Alex Reichek of Chekmark Eats is taking over our Instagram for the month of July! Meet someone who is as knowledgeable about food as she is passionate about it. Providing visually enticing photos as well as informative food knowledge through her well-loved blog, our list of places to try is growing longer than ever.

After graduating from UT, Reichek knew she wanted to work with chefs and restaurants in some capacity and just a month later, found herself in New York, falling head over heels for everything in the food scene. “I got an internship in New York City at a big restaurant PR firm and after my first day, I knew I had found my career match,” she tells me. “I read about restaurants and bakeries all day and tried out a new one probably five times a week,” she explains about her first years living in New York City.

It wasn’t long before friends and strangers were approaching her for advice on the best places to dine. Having established herself as a go-to resource, she decided to start a blog called Chekmark Eats, a play off of her last name of checking restauraunts off her list, where she could impart the public with her wealth of insider information of what to order, best times to go, and what sort of company to enjoy it with. In short, providing her “Chekmark” on the places we need to make sure to try.

After living in New York City for almost eight years and running Chekmark Eats for six, she decided she was ready for a change and looked for a job closer to home. She landed a job at McGuire Moorman Hospitality and continued growing her notoriously credible blog, Chekmark Eats from Austin.

So what’s her secret to finding the best eats? Reichek does her homework. “I study the menus to see what jumps out at me and what I’d love to try,” she says. “If there isn’t anything interesting on the menu, I probably won’t go unless someone tells me I’d love it.” She reads up on any and every blog that talks about anything culinary related around town, so she can stay on top of new things showing up. After researching, she tries. Ordering whatever she’s hungry for at the time, as well as dishes that are unique or totally new, she experiences the restaurant through its menu and its atmosphere.

Throughout the month of July Reichek will be sharing a variety of food and styles that have all been approved by her well-trusted “Chekmark”, so you know you’re getting the best of the best. While she’s most excited to show you the best cookies in Austin (we think desserts might be her love language?), we’re excited to learn about new spots that have opened, old spots that are continuously proving their quality, and of course, ‘cause we’re Texan, the unsurpassed BBQ spots in town. Keep your eyes peeled and your stomachs hungry for the incomparable spots Alex Reichek shares with us!