A brief jaunt to Blanco - continued

Picking up where we left off, Kate and I woke up Sunday morning and availed ourselves of in-room coffee, croissants, mixed fruit and the Blanco Settlement's homemade breakfast quiches. The quiches, prepared in ramekins and left for us in the fridge, survived a brief nuking and were surprisingly tasty.

Then we drove out to Texas Specialty Cut Flowers. Located at the junction of Ranch Roads 165 and 2325, this working farm is a great place to buy flowers, herbs and seasonal veggies. They usually operate on the honor system, so you just select what you want and drop your cash (or check) in a red strongbox.


After a failed attempt at finding a lavender farm took us almost all the way to Wimberley, we turned around and returned to Blanco for lunch. Our destination was Riley's BBQ.

Riley's may not have the best barbecue in Texas, but their brisket and sausage are consistently above average. I think Riley's would stack up well against most anyplace in the last half of Texas Monthly's vaunted Top 50, though I wouldn't extend that assessment to their Dripping Springs location.

Moreover, Riley's serves all-you-can-eat pinto beans for $1.95, which is a great deal for penny-pinchers (if not the people who have to ride home with them). For atmosphere, it's hard to beat Blanco's town square. The brisket was a little dry on the day we were there, but that was a small quibble for an otherwise excellent barbecue repast.


Kate and I finally made it to a lavender farm north of Blanco on U.S. 281. After purchasing enough lavender-laden product to make a trip to the recognized "Lavender Capital of Texas" worth our while, we headed back home via Marble Falls. All in all, it was a perfect close-in overnight vacation.