Next in Line

Searsucker chef Kenzie Allen on the persistence that led her to the top

Editor's note: As Austin continues to grow and thrive as a culinary epicenter, we’ve started to see certain big-name chefs grow to demi-god celebrity status. But in kitchens, bars and restaurants across the city, there is so much more talent that often goes unrecognized. Next in Line celebrates back of the house heroes who might just be the next household name.

Name: Kenzie Allen

Kitchen: Searsucker

Position: Executive Chef

Hometown: Mission, Texas

When did you first start cooking? When I was really little, I would cook with my mom. She bought me this little red stool so I would stand on it because I couldn’t reach, and she’d buy me my own cookbooks and stuff. So I definitely grew up around food. I'm half Hispanic so I had one grandma who would make fresh tortillas and menudo and the other would make awesome biscuits and gravy and stuff like that, so I kind of had the best of both worlds. I was really into making this one coffee cake. That was my thing.

Where was your first service industry job? The Driskill

Wow, straight to the top! Yeah, I just kind of barged my way in, you could say. I didn’t have any experience because I went to school for fashion merchandising at University of North Texas, so it was kind of hard to pick my resume out of a bunch of other ones in an HR department. And my parents always told me to be persistent, so I just somehow got the number of the banquet chef and called him every day, several times a day, and left messages until he called me back. When he did finally call me back, he scheduled an appointment the next day and I just drove the six hours from Mission.

What did you start off doing there? I was in the banquet kitchen, bowling up fruit, making deli meat platters, learning all that stuff. The guys that worked there at the time were really smart. That original crew was really talented and they were hard on me because they didn’t know if I was going to be a fussy little girl and a waste of their time. So they would throw their old culinary school cookbooks at me and say, “Read this; we’re going to ask you about it.” Between working there and reading about it, I just figured it out so I didn’t look stupid. You live or die back there, so you really have to know what you’re doing or figure it out quickly!

Where did you work after the Driskill? From the Driskill, I worked at Asti in the mornings and then at night I worked at this wine bar called Taste on Cesar Chavez. It was just a two person kitchen so you kinda did it all. I got to mess with fois [gras] a lot, which was fun. Then at Asti, it was lunchtime Italian. I thought I knew enough about Italian until I worked there. Emmett and Lisa [Fox] are really big on knowing the fundamentals of real, authentic food, so it was definitely a really good learning experience. Then I stopped working at Taste and I started working at Asti full time, all day.

Johnny Bates was the chef there at the time and he’d hired me as a prep cook because that’s all he had, but I told him I wouldn’t stay as a prep cook because I’d left the Driskill as a sous chef. I told him I would stay there as prep if he could give me the grill position within three months, which he did. And then I worked my way up to executive chef in four and a half years. I’m pretty loyal. I stay at places for a while and I get what I can out of it. That’s just how I am ... and I make really good pasta now!

How did you end up at Searsucker? Brian [Malarkey, Searsucker’s corporate executive chef] actually called me out of nowhere. I was already trying to transition because I’d been at Asti for a long time. I put feelers out and then Brian got my number from another restaurant person around town and he just randomly called me one day. He was really energetic and wanted to meet me and the rest is history. He was pretty persistent and it’s hard to say no to Brian. I started as a sous and, a few months later, they promoted me to executive sous chef, which was really unexpected. And now, as of a couple months ago, executive chef!

What chefs are your biggest inspiration? I don’t really have one person in particular. I do remember reading a book a long time ago about Marco Pierre White and thinking I wish I could work somewhere with them. And it sounds so cliché to say I admire my mom, but I do. She’s the one that taught me a lot of things. And then, at the Driskill, there were a lot of really talented guys there at the time and I thank them because, if they hadn’t been so hard on me, I wouldn’t have developed such a strong work ethic for kitchens, you know? I’m tough and I don’t deal with bullshit. My fiancé [Jason Donoho] also. He’s worked at a lot of really awesome restaurants. He worked at The French Laundry for a while and he’s really smart, so we definitely bounce off each other.

What do you love most about cooking? It’s comforting. There’s something about being in a kitchen — being alone even — and just having your space and cooking whatever you want. It’s really cool to think of things, put them together and see it actually work and people love it. They want to buy it and they want to come here for it! It’s really cool to be able to do that because not everybody can do that. You can’t really teach people how to cook. You can teach them how to, but you can’t, you know? You either have it or you don’t.

What’s your favorite music to listen to in the kitchen? That depends on my mood. I’ll go with my teeny bopper pop sometimes. I still listen to old-school Britney Spears and ‘NSync — the guys back there will deal with it. They actually like it and they admit it! But I listen to rock also. I go through my Sinatra phases. It’s all over the place really. Anything but country.

What do you like to do when you’re not working? Hang out with Jason. We have the cutest little French bulldog puppy. He’s so cute! I read a lot of cookbooks. We also like to go out to restaurants all over town. And whenever we have the chance to away, we plan it around food. He took me to Alinea for my birthday a couple years ago and planned a whole trip around it. So that’s what we like-- eating everything.

What is your favorite food to eat when not working? I love hamburgers. I am so obsessed with hamburgers. I really just love a simple burger with American cheese or Easy Melt. 'Cause it’s just so good! And you know what? I love Whataburger. P. Terry’s is good too but I have to get the doubles, because they’re way too small for somebody like me! If I’m going to cook at home, I love making homemade pasta and gnocchi. I can thank Asti for that. And I traveled to Italy for a little over a month with a friend during the time I worked there.

What are some of your favorite new creations? One of the biggest things that people have liked is that I’ve changed the beet salad and put fresh horseradish on it. The beets are so pretty. The majority of the time we get them from Johnson’s Backyard Farm. I make a horseradish yogurt as a sauce on the plate, then there are golden and Chioggia beets, watermelon radishes, and amaranth leaves tossed in a horseradish vinaigrette, sprinkled with espalette and pepitas.

And we just added an Akaushi strip steak to the menu. The meat is literally from down the road on East Sixth Street — that’s where the cows are. It’s served over warm bone marrow potato salad and topped with bone marrow butter. It's pretty ridiculous.

Kenzie Allen of Searsucker.

Photo by Veronica Meewes

Kenzie Allen of Searsucker.

unspecified

Get Your Flowers

Australian duo brings trendy-but-cozy Manhattan pub to Austin

One of the bars in the Flower Shop Austin, featuring retro, Midwestern pub design elements.

Photo courtesy of SAVI PR

The Flower Shop Austin's design is retro nostalgia meets Midwestern pub.

If you're a cool kid in Manhattan, you know about The Flower Shop in LES. (And you know that LES means "Lower East Side.") It's a restaurant and bar that has quickly become a big part of the scene in New York since opening in 2017, and now, it's coming to Austin.

The Flower Shop Austin will officially open its doors on October 10 on East 7th Street, and while we don't expect the likes of Justin Theroux or Bella Hadid to show up on opening night (they frequent the New York location), this restaurant and bar has already started out with a bang. On October 3rd, they hosted a friends and family opening party, and on October 4, an official Austin City Limits Festival after party.

If you missed your invitation to these events, here's what you can expect come October 10:

A menu boasting traditional foods with a twist, like oysters with yuzu mignonette; pan-roasted cauliflower steak with quinoa and an egg; and deviled eggs with sesame seeds and wasabi. Plus, there will be more "casual" diner dishes like chicken wings with ranch, fish and chips, and a traditional Australian homemade meat pie. You can also expect a large cocktail and drinks list, including "the Harry Styles," a mezcal-based drink with watermelon, plus local beers and natural wines.

The ground floor at the Flower Shop Austin features the main dining area, with a full menu. Photo courtesy of SAVI PR

"The menu is inspired from our menu in New York. It's what we've been doing and refining for a number of years there," says co-owner Dylan Hales.

"[Starting out in New York] we had a little list of things we liked from places. A sort of merging of cultures," adds co-owner Ronnie Flynn. "[The menu] is an amalgamation of comfort foods from English pubs, Irish pubs, a few little comfort foods from Australia, some contemporary American foods...."

Hales and Flynn are both originally from Australia and first met living in New York. The two became friends and after years of frequenting and hosting events for their circle at spots throughout town, they realized they still never had a solid answer to the question, "So where should we grab a drink?" Together, with the help of William Tisch and Dave Turner, they created the original Flower Shop in Manhattan, with the goal of creating a truly casual but comforting neighborhood spot.

"We thought, what do we want? What do our friends want? Let's put together a place where we have all the things we want inside of it," says Flynn.

The space itself will be similar in design and style to the New York location, which was famously inspired by local pub culture, Midwestern style diners, bars, and finished basements. If you're an Austinite, the words "pub culture," "midwestern diners," and "basements," probably don't mean a whole lot to you, so let's just take a look at the design.

The ground floor features a cocktail area, including retro floral upholstered lounge seating. The ground floor also features a cocktail area, including retro floral upholstered lounge seating.Photo courtesy of SAVI PR

"To be honest, the 'Midwestern' thing was kind of something that got thrown in the press releases from day one because it's just easier to translate it to people in the U.S. this way," says Flynn. "But the truth is, a lot of old pubs in Australia ... look just like this. Wood paneled walls, old furniture, carpeted floors, all the trinkets on the bars ... So 'Midwestern' was a good way for us to explain it to the general public; but it's really just a nod to these old bars and pubs in Australia."

Speaking of old places, the building itself at 1300 E. 7th St. dates back to 1922 and is known to be one of the first tortilla factories in Texas, complete with its own water tower. In more recent years, it was gluten-free restaurant Wilder Wood. The architect and design firm Fox Fox Studio decided to keep the original sandstone facade and walls, and the decor is a nod to the 60s, 70s, and 80s; a cozy meets retro meets upscale living room feel, dotted with trinkets from all over the world telling the team's story.

"The feeling is 'nostalgia.' And what's happened in New York [over time] is that people will bring in gifts, and bring in their parents' photos; photos of people who have been engaged and married are everywhere ... That's a very important part of the space for us," Flynn says. "We want to keep it authentic ... We want it to be a place that's for the community; almost like, 'Here's the keys. Make yourself at home!'"

Much like the New York location, the ground floor at Flower Shop Austin includes the main dining room and floral upholstered cocktail areas. Unlike the New York location, this one will also include tons of outdoor space: a beer garden off of the ground floor, a second floor with an outdoor deck, and a rooftop deck inspired by 50s and 60s hotel poolside bars overlooking downtown — where apparently the sunsets are stunning. "It's very special," says Hales.

A view of the exterior or Flower Shop Austin, including the rooftop deck, umbrella seating, the water tower, and a view of downtown. Hales and Flynn advise people to head to the rooftop for sunset, for a gorgeous view of the city. Photo courtesy of SAVI PR

The Flower Shop Austin is the group's first permanent venture outside of New York. They knew if they were coming to Austin, a city that they have both spent a lot of time in, it would have to be the East Side.

"The East Side was sort of our targeted area," says Hales. "It really resonated the most with what we thought would match our 'brand' and personality." Over the years, the two have made friends here in Austin — both in the restaurant industry and not — and that's eventually what lead to this new location.

"We ended up finding the space through a friend of ours down here who owns another restaurant, and their landlord owns both properties. We heard it might be coming available through our friend, and that's how it all started," says Hales.

"We [both] love Austin," adds Flynn. "Being Australian, the Texas thing really speaks to us; it goes hand in hand. There's something abut the salt of the earth, friendly smile, firm handshakes that happens in Austin, in Texas, that I haven't had in a lot of other places in America. There's something really open, and genuine, and authentic about the people I've met here. In Australia, we have a similar approach."

So far, the two have had a hell of a set up, working long days, getting the space ready to open; Barton Springs has been their mutual reprieve from it all. These guys love The Springs.

Of course, opening a new business in a new city doesn't come without some trepidation.

"If anyone is opening up a new place in a new town — or even their own town — and they're not nervous, they're crazy," says Flynn. "We're trying to be confident and respect the area — we love the locals and we love the place — and we don't want to come in and be like, 'Look at us! We're not nervous at all!' Anything could happen."

The Flower Shop Austin is located at 1300 E. 7th St. and will be open Monday through Sunday, 5 pm to 1 am. More information is available at theflowershopnyc.com.

bars openings pubs east austin