Best Bars in the South

Belly up to the 3 Austin bars named best in the South

Editor's note: In our original article, we incorrectly identified the head bartender at Qui. The piece has since been updated.

Just a few weeks after Draft Magazinenamed two of Austin's craft beer bars the best in the country, Southern Living has named three Austin cocktail joints the Best in the South.

Dirty Sixth's shining star Midnight Cowboy is up first, named No. 1 in the "Speakeasy" category. Southern Living editors suggest ordering a "Joe Buck, a twist on a Moscow Mule with blue corn whiskey instead of vodka." And this certainly isn't the first time this massage parlor turned cocktail lounge has been lauded for its craft cocktails: both The Guardian and Food & Wine have heralded it as one of the best in the United States.

Also garnering praise for its impressive cocktail menu is Contigo. In addition to having a power staff in the kitchen, this East Austin joint has some very big names behind the bar. Southern Living suggests sipping "the Vineagroon with tequila, mezcal, sage shrub, and a Herbsaint rinse." While we do love us some tequila, this time of year we're ordering an Old Fashioned and enjoying Contigo's cozy interiors.

And what would a list about the best things in Austin be without — wait for it — Qui. While Chef Paul Qui is no stranger to accolades, Qui's elite bar staff is stocked with industry vets and sommelier June Rodil has an impressive resume of her own. The staff's impressive bar menu is as dynamic as the dishes coming out of the kitchen. While Southern Living is ordering "the Saucy Jack with Laird’s Bonded AppleJack, Hamilton Jamaican Pot Still Black Rum, Luxardo Maraschino, dark maple syrup and bitters," we're excited to try all six of the new cocktails they added to the menu last week.

Qui took to Twitter to announce the latest additions to its drink menu.

Qui Restaurant Twitter

Qui took to Twitter to announce the latest additions to its drink menu.

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Back to the Plow

Homey Austin jam and bake shop closing and returning to farmers market

Confituras/Instagram

Confituras Little Kitchen is closing its brick-and-mortar store, but feeling optimistic about the future.

A famers market find is returning to its natural environment after six years in a brick-and-mortar location. Confituras Little Kitchen, which specializes in locally sourced preserves, is closing its jam and biscuit shop after service on Sunday, December 22. However, it will continue selling goods at the Barton Creek Farmers Market and via retailers.

Confituras announced the change in a newsletter to its customers in December. The letter called the news "bittersweet."

"Although the brick and mortar will no longer be, the good news is that this will be a fresh new start for us – we are bursting with energy and creativity at the thought of being back out in the community where it all started for confituras," it said.

The kitchen is closing because the lease is up, and the team has decided to "give up the chase." The newsletter emphasized the ups-and-downs of business over the past several years — ones that were chaotic for just about any business, let alone a small, fairly niche food operation.

"So much has happened since we decided to open a brick + mortar – a wonderful kickstarter fundraiser, THE PANDEMIC, the AFTER-EFFECTS OF THE PANDEMIC, and an ever growing city," the letter says. "We tried so very hard but never really got our footing. We know we are not alone, many small business are in the same boat. We renewed our lease during the pandemic because we were hopeful we could make it work - the changing times had other ideas."

Finally, it shared how customers could keep enjoying Confituras creations:

The Barton Creek Farmers Market is open at 2901 S. Capital of Texas Hwy. every Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm.
A list on confituras.net compiles retailers including Royal Blue Grocery, Farmhouse Delivery, and Antonelli's Cheese Shop.
Jam share and Table22 subscription customers will have more instructions coming soon about picking up their goods in January at the same space, 2129 Goodrich Ave.
Customers may also reach out to inquire about continuing to order meals directly.

The kitchen also hosted frequent events and workshops, but the letter did not address this aspect of the business.

A shorter message shared on Instagram has inspired 63 comments so far, five days later. Customers eulogized the shop for its community feel and providing a sense of regularity during the height of the pandemic thanks to weekend pick-ups.