Mama Dearest — Restaurant in Austin

Mama dearist, a lovely little artsy spot in East Austin. A great spot to catch up with an old friend.

Atmosphere: It's very well decorated. You feel like you're in a tiny amusement park. They have an old airstream/rv that you can hang out in, proper with tables and seating. They have those little springy sit on animal things you can ride/swing on as kids, but be careful. They're relatively close to the wall and if you're kind of tall you might bump your head on the wall behind you. The art is interesting and strange if you've seen peoples photos in front of the neon 'live bait' sign, This is where it is. They also have random baby doll heads and stuff around. Very interesting. Didn't put many photos because you really need to see it for yourself.

Dive? / Drinks: I'd almost call it a dive, Just because that's the feel, and people are friendly in there. But, they have fancy drinks and they're not terribly inexpensive. That said, these drinks are themed in a hilarious fashion, and quite good.

Sometimes they have little tiny one dollar or two ice cream soft serve at the bar. My first time there, I saw a couple girls eating these little tiny ice creams at the bar and I was like what is going on here, and one of the grirls just gave me a little ice cream. Very sweet. It was a totally delightful experience.

Pretty neat spot. Artistic.

Food: Comes from a food truck in the back, not from the business itself, that said, it's pretty good. Last night had the I guess you'd call it prosciutto pasta gnocchi. I don't normally order no cheap but this was...

This is what it's all about. I'd love to comment on the cocktail menu, but its been hard for me to stray from cold bottles of high life and shots here. It just feels so fitting in a spot like this and something about drinking a cocktail underneath lamps that look like they're made from human skin just doesn't feel right...yet. Fiercely independent in its decor and general atmosphere, this might not be a stop for bachelorette parties, but it's absolutely a stop for me. The thing about Mama Dearest is that it isn't out to please everyone, it's out to please the weird little freaks out there and I respect that so much. In a world of bars desperately competing to be spliced into a viral TikTok video, Mama Dearest simply wants you to admire their bad taxidermy and drink. We need more of that.

Shout out to Jake and the rest of the bar staff for being so welcoming and genuinely fun to talk to. Please don't judge us (too hard) for slamming a shot of malort...

An employee cursed at me for trying to walk out through the patio gate. He was right to send me back in; the gate was labeled as an emergency exit. I was confused, because it was propped open and a line of people walked through it. (I think they must have been musicians.) Was he right to curse at me? Was he right to continue being hostile when he saw me later walking out through the correct door? I'm not sure. I did learn, though, and I take responsibility for misunderstanding. And he helped me reflect on other moments where I've been the one acting in anger.

There's perhaps a larger lesson here about Austin in the 2020s. The creative theme of this bar only avoids feeling threatening and hostile when the staff remain kind. So too is Austin and its citizens. So please: visit, enjoy this place, be part of its artistic expression, but be aware that it might hurt when you encounter stress under the...