Tastemakers of Texas

Savor this list of the best restaurants and bars in Texas for 2019

Each spring, CultureMap tours Texas with our annual Tastemaker Awards, celebrating the top restaurant and bar talent in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio. These events have become some of the most popular food affairs of the season, with almost 3,000 folks across Texas joining us in 2019.

This year, the party started in Houston on March 27, stopped in Austin on April 10, and wrapped with a Dallas finale on April 25. At each party, we noshed on savory and sweet bites from top restaurants and chefs, sipped specialty drinks, and mingled with local culinary talent. And, most importantly, we celebrated all of the nominees and toasted the winners during our coveted awards ceremony.

So, how did we determine the best of the best? CultureMap editors collaborated with expert panels, including previous Tastemaker winners, to select the nominees in each city. The panels then selected winners in every category, except Best New Restaurant, which was determined by our readers in a heated bracket-style tournament.

The result is this list of the best of Texas dining for 2019. Savor it, and join us in raising a glass to all of the winners.

Austin

Restaurant of the Year: Olamaie
Chef of the Year: Michael Fojtasek, Olamaie
Rising Star Chef of the Year: Amanda Turner, Juniper
Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year: Better Half Coffee & Cocktails
Best New Restaurant: Discada
Pastry Chef of the Year: Laura Sawicki, Launderette
Bar of the Year: The Roosevelt Room
Bartender of the Year: Caer Ferguson, The Roosevelt Room
Brewery of the Year: Vista Brewing
Wine Program of the Year: June's All Day
Favorite Taco: Vaquero Taco

Dallas

Restaurant of the Year: Bullion
Chef of the Year: Misti Norris, Petra & the Beast
Rising Star Chef of the Year: Eric Freidline, Sevy's
Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year: Mot Hai Ba
Best New Restaurant: Taco Y Vino
Pastry Chef of the Year: Andrea Meyer, Bisous Bisous
Bar of the Year: Shoals
Bartender of the Year: Chris Unruh, Tiny Victories
Wine Program of the Year: Al Biernat's
Best Pizza: Zoli's

Fort Worth

Restaurant of the Year: Clay Pigeon
Chef of the Year: Juan Rodriguez, Magdalena's
Best New Restaurant: Four Sisters
Bar of the Year: Twilite Lounge

Houston

Restaurant of the Year: Nancy's Hustle
Chef of the Year: Manabu Horiuchi, Kata Robata
Rising Star Chef of the Year: Ian Levy, Better Luck Tomorrow
Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year: Giacomo’s cibo e vino
Best New Restaurant: Blood Bros. BBQ
Pastry Chef of the Year: Ruben Ortega, H-Town Restaurant Group
Bar of the Year: Anvil Bar & Refuge
Bartender of the Year: Sarah Troxell, Nobie’s
Brewery of the Year: Saint Arnold Brewing Company
Wine Program of the Year: Coltivare
Favorite Burger: Bernie’s Burger Bus

San Antonio

Restaurant of the Year: The Cookhouse
Chef of the Year: Diego Galicia & Rico Torres, Mixtli
Best New Restaurant: The Jerk Shack
Bar of the Year: The Modernist
Favorite Taco: Carnitas Lonja, Carnitas

Bullion, Dallas Restaurant of the Year.

Photo courtesy of Bullion

Bullion, Dallas Restaurant of the Year.

tastemakers

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.

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Back to the Plow

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