New Burnet Road Bar

New Burnet Road bar and restaurant takes over famed Austin nightclub space

A new bar and restaurant is coming to Burnet Road.

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With all of its new Rock Rose establishments — Rose Room, 77 Degrees, St. Genevieve, and Jack & Ginger’s — now open, Union Venture Group (UVG) is shifting its attention to 7113 Burnet Rd. The group plans to turn the former Dallas Nightclub space, which closed last fall after being open for 35 years, into a neighborhood hot spot.

“We really wanted to be part of the Burnet Road expansion. We want to be a part of the community and have an establishment that offers something for everyone — that’s what our objective is,” explains UVG partner Jeff Van Delden.

With indoor and outdoor seating, Van Delden notes that lunch offerings, a happy hour with food and drink specials, and a casual dining experience can be expected. Plus, the atmosphere will be “kid friendly during the day and early evening,” and more of a “neighborhood bar” feel at night.

Van Delden says the menu will feature “really good comfort food with a Mexican flare,” so you'll likely see standard Austin fare with a moderate price point attached. A full bar will be available with a selection of beers on tap, plus plenty of TVs to watch the game.

UVG, which also owns The Park on South Lamar and in The Domain, is expected to release the name of the new concept in a couple of weeks. The group’s target date to swing open the doors is October 1.

drinks nightlife openings

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.