Firestarter

Old-school downtown steakhouse primed to open new South Austin concept

When Perry’s Restaurants first announced plans for a brand-new concept in December 2018, it only provided a sketch of the details. Now, Carve American Grille has revealed the full picture, including the opening date.

Led by acclaimed restaurateur Chris Perry, Carve, located at 7415 Southwest Parkway, Bldg. 1, pays homage to the original 1979 butcher shop owned by Perry’s father, Bob Perry. Like Perry’s Steakhouse & Grille, it will feature plenty of meaty offerings showcasing live-fire, smoke, and wood grilling techniques when it debuts on December 17.

The menu is helmed by master development chef Rick Moonen, a former James Beard Award nominee and a fixture of food TV shows like The Best Thing I Ever Ate, Top Chef, and Hell’s Kitchen. Comfort will be at the forefront with dishes like meatloaf cupcakes, lobster corn dogs, vegan Salisbury steak, and wood-fired pizzas.

Moonen also riffed on the chain’s famous seven-finger-high pork chop to bring Carve an array of signature pork dishes. Guests can pig out on an 18-ounce long bone chicken-fried pork chop, the Hog Heaven (bacon-wrapped pork belly), and an open-faced pork tamal.

The weekend brunch menu is equally accessible. Savory dishes like a hashbrown breakfast pizza, chicken and waffles, and a steak and eggs po’ boy will be served alongside sweet treats like dessert griddle cakes.

Beverage director and corporate sommelier Susi Zivanovic created a bar program with sustainability in mind. Carve will feature an innovative tap wine system using reusable kegs and will pour four sizes, ranging from a tasting to a full carafe.

Additionally, the bar will offer craft beer and a variety of original cocktails. The restaurant's fiery theme will be echoed in drinks like a mezcal margarita and a Smoky Wild Fashioned, while Carve’s Signature Sorbet Sundae Sour playfully reinvents the whiskey sour with mulled wine and Cabernet Sauvignon sorbet. All can be enjoyed during the restaurant’s daily 3-6:30 pm “happiest hour.”

Though both are contemporary, the interior design of Carve is homier than its downtown cousin, Perry’s, with tufted banquettes, wood accents, and concrete planters on the tables in the main dining room. Carve also boasts three private dining rooms and an outdoor patio with breathtaking Hill Country views.

In a nod to the chain’s roots, The Butcher Room will greet customers at the door. The prepared cuts showcased can be enjoyed while guests are dining in or taken home to be thrown on the grill.

Following the December 17 opening date, Carve will be open from 3-10 pm Monday through Saturday and 3-9 Sunday, with extended bar hours until 10 pm Monday through Thursday and 11 pm Friday and Saturday. Lunch service from 11 am-3 pm weekdays will kick off January 2, followed by weekend brunch from 11 am-3 pm on January 4.

The patio sparkles at sunset.

Photo courtesy of Carve American Grille

The patio sparkles at sunset.

openings

Cat's Out of the Bag

Classic Austin dive bar Mean Eyed Cat opens new Driftwood outpost

Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

There ain't no grave can hold Austinites down when it's time to break in this new dive bar.

An Austin bar with a lot of personality has its eye on a new location. The Mean Eyed Cat is opening in Driftwood on Thursday, November 21.

This Johnny Cash-inspired bar has certainly always had the country aesthetic: the weathered wood, the live oak-shaded picnic tables, the black-and-white photos on the wall, and even the occasional taxidermy specimen. The same rustic vibes continue in Driftwood at 8750 W RR 150, Bldg. 100, according to a short press release.

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood interior This new bar already looks like it's been collecting antiques for decades.Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Good luck getting there on Google Maps. Right now, it drops a pin at the intersection of Ranch to Market Road 150 and Elder Hill Road. However, it appears to be next to Mad Rooster's Liquor Store — we can see the side of the building through the window and the same road signs. We've reached out to a spokesperson to get the proper directions.

The Austin original has been around since 2004, and this offshoot is only its second location. The promises "the same laid-back, offbeat charm that made the original bar an icon."

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood interior What's a dive bar without a pool table?Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Before the Austin location was a bar, it was a chainsaw repair shop that was aptly featured in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. Chris Marsh was who converted it to a watering hole and Christened it the Mean Eyed Cat, and he later sold it to current owners Matt Luckie, Max Moreland, and Jed Thompson, placing it in a lineage that also includes Lavaca Street Bar & Grill, Sign Bar, Lala’s Little Nugget, and more locally beloved staples and oddities.

All the proper references are there in Driftwood, including several saw blades on the wall, Johnny Cash memorabilia, and lyrics on every available surface, including a picnic table that ominously says "HURT." First and foremost on the menu are whiskeys and classic cocktails, keeping things as simple as anyone would expect at a dive bar.

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood patio A spacious patio takes advantage of the Hill Country surroundings.Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Despite the relatively remote location, commenters on Instagram have already spotted people inside and started chomping at the bit. It sounds like opening day will be a lively affair.

The Mean Eyed Cat in Driftwood will be open Mondays through Thursdays from 2 pm to 2 am, and Fridays through Sundays from noon to 2 am. Happy hour will be weekdays from 4-7 pm.

dive bars whiskey cocktails openings driftwood