SoCo Shake-up

Favorite South Congress restaurant and bar announces closing date

Doc's on South Congress will close Friday, December 23.

Photo courtesy of Doc's Motorworks

Time to pour one out for another Austin watering hole. Doc's Motorworks Bar & Grill will hold last call on South Congress Avenue on Friday, December 23.

"The property was sold to a developer and, although Doc's has several more years on their lease, the owners of Doc's determined that due to the disruption in business with surrounding construction it would be in their best interest to negotiate a buy out of the current lease," states a release. "An agreement was reached recently which both parties feel is reasonable under the circumstances."

The homegrown chain, which has two additional Austin outposts, as well as one in Houston, opened on South Congress in 2005. Following the closure in December, the team is looking to relocate the original location.

"It has been an incredible 11 years on South Congress, and we are looking forward to getting another spot in the area. We have so many regular guests at our SoCo location and we know they will be just as disappointed as we are," says partner and COO Charles Milligan in the release.

Doc's is the first of what may be many closures along South Congress Avenue. Plans filed with the City of Austin by developers Big Red Dog detail a 130,740-square-foot development with office, retail, and restaurant space on South Congress Avenue near the intersection of Music Lane.

The project, dubbed Music Lane Mixed Use, encompasses a 1.5-acre lot from 1123 South Congress Ave. (Doc's) to 1011 South Congress Ave. (Sfanthor House of Wax, which shuttered in October). These buildings, and those in between, would need to be demolished to accommodate the development. Other affected businesses include Wet Salon & Studio, Parts & Labour, Strut, Texas National Outfitters, United Apparel Liquidators, and Ignite Fitnez.

"We feel extremely grateful to the entire Austin community and especially to our neighbors who supported us all these years, like the Texas School for the Deaf and many local social groups, for making Doc's an Austin icon," says Doc's partner Ted Karam. "We look forward to continuing servicing the community with our other two existing Austin locations."

drinks closings

Noodle News

Vegan ramen joint from Los Angeles visits Austin for 2-night pop-up

Ramen Hood/Instagram

Los Angeles' Ramen Hood will be in Austin for a two-night pop-up.

This Thursday and Friday, the Loren Hotel Austin is teaming up with Los Angeles vegan ramen restaurant Ramen Hood for a two-night pop-up dinner on November 7 and 8.

The dinner on both nights will include a multi-course prix fixe menu featuring some of the restaurant's best-selling dishes. Guests will see broccoli with soy, chili glaze, and scallions; Ahi "Tuna" crisps made from spicy beets, crispy rice shells, yuzu avocado puree and sesame seeds; Avocado Toast with crispy rice cakes, yuzu avocado puree, herb salad, togarashi, and chili threads; and ramen with sunflower seed broth, bean sprouts, scallions, bok choy, and king oyster mushrooms.

Dinner is priced at $45 per person, plus an additional $45 for sake and cocktail pairings.

Dinner will include this simple but savory broccoli dish, along with several other courses. Photo courtesy of Ramen Hood

Ramen Hood was founded in 2015 by chef Rahul Khopkar and Ilan Hall, as a vegan and plant-based ramen option in L.A. This will be the first time Ramen Hood is teaming up with The Loren, but it's not the first pop-up the hotel is offering. This is part of an ongoing chef series, where The Loren Hotel partners with chefs from all around the country to showcase their specialty dishes to Austin eaters.

A portion of the proceeds from The Loren Chef Series benefits The Loren Roots Imperative, a nonprofit that has big goals in terms of carbon footprint. Currently the Roots Imperative aims to acquire and regenerate over 50,000 biodiverse acres of land and plant 10 million hardwood trees to offset its own carbon emissions.

Ramen Hood's pop-up vegan restaurant will be at The Loren's Nido Lounge from 6-9 pm on Thursday November, 7, and Friday, November 8.

The Nido Lounge at the Loren Hotel Austin. Photo from thelorenhotels.com

The Loren Hotel is located just south of the Colorado River at 1211 W Riverside Dr. Aside from the Nido Lounge, the hotel a Milk + Honey spa, an extensive fitness center, cafe, rooftop terrace, infinity pool, and plenty of other luxurious amenities in its 108 guest rooms and suites overlooking Lady Bird Lake.

More information and tickets are available at thelorenhotels.com.

ramen vegan hotels pop-up