Where Austin’s Top Chefs Like to Eat
You would think that after nights of toiling away in their own kitchens, Austin chefs would like to hunker down ay home and relax. Au contraire! They go out and let somebody cook for them. We recently saw the uber-hot Paul Qui at Jack Allen’s Kitchen along with his fiancee and partner Deanna. His choice? […]
Barlata Tapas Bar to Open on South Lamar
Chef Daniel Olivella has been busy these days running his Spanish restaurants in the Bay area. To add to his frenzied life, his Austin version of Barlata just opened at 1500 South Lamar. This is a mixture of tapas, various paella dishes (we sure could use that), and what Olivella calls “tatas.” These are unique […]
The Back Story at Soto: Chef Andy and His Family Rock at Lakeline Mall
One of the more dynamic openings in North Austin has to be the recent introduction of Chef Andy Okamoto’s Soto restaurant to Lakeline Mall. Andy’s passions for cooking date back to his 10th birthday where he worked at his uncle’s restaurant in Kyoto, Japan. He moved to Boston several years later and worked at the […]
Mastman’s Deli Update: Catering Now Available
There’s been a lot of buzz about the upcoming opening of Mastman’s Deli next to Ruth’s Chris on West 6th. While they’re not quite ready to open (and we’ll keep you posted on this) the doors to Austin’s first glatt kosher deli, they are available for catering. The catering menu looks very tempting as does […]
Zax Celebrates 10-Year Anniversary
Mike Baldwin and Jeffrey Lynd of Zax Restaurant & Bar at 312 Barton Springs Rd. are excited to announce that on Wednesday July 10th, the upscale casual dining spot will be celebrating 10 years of serious food, great beer and stylish wines with a customer appreciation party. The owners would like to invite everyone to […]
The Grove Opens In Lakeway at Former Mizu Location
Reed Clemmons is something of a magician in local restaurant circles. He has a record of going into areas that have not been conducive to successful restaurants and making something happen. Witness the success of the first Grove in Westlake (a notoriously bad spot for restaurants). Now he’s launching a second Grove in Lakeway on […]
Why Opening Nights Generally Suck
The near hysteria that surrounded the opening of Paul Qui’s new restaurant on East 6th was not atypical of what happens when the “first in line” frenzy takes over. Gotta love those early adopters. The result yielded about as strange a mix of customer reviews as I’ve ever seen. Some loved it, some hated it, […]
Judging Taste North Austin Unveils Some Delicious Dishes
A couple of days ago I was baking in the midday heat at the Domain along with my fellow judges at the Taste North Austin competition. Over 20 restaurants participated and at least for me, there were some pleasant surprises. And the heat only started to bother me about the time the 19th dish arrived. […]
Bizarre and Curious Moments in the Life of a Food Critic
In my 15 years of reviewing restaurants I’ve seen some fairly unusual things: actually far more than I can document. But here are some of my favorites. Got Milk? Several years ago at one of our higher end restaurants a commotion occurred when one of the female patrons with an infant in tow began to […]
La Mancha Tex Mex Tavern Opens on Hancock
At the site of the former Jorge’s on Hancock, La Mancha Tex Mex Tavern has just opened. Owner John Korioth and his staff look like they have taken a somewhat more traditional than the New Mexican style offered by Jorge’s. I guess their name sums it up. Austin is a town replete with good tex […]
David Garrido Latest Austin Chef to Get “Chopped”
Those who watch the Food Network’s “Chopped” will recognize all the elements of contrived reality show drama. Chefs confronting a virtually impossible task thereby revealing their fobiles and even the most minor culinary hiccups. Then they have to present the dish in front of three usually obnoxious and condescending judges. David Garrido’s turn on Chopped […]
Qui Opening is Tonight
Probably one of the more anticipated openings in Austin’s fine dining world begins tonight as Paul Qui and his tightly knit group roll out their wildly eclectic and very interesting looking menu. The address is 1600 E. 6th. Bring your platinum card if you’re lucky enough to get a seat. It will be uber-pricey. As […]
Pizza Wars 2013 Part II: Pieous, the Cave, Winflo and More
It says a lot about the Austin pizza scene that our long running Pizza Wars series now requires two complete installments instead of the few paragraphs that we needed way back when. And that’s good for pizza lovers. Let’s start with some of the newer pizza joints that have come on line. Surprisingly, the Dripping […]
