How Sydney's Big White Ate Their Way Through SXSW

23 March 2015 | 2:31 pm | Big White

The burger hunger is real...

DAY ONE

 
Touch down on American concrete, thirsty, hungry and heaps delusional, we wandered out of LAX hoping to find our first American Burger. With a six hour layover in LA before heading on to Austin, we had plenty of time to walk right out of the airport and into an In-N-Out. Elmo had her first burger. Double cheeseburger with root beer. She ended up chucking out the meat and filling it full of fries.
 
 
And so it begins...
 
 
American take-out heaven.

DAY TWO  

 
After arriving in Austin at 2am, we drove off in a cab into the city. But American airlines don't feed you so we were blistering for a burger again. We spotted a Jack In The Box on the side of the highway so we asked the cab driver to drive through and Elmo bought a fish burger. The troubles of a Pescetarian were coming to an end.  
 
We arrived at the hotel and with small troubles, we booked a room with a funny man reminiscent of our dear Dion. We rested, rose and spent the whole day roaming around finding instruments. We were literally like kids in an Austin guitar store. Downtown in hock shops, bartering down stolen goods. 
 

DAY THREE

 
We arose mildly late, and decided that today was going to be the day when we purchased a car. We walked from yard to yard, meeting with the salesmen and telling them our conditions with not much return. The sun was blazing hot, glazing us all over with a film of perspiration and a feeling of hunger — true hunger — we need food.
 
Bowen split off to find some cymbals as we trekked on, following the road to a mystical car yard. Upon arrival we were reminded that this was again not the right place, but never fear, the best vegan taco stand in Austin was here. 
 
We met some cool ladies from LA in a band called Deadpanzies. For the rest of the day we would cross paths and help each other out, mostly them, us.
 
We played two sweet shows at the Spiderhouse and Hotel Vegas. We were loving that shit and we were loving them, a friendship well overdue just waiting to be sparked, you could say.
 
It was 11pm - that's when it happened.
A sudden burst of hunger, a craving for my burger.
I hadn't met my quota for the day so set out for an adventure; one Elmo walking down the streets of Austin in search of a juicy bun.
 
 
Something to wash down those burgers with...
 
 
"Where's my burger?"
 
I walked up and down the street looking for the meat but there were no burger shops to be seen.
I asked people for directions and they pointed me one way or another, reminding me that there was a taco stall 5 metres away.
"Nah man, it's gotta be a burger, you know?"
"Yeah I know whachu mean, you're chasin' the burger."
 
I circled some blocks and was starting to get real hungry, and kind of hangry out of frustration and longing.
I finally found a taco place that did burgers as well, so I ordered a salmon burger.
 
After a little while the guy behind the counter yelled out at me.
"Miss, your salmon burrito!"
And I'm like, "wait a second, I didn't order a taco, I ordered a burger dude,"
and he's like "No, you ordered a burrito."
 
...
 
I fucked up. I failed finding my burger today.
I realised that eating a burger a day is a privilege, not a burden.
For it to work out it requires commitment, dedication and patience.
I ought to be constantly thinking about it, wondering where my next burger may come from.
I gotta take it seriously, and when I see something I have to grab it, not pass it up for the next joint which may not exist.
I've learnt me lesson.