Saving Springdale

East Austin's Springdale Farm could shutter without support: Here's how to help

On Thursday, November 20, Austin City Council will vote to determine the future of East Austin's Springdale Farm.

The urban farm which hosts a biweekly farm stand and sells organic all-natural produce to more than 20 local restaurants including Justine's Brasserie, Odd Duck, Foreign & Domestic, Congress, Salt and Time and Arro, also plays host to events such as school trips, weddings, tours and nonprofit fundraisers.

Lately, however, the farm has come under fire from neighbors who claim the events are causing parking issues, trash and even lewd behavior. Springdale owners Glen and Paula Foore insist that this is untrue and claim that banning events from the 4.83-acre farm would cripple its business model and force the farm to shutter. (The Austin Chronicle has an excellent piece detailing the fight which is part race-relations, part gentrification issues and a whole lot of interesting.)

In order to stay in business, Springdale needs council members to approve issues pertaining to the amendment of the Future Land Use Map, the approval of a new zoning request, and the removal of a restrictive covenant placed on the property since 1999. Because a neighbor has filed a petition with the City of Austin, each of these issues must pass with a super majority, meaning six of the seven council members must vote yes.

Supporters of Springdale are being urged to take action to save this urban farm, which has been in business since 1992. Participants are encouraged to wear green and attend a rally and at Austin City Hall on Thursday, November 20 at 5 pm. Austinites can also sign up in support of items No. 145, No. 146 and No. 147 at kiosks located in the lobby of City Hall.

Austin's chef community has already answered the rallying cry, gathering on September 28 for a fundraiser. Local culinary stars including Sonya Coté, Bryce Gilmore, David Bull, Shawn Cirkiel and Andrew Curren participated in the one-day event dubbed Springdale Farm Aid.

The farm's biweekly produce stands.

Springdale Farm - Facebook Page

The farm's biweekly produce stands.

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Peak Plates

7 Austin restaurants make OpenTable's top 100 for 2024

Jeffrey's Restaurant/Instagram

Jeffrey's Restaurant is a great example of the type of fancy, well-established restaurant that made the list.

Restaurant reservation website OpenTable has issued its new list of the top 100 restaurants in America for 2024, and seven Austin restaurants have made the list. That's already impressive at a glance — 7 percent of the entire national list in just one city — but compared to other Texas cities, it's huge. Austin is the only Texas city to have more than one restaurant on the list.

The "2024's Top 100 Restaurants" list is a compilation of the most sought-after and top-ranked restaurants in the U.S. based on 14 million verified reviews on OpenTable from October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024. Restaurants are not ranked, but arranged in alphabetical order by state.

Austin's seven restaurants (including several repeats from OpenTable's 2023 list) are:

Aba: Known for its laid-back, yet fancy patio and being a popular spot for visiting celebrities
J Carver's: Known for a commitment to the classic steakhouse experience and legitimately fancy dining
Jeffrey's Restaurant: Known for fine dining, a connection to Austin before its boom, and a fantastic wine program
Red Ash Italia: Known for approachable, yet high-quality Italian food with rustic touches
Sammie's Italian: Known for its romantic take on the archetype of an East Coast Italian joint
Uchi: Known for bringing Austin into the national sushi conversation and defining the scene
Uchiko: Known for a cool atmosphere and getting creative with sushi and other small plates

Austinites will probably not be surprised by this list, which names some very well-established restaurants that are all upscale. These qualities tend to appeal to similar lists, regardless of who's curating them.

It is interesting, given that the list was democratically based on user ratings, that there were not more beloved food trailers or casual spots. However, other factors that led to high rankings included alerts set and reservations made ahead — things that don't really apply to even the most awesome taco truck.

Mediterranean food was a trend among the Austin picks. Red Ash Italia and Sammie's Italian are, as the names would imply, completely dedicated to Italian food, while Aba covers a wider swath of the Mediterranean. There were also two steakhouses: J Carver's and Jeffrey's Restaurant.

As list-perusers may have guessed, Uchi and Uchiko are in the same family of restaurants, with Uchi being the more formal and Uchiko being a bit more accessible for drop-in meals and cocktails. But are two more incognito duos of sibling restaurants on the list: J Carver's and Red Ash, and Jeffrey's Restaurant and Sammie's Italian.

That could be a coincidence. It could also be a reflection of the utility of money and experience in opening a good restaurant, or a lesson about the effects of good (and expensive) marketing. Whatever it is, it doesn't sound like hospitality groups had any direct sway on how OpenTable made its choices.

This list was different from the inaugural list of OpenTable Icons, which launched in 2024. The "Icons" list chose restaurants that are getting a lot of buzz, which ended up being more subjective. It also seemed to let in — as a side effect of the process, rather than a hard eligibility rule — more new and Mexican restaurants. Two restaurants are on both lists: Red Ash and Jeffrey's.

Restaurants outside of Austin that made the Top 100 list, organized alphabetically, are:

Hudson House — Dallas
Steak 48 — Houston
Signature — San Antonio

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