the success of the first Emerging Artists Series, the time is ripe for the latest edition. The good times rock n’ tonk of The Jungle Rockers (featured today in The Daily Texan) along with prog-metal from Stasis promises another night of diverse music. Add to that one of our fast emerging favorites,......

What's the deal with "wartime" and comfort food? Clearly that's a rhetorical question, but look around and you'll see a preponderance of eateries offering retro cuisine - fresh, cold wedge salads, big honkin' messes of macaroni and cheese, peppery thick-cut onion rings and piles of thin pork chops with apple sauce - that hearken back to a mythical time of air-raid drills, movies about large menacing nuke-yu-lar bugs and innuendos about milkmen. And what's......

Hurry up and join Austin-based writers of The Fearless Critic Austin Restaurant Guide Robin Goldstein, Rebecca Markovits, and Monika Powe Nelson tonight from 5-7pm at Follett's Intellectual Property. All three authors will be present to sign copies of the book, and Ruby's will serve up free samples of their award-winning barbecue. According to Editor-in-Chief Robin Goldstein, a food and travel writer for Fodor's and Condé Nast and graduate of the French Culinary Institute, "Our reviews......

FIRST THURSDAY [1] music • Tre Orsi (members of Shearwater, South San Gabriel, Little Grizzly), The Paper Chase, Red X Red M, at Emo's music/benefit • ME! Live presents the Emerging Artist Series Debut with Meagan Tubb band, Tacks, the Boy Disaster and the Channel at Antone’s (7pm, $5) music • Yonder Mountain String Band at La Zona Rosa music • Onion Creek Crawdaddies at Waterloo Records (5pm, Free) music • Horse + Donkey,......

WEDNESDAY [24] books • Dr. Steven Moore presents Alternative Routes to the Sustainable City at BookPeople (7:00pm) books • Neal Shusterman presents Everlost at BookPeople (7:00pm) comedy • Bil Dwyer at Cap City Comedy Club DJ • Cut Club at The Mohawk DJ • Tighten Up at Beauty Bar film • Stroszek at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film • Ladies of the 80s Singalong at Alamo Drafthouse Downtown film • Weird Wednesday: Get Mean at......