Stella San Jac

This new 'Austin-American' restaurant aims to please the foodies

This "Austin-American" eatery is set to open July 16.

Next month, downtown Austin will welcome Stella San Jac, a new restaurant inspired by the essence of Austin itself. Set to open July 16, the restaurant boasts "Austin-American" cuisine, characterized by a locally inspired menu with multicultural influences.

Located on the ground floor of the new Westin hotel at the corner of San Jacinto Boulevard and Fifth Street, the 150-seat restaurant will feature a lounge for local live music, an open kitchen and contemporary design elements.

The soon-to-open eatery pays homage to Austin and Texas with its name and fare.

"We love the name Stella because it exemplifies all things Austin," David Dickinson, general manager, said in a press release. "Stella means star in Latin and, for us, relates to the celebration of the Lone Star, which symbolizes Texas pride as an independent state. The restaurant also weaves in Austin’s love of music with design elements inspired by the American-built Stella guitar played by many notable artists in the '20s and '30s."

Anticipated menu items include blueberry sweet bread French toast, gulf shrimp and lump crab roll, and braised short ribs with sweet potato mash. Stella San Jac’s menu will also offer its coveted "#16 Biscuits," named after the number of batches tested to perfect the recipe.

The restaurant will feature a full bar with wine, local craft beers and handcrafted cocktails. Resident mixologists will create seasonal cocktails and infusions to make your happy hour even happier all year.

"Stella San Jac will be a cool place to hang out and relax," Dickinson said. "I want it to be a place where foodies and beverage aficionados are proud to go." The new foodie destination will be open daily from 6:30 am to 11:30 pm.

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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.