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2 Austin hot spots shine among the 50 best new restaurants in America

In the midst of this terrible, horrible, no good, very bad summer for the Austin restaurant scene, it’s nice to be reminded that there are still some reasons to get excited. The latest silver lining to the dark cloud hovering over Capital City hospitality comes courtesy of Bon Appétit, which has once again deemed two new Austin restaurants as the best in the nation.

On July 31, the venerable magazine announced its annual list of the 50 best new restaurants in America. As was the case in 2017, two members of Austin’s 2018 freshman class made the cut — Suerte, the masa-obsessed East Austin eatery from Sam Hellman-Mass and executive chef Fermín Nuñez, and Sour Duck Market, Bryce Gilmore’s counter service departure from fine dining. The two restaurants have a deep connection. Although Hellman-Mass is no longer a chef at Gilmore’s Barley Swine and Odd Duck restaurants, he does remain a partner.

Unlike last year when the magazine wrote a separate blurb for each finalist, the magazine this year did not devote any column inches to saying what was so inspiring about the nominees. But editor-at-large Andrew Knowlton seems particularly in tune with the currents of Texas food this year, perhaps because he recently moved his family to Austin.

Of the four Lone Star spots selected as finalists for the coveted hot 10 list, three are counter service (only Suerte is full service). Houston chef Justin Yu will be vying for a twofer for his latest concept Better Luck Tomorrow with Bobby Huegel. He made it to the top 10 in 2012 for Oxheart.

Continuing its recent winning streak, San Antonio taco joint Carnitas Lonja also made it to the top 50. Along with Suerte, it was named on July 25 to Eater national restaurant editor Bill Addison’s list of the 18 Best New Restaurants in America.

The Austin nods continues Bon Appétit’s fascination with Austin. Since the magazine debuted the list in 2009, the Capital City has been a steady presence with top 10 wins for Olivia (2009), Congress (2011), Jeffrey’s and Josephine House (2013), Thai-Kun (2014), Dai Due (2015), and Kemuri Tatsu-Ya (2017).

Will Sour Duck and Suerte rise to the top, or be shut out like last year’s top 50 nominee June’s All day? Austinites will have to wait until August 14 to find out when the magazine will announce its coveted final 10 list.

Sour Duck Market opened earlier this year on Chicon Street.

Photo courtesy of Sour Duck Market

Sour Duck Market opened earlier this year on Chicon Street.

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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.