News you can eat

Artisan bakery brings sourdough to South Austin, plus more food news

ThoroughBread brings artisan breads to South Austin.

Photo by Sara Strick

Editor's note: We get it. It can be difficult to keep up with the what’s what and who’s who of Austin food. But we have you covered with our regular roundup of the freshest Austin restaurant news.

South Austin artisan bakery ThoroughBread opens November 6. The curated menu from Crooks musician and baker Ryan Goebel includes organic sourdough and other breads, cookies, and savory breakfast pastries. The 1709 Bluebonnet Ln. shop opens at 7 am each morning, Tuesday through Sunday.

A saucy new food truck is coming to 1403 E. Seventh St., in the space adjacent to Revival Coffee. On November 1, entrepreneur Rod Crosby announced the November opening of Sauce Odyssey, a hybrid concept that will combine an interactive sauce bar and a rotisserie menu. According to a release, the offerings from consulting chef Judd Servino and chef de cuisine Jared Smith will include loaded nachos; roasted vegetables like fingerling potatoes, beets, and carrots; and pasture-raised kitchen. The trailer will also have fried banana and Nutella spring tolls and a foamy frozen drink made out of carbonated tea.

After more than four years of planning, a group of Austinites have launched a new mezcal brand. Susto Mezcal — from longtime friends Ingrid and James Taylor and Liz and Duff Stewart, along with managing director of Mexico operations Beatriz “Titi” Rodriguez — launched November 1. Take home a bottle from The Austin Shaker, Davenport Wine & Spirits, and select Twin Liquors or have a taste at Kome, Red’s Porch, L’Oca d’Oro, Last Straw, or The Headliners Club.

The latest location of Austin fave Torchy’s Tacos at 5900 Slaughter Ln. is celebrating its grand opening November 13. If the idea of waiting that long for a fried avocado taco kills you, stop by on November 12 for the preview party featuring free tacos, drinks, and entertainment.

Home Slice Pizza has announced the return of DOUGHvember, a month-long event series running throughout November. All locations will participate with raffles for free pizza for a year and profit-sharing events benefitting a new local charity partner each week. As a grand finale, Via 313 will be stopping by on November 27 for a one-day collaboration also featuring a four-tap takeover from Pinthouse Pizza.

Hot off the heels of Nickel City transforming itself into Moe’s Tavern for the Halloween season, Last Straw is having a little pop culture fun. Straw Wars, running until November 3, pays homage to the intergalactic franchise with a punny food and drink menu, specialty drinkware, and costume contests each night.

Healthy downtown shop Squeezery has upped its offerings with new menu items including sandwiches like a chicken panini with spinach and pesto, soups like a vegan coconut red lentil variety, and salads featuring seasonal veggies. All can be picked up on the go or enjoyed in the just-finished outdoor dining area located just outside the entrance.

Chef Kevin Fink, from Emmer & Rye, Henbit, and the upcoming Hestia, will represent Austin November 9 at the Emeril Lagasse Foundation’s annual Boudin, Bourbon & Beer, a lavish food party that invites the nation’s best chefs to New Orleans and raises money for the organization's youth educational initiatives. Other notable names include James Beard Award-winner Alon Shaya, famed chocolatier and Nailed It host Jacques Torres, and Flavortown mayor Guy Fieri.

Better Half will be previewing the upcoming urban brewery Hold Out Brewing on November 6 with a party featuring beer, burgers, and sure-to-be-coveted merch. The party starts at 6 pm and will run late.

news-you-can-eat desserts charity openings festivals food-trucks dinner breweries burgers chefs fundraisers east-austin craft-beer tacos

Cat's Out of the Bag

Classic Austin dive bar Mean Eyed Cat opens new Driftwood outpost

Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

There ain't no grave can hold Austinites down when it's time to break in this new dive bar.

An Austin bar with a lot of personality has its eye on a new location. The Mean Eyed Cat is opening in Driftwood on Thursday, November 21.

This Johnny Cash-inspired bar has certainly always had the country aesthetic: the weathered wood, the live oak-shaded picnic tables, the black-and-white photos on the wall, and even the occasional taxidermy specimen. The same rustic vibes continue in Driftwood at 8750 W RR 150, Bldg. 100, according to a short press release.

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood interior This new bar already looks like it's been collecting antiques for decades.Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Good luck getting there on Google Maps. Right now, it drops a pin at the intersection of Ranch to Market Road 150 and Elder Hill Road. However, it appears to be next to Mad Rooster's Liquor Store — we can see the side of the building through the window and the same road signs. We've reached out to a spokesperson to get the proper directions.

The Austin original has been around since 2004, and this offshoot is only its second location. The promises "the same laid-back, offbeat charm that made the original bar an icon."

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood interior What's a dive bar without a pool table?Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Before the Austin location was a bar, it was a chainsaw repair shop that was aptly featured in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. Chris Marsh was who converted it to a watering hole and Christened it the Mean Eyed Cat, and he later sold it to current owners Matt Luckie, Max Moreland, and Jed Thompson, placing it in a lineage that also includes Lavaca Street Bar & Grill, Sign Bar, Lala’s Little Nugget, and more locally beloved staples and oddities.

All the proper references are there in Driftwood, including several saw blades on the wall, Johnny Cash memorabilia, and lyrics on every available surface, including a picnic table that ominously says "HURT." First and foremost on the menu are whiskeys and classic cocktails, keeping things as simple as anyone would expect at a dive bar.

Mean Eyed Cat Bar Driftwood patio A spacious patio takes advantage of the Hill Country surroundings.Photo courtesy of the Mean Eyed Cat

Despite the relatively remote location, commenters on Instagram have already spotted people inside and started chomping at the bit. It sounds like opening day will be a lively affair.

The Mean Eyed Cat in Driftwood will be open Mondays through Thursdays from 2 pm to 2 am, and Fridays through Sundays from noon to 2 am. Happy hour will be weekdays from 4-7 pm.

dive bars whiskey cocktails openings driftwood