Family Night Out in Austin - Lupe Tortilla and the Arbor Walk

Today, we had an appointment with Home Depot to complete an installation order so the perfect area to enjoy this week's family night out was an easy choice. We decided to try the newest restaurant addition to the Arbor Walk - Lupe Tortilla.

First though, we decided we'd try to get there a bit early so that we could get in a quick browsing session to our favorite local home consignment store - Home Consignment. We love the place with it's eclectic selection and continuously changing options. They close at 6 on some weekdays and we weren't sure if we'd get there in time. We did. The kids enjoy the place too with so much to look at. My 9-year old daughter can quickly fall in love with the perfect decorative vase, especially if the design/pattern includes some type of Chinese script.

We did a quick tour today as Dad was hungry and his mind already had him sitting at a table armed with chips and a bowl of salsa.

Next stop, Lupe Tortilla. I believe the restaurant has only been open here for a few months. It seems like we were at Home Consignment on Cinco De Mayo and the place was overflowing with patrons and music. Today we had a short wait, maybe 5 minutes, but we did get there pretty early. I would guess we showed up around 6 PM. It wasn't long before the wait for those behind us was up to 20 and 30 minutes.

The interior was very festive with the use of lots of Spanish decorations that really gave the place character. The aroma in the air was rich with the smells of fresh made tortillas and sizzling meat.

We ordered up drinks and decided we wanted to give the queso a try. It's definitely one of those things that we like to check out with every Mexican restaurant we visit. For dinner, I had the tortilla soup (a little high at $8.95), my son had the Pedro (a combo plate featuring one beef and one cheese enchilada with rice and beans), my daughter had the kids' cheese enchilada, and my husband went for the beef fajitas. While we awaited the queso we tried the dips that came with our trips -- one bean salsa (similar to charro beans) and one red salsa (very fresh and not too hot, which was great for my daughter's tender palate).

The queso showed up and received mediocre reviews from everyone at the table. Granted, we have a favorite neighborhood restaurant with queso that just can't be beat, so our view on this one could be a little skewed (but I don't think so ; )). Then the manager brought out a free sample, mini fajitas in little tortillas dressed all the way. One word for that one -- YUM! We were all jealous that Dad had clearly made an amazing choice.

When all the food showed up, it all looked really enticing. And even though I scoffed at the idea of an almost $9 tortilla soup, I was pretty pleased with the result. It was a very good size bowl (I had to take half of it home) and was loaded with lots of beautiful grilled chicken chunks, cheese, avocado, cilantro, yum! My daughter devoured her cheese enchilada and my husband's fajitas were amazing. In fact, after I tasted it took me back to a little local's favorite kind place in the Houston area where we enjoyed phenomenal fajitas (I believe that's all they served and we had to stand in line for nearly an hour to get in) with a group of our friends. After reading Lupe Tortilla's description, I think that might have actually been the original location of what is now this larger much more shined and polished version.

In the end, I think we were pleased. Be warned, it's not cheap, but at the same time I don't think it was crazily priced. You could probably feed a family of four with two entrees that you simply split and come away with a pretty reasonable bill.

My daughter's favorite part? When the waitress brought the bill and asked if we wanted the ice cream that came with the kids meal. There were like 5 or 6 types of ice cream to choose from. She went with the Nestle Crunch bar.

Speaking of the kids' meal. The price was $4.95 and featured one of seven choices (crispy or soft taco, cheese enchilada, chicken quesadilla, chicken flautas, mac n cheese and more), with a drink and a free blue bell ice cream. Not bad.

If you go, and you have a young lady on hand, you can also check out one of my daughter's favorite stores when you are done with your meal -- Sam Moon. The place is loaded with blingy purses, earrings, hats, scarves and more. And most is very reasonably priced. Be warned though, they close early. I think doors shut around 6 or 7 PM.

Would I go back? Definitely.

Was it kid-friendly? Absolutely.

Favorite thing? Toss up between the amazing fajita meat and the giant freshly made tortillas that came with them.

Another Family Night Out knocked out. I'm sure we'll be back to the Arbor Walk and/or Lupe Tortillas soon.

Want more Austin area family-friendly info? Check out the KidzAustin.com website where we offer info on kids eat free deals, party places, fun indoor locations where the kids can beat this crazy Texas summer heat and more.

Just purchased a great deal on Groupon for 4. Looks like Brick Oven on 35th will be the venue of our next family night out. We scored 4 entrees for $20. You just can't beat that. Want to find out about Groupon and other great deals and how they can keep your Family Night Out affordable. Read our blog on that topic by clicking here.

Save Big: Family Outings, Dining, Date Night & More - Group Coupons

This one technique or approach to coupons/discounts has created a new way of buying/spending for my family. And honestly, when you start counting up the savings for the value received, well it's just something that should be shared with others.

I only originally decided to give my first a try, an Austin Perks deal, back in the fall of last year. It was actually for a pretty well-known local Austin restaurant, Romeo's. The local radio station which hosts/offered the deal was actually doing a clearance. So, I ended up purchasing $50 worth of food and drink to this tasty Italian inspired venue at a cost of $12 – I kid you not!

Once I made that first purchase, the rest just came naturally. My son's birthday was coming up in a few months, so I had my feelers out for any possible great deals that I could take advantage of in that arena. And then, bam, out comes a Groupon offering discounted all inclusive tickets to Austin's Park and Pizza. So, my sleepover went from a plain sleepover to an evening of go karts, pizza, laser tag, brownies, rock climibing wall, video games and more at an incredible price -- &7.95 per person—and oh yeah . . .a sleepover at our house afterwards!

Since then, my husband and I have enjoyed fantastic meals and service at numerous restaurants all at an average savings of 50% off (some are even more!). In addition, We've picked up some laser treatment hair removal for mom (9 sessions all for only $99), a wine tasting tour in a limo with 12 of our friends, massages, shows, vacations, basketball games and so much more.

There are several of these group coupon deals that you can take advantage of. However, I'd say the most well-done/well-known version would be the Groupon. In addition to being able to print out your coupon, they've also come up with a mobile app that allows you to pull up your discount on your smart phone and then the wait staff just writes down your groupon # from there – no printing (or in our case printer) required). Unfortunately, because Groupon is what I would call the ‘trailblazer,' it also tends to bring the largest number of purchasers. So, generally if you have a Groupon to a reasonable well-known restaurant, in addition to waiting the standard day following your Groupon purchase, I'd suggest waiting a month (of course this depends on your expiration date) until you redeem your deal. Otherwise, you may find yourself in a restaurant/establishment overflowing with other Groupon users. We went to local Mexican restaurant Vivo the other day. And, even after about a month from when the coupon went out, our waitress showed us a stack of other Groupons that had also been used that same evening.

To top it all off, these group coupon deals are available in several cities around the nation. When my husband recently planned our first trip to Las Vegas, I was started accessing the Las Vegas Groupon and saved lots of money by purchasing dining and spa services to enhance our stay. In addition, we've also started viewing San Antonio's version of several of these so that when we visit family in the Canyon Lake area we can take advantage of some of the great deals offered there.

Below you'll find convenient links to several of these awesome discount options. Feel free to try them out. If it's not for you, it's easy to unsubscribe.

•Groupon
•Eversave
•Austin Perks
•Living Social
•Deal Swarm

NOTE: If you haven't done these before, be sure to note the time the deal is available. For some, you may have the option to purchase over a few days, others will note that only a limited quantity is available (meaning these could (and usually DO) sell out before a full day's time). Most, however, seem to offer potential buyers about one day to purchase the amazing discount.

You also want to note, of course, the expiration date of the offer. Some will last a year. Others a few months. Finally, a few will be built around a particular date of a show or game and then will expire at that time.

OK. With all that said, don't delay. Start saving today and make getting out of the house affordable again!

If you enjoyed this blog, hope you will check out more of our KidzAustin.com blogs at http://www.kidzaustin.com/blogz/index.asp.