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One of the best meals I have had in this country was at La Reve in San Antonio. The chef also just opened Sand Bar - for chowder and oysters and such.

Kerby Lane in Austin, also Shady Grove. Avoid Chuy's. Threadgills is good.

In San Anto - I like Le Reve also, but $$$$$$$.

You might try Henry's Puffy Tacos on the near West Side. High-end Mex? I like Paloma Blanca on Broadway which has an extensive margarita menu, too. Perico's either on Bandera near 1604 or Sonterra near 281 has the best appetizer plate I know of, plus good service and good 'ritas. I call it mid-Mex.

For hole in the wall Mex, a taqueria, bright green with fruit painted on it on West near Basse on the east side of the street. It used to be called Los Valles, but the name changed. But it has $1.25 tacos with a choice of fillings. The corn (unusual in SA) tortillas are made right before your eyes. Ask for cebolla y cilantro, and ask if they have aguacate (avocado) If they do, they'll put slices of it on your taco for free. Anglos won't get the cebolla (onion) or cilantro unless they ask, or are known. Bistec or carnitas are my favorite. They have barbacoa, too. No sides. And they have the best aguas frescas I have ever had, made out of fresh fruit. The horchata is a little sweet for my taste. The chica is $1., the grande is 1.25. The chica is 24 oz. Then go to the window on the outside and order a fruit cup with a splash of lime and a dash of salted chili powder for dessert. You choose the fruit mixture. Sometimes they also have roasted corn at the fruit cup window. They will put mayo and chili on it. It's best if you can stumble around in Spanish, some of the staff don't speak English, and will have to find somebody who does.

Tito's on South Alamo in Southtown is fantastic for breakfast, and the bkfst tacos are huge. Also good breakfast is Guenther House (German roots in SA are deep).

BBQ -Rudy's is good-ish, but the best of all is Cooper's in Mason, TX. Get the pork chop - all 1.5 lbs of it. Also they have the best cabrito in America, real bbq, real good. Salt Lick in Driftwood good, I like their sauce best of all. Avoid Grady's BBQ, avoid Mama's. Alamo cafe is ok, but I stick to the chicken fried steak there, and the tortilla soup. Also, a local chain called Jim's which is sort of a local Denny's is a great place for tortilla soup and breakfast tacos or migas, but we avoid the American food there. A great place to eat really cheap is the cafeteria in the Bexar County courthouse, especially breakfast. Mexican Manhattan downtown near the courthouse and the river is good for lunch - ok tex-mex but atmospheric. The local lawyers as well as courthouse workers eat there. They also eat at Cadillac Bar, but I hate the place. It smells, and it's expensive. The local pols favor it.

There is one good Riverwalk restaurant. Boudro's. They make the guacamole at table, and they have a great black and white (cheese and black bean) soup. It is good for lunch - less crowded, especially just before noon when you can usually get a table on the river. The entrees are usually good, too.

Buen Provecho!

Speaking of Tito's make sure to get some Tito's Vodka. Good Stuff, made in Austin.

Oh, and and a strong strong second for dksbook's recommendation of Guenther House. Their cinnamon rolls are phenomenal. But get there early, cause they only make a few and they always go. I love North Carolina, but returning from Texas always makes my tastebuds sad.

thanks for all the suggestions! we ended up mostly eating at my in-laws', which was also cool. first off, we unexpectedly had our first meal in austin at el sol y la luna, i had migas with chorizo. i've never had migas before and i loved it. the outdoor patio space was also really nice. we also stopped at guero's taco bar before our flight back to NY, the enchiladas were so good - really fresh tasting.

my father-in-law made some awesome brisket, and provided some barbecue sauce from cooper's. it's a vinegar based sauce - pretty good, but my personal preference is for ketchup based.

we also stopped by Liberty Bar in SA - i had the achiote chicken salad special - would have been almost perfect (moist, spicy chicken, slightly bitter/chewy dried peppers with a complex flavor, fresh bell peppers, lettuce) if it wasn't for the feta, it just overwhelmed all the other flavors. The chilled avocado soup was heavenly.

we did end up going to rudy's bbq in new braunfels b/c we had to run an errand there. definitely better than anything i can get in NY. maybe some of the places y'all mentioned are better? next time i guess.

and we went to some new belgian place in southtown, i don't remember the name of it - we had some friends who live in the area that wanted to check it out. I had the vol au vent with chicken - the chicken was slightly on the dry side, but the dish had a lot of flavor and the pastry crust was super light and flaky.

there was a great ice cream place in fredericksburg, i think it's called Clear River Creamery or something. Wow. I had the peach sorbet and lavender ice cream, they were both outstanding. My husband got all inspired so he broke out the ice cream machine at his parents', and made two batches - peach/lavender and kaffir lime/lemongrass (yes, we found those plants in their neighbor's yard and she didn't know what they were!!).

OK now i have to lay off the ice cream for a bit.

i'll post some pics in flickr when i get a chance -
the other thing i can't believe is how inexpensive it is to eat in texas. woo!!