Desert Island Dish with Lynn Metcalf and Erin Gentry
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Erin Gentry (L) and Lynn Metcalf (R) in front of their food trailer. Photo by Jackie Lee Young
Business and life partners Lynn Metcalf and Erin Gentry run Lynny's, an East Austin diner-inspired trailer that dishes out homey yumminess.
- Dishes include pancakes, ham and Swiss melts, and fresh biscuits.
- Coffee comes from Noriega Natural, a ranch in Mexico owned and operated by Metcalf's mother.
Background: Metcalf, the chef at Lynny's, which opened in August, is a third-generation restaurateur — her mother and grandmother were waitresses and restaurant managers.
- She and her family moved to Austin when she was 11, and she went to the magnet program at Kealing Middle School and the liberal arts academy at Johnston High School.
- She worked first at Magnolia before moving on to Bouldin Creek, Komé Sushi Kitchen, Bufalina. Stubb's and Metcalf BBQ.
- Gentry, who hails from Mexico City, also helps run MASS Gallery and is a DJ at Chulita Vinyl Club.
What they're saying: "It's been a longtime dream to run a business together," Gentry says.
- "There are horror stories about going into business together with your partner, but it's been joyful between us," says Metcalf.
We talked with Metcalf and Gentry about the one meal they'd want to take with them on a desert island.
If you could have one dish, what would it be?
Lynn: "The saba shio from Komé, the very salty mackerel filet with daikon and ginger. It's something I didn't really like the first time I had it — then I became addicted to it. At first you think, it's so fishy. Then you think, it's sooo fishy."
Erin: "The fish tacos at Ensenada. I love those folks. It's a great product, always so crispy, with a great cabbage slaw, and the tip of the top is the salsa matcha for me. It's truly addictive, that with a sparkling lemonade."
Speaking of, what's your desert island drink of choice?
Erin: "I like an ice-cold Sidral Mundet, the apple soda from Mexico. It's so comforting, sweet, effervescent, like a sparkling cider. It brings back so many memories for me of being in Mexico with my family."
Lynn: "A cup of coffee under any circumstances — coffee that is grown and picked and roasted by my mom. How special is that, to have something made by your mother every day? For an adult, you'd basically have to live with your mother to get that."
You get to bring along a dessert.
Lynn: "There's a cardamom pillow at Epoch Coffee — I work there one day a week to keep up my barista skills. The texture is perfect, the cream in the center is really well portioned — I don't like goopy chunks of cream — and it's got some big chunky sugar."
Erin: "The berry concha from Comadre. I'm a huge concha fan. I'll eat a stale concha from the grocery market, no problem. It's really tart, you can tell the difference between the flavors. They really do an amazing job."