In Remembrance

Chef and co-founder of Austin's legendary Fonda San Miguel has passed away

Miguel Ravago passed away June 24.

Photo courtesy of Fonda San Miguel

Austin has lost a culinary legend. Miguel Ravago, chef and co-founder of Fonda San Miguel, passed away at age 72 on Saturday, June 24, after a brief battle with lung cancer, the restaurant announced.

Born in January 1945 in Phoenix, Ravago learned authentic Mexican cooking from his family at a very young age, perfecting styles from Veracruz and Sonora. Ravago and longtime business partner Tom Gilliland began their journey as restaurateurs in 1972 with San Angel Inn in Houston, which operated for several years. The duo then opened Fonda San Miguel in 1975, one of the first establishments in Austin — and Texas — to focus on interior Mexican cuisine.

"Ravago will be terribly missed by those who knew him. At the same time, he will be remembered by the thousands of customers who have dined on the marvelous dishes he created for one of the most significant restaurants in Texas," reads a statement.

Chief accomplishments during his decades-long career included cooking at the James Beard House in New York and publishing two cookbooks, Cocina de la Familia and Fonda San Miguel: Thirty Years of Food and Art.

Later in life, Ravago lived in Spain and England with his spouse, Phillipe Mercier. But he "maintained his role at Fonda San Miguel with regular visits back to Austin and daily interaction with the Fonda kitchen and his Fonda family," states a release.

The public is invited to a celebration honoring Ravago on July 2 at 5:30 pm at Fonda San Miguel, following the restaurant's regular Sunday brunch service.

chefs deaths

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.