Editor's note: We get it. It can be difficult to keep up with the fast pace of Austin's restaurant and bar scene. We have you covered with our regular roundup of essential food news.

News and notes

Tejano pop icon Selena Quintanilla’s unmatched love for pepperoni pizza is legendary, and to celebrate Netflix’s hotly anticipated Selena: The Series, Home Slice Pizza’s North Loop location is offering an “I Could Fall In Love ... with Pizza” food-and-cocktail combo pack. The pack includes one large pepperoni pizza, two Rice Krispies treats, a bottle of Yellowbird sauce, two “Bidi Bidi Yum Yum” cocktails featuring Volcan De Mi Teirra Tequila, and two rose gold disco ball souvenir glasses with straws adorned with the Tejano queen’s favorite flower, white roses. Preorders for the kits are available now via homeslicepizza.com or by calling 512-707-7437 and will be available for pickup at Home Slice North Loop from 11 am and 11 pm on Friday, December 4, the same day Selena: The Series premieres on Netflix.

One of Austin’s hottest new weekly pop-ups is proof that a solid Mexican breakfast starts with the salsa. Manager and taquero of east side taco truck Discada, chef Alex Macias’s flavorful new concept Que Sazon Foods, pays tribute to his mother’s fonda of the same name, which fed area college students in Monterrey, Mexico in the late '90s. Launched in May, the Austin-based operation dishes out a variety of homemade offerings made by Macias and his wife, Jennifer Camacho, including two outstanding homemade salsas. From now until the end of 2020, foodies can sample Que Sazon’s products at Macias’s new chilaquiles-focused pop-up operating outside of Discada at 1319 Rosewood Ave. every Sunday from 11 am - 2 pm. Here, the traditional tortilla-chip-based breakfast dish comes drowned in either Macias’ red adobada salsa, which features a creamy texture and hints of smoke pepper, or his Verde La Tatemada salsa made with roasted green peppers and garlic. Orders for Que Sazon chilaquiles must be made in person and are served with a fried egg, queso fresco, and a drizzle of crema. Customers can also order jars of Que Sazon salsa for pickup at the Discada pop-up by directly messaging Que Sazon’s Instagram page. Follow the page for updates on Que Sazon’s forthcoming online shop and planned expansion to local farmers markets in the near future. 



Elsewhere in pop-up news, Louisiana-inspired eatery Sawyer & Co. is teaming up with east side cocktail operation Whisler’s for a special cocktail service operation. Whisler’s bartenders will be at the Cesar Chavez Street restaurant on December 2, 9, and 16 to offer such specialty cocktails as La Llorona, made with mezcal, pepper, and blackberry. The cocktail pop-up will operate out of Sawyer and Co.’s airstream trailer on the restaurant’s socially-distanced and heated patio. Walk-ins are welcome for the event and tickets are not required. The next Sawyer & Co. and Whistler’s pop-up cocktail operation will take place Wednesday, December 2, from 5 pm to 9 pm at 4827 E. Cesar Chavez St.

Worried your pandemic-era Christmas might see you missing out on Abuela’s famous tamales? Fret not! Local Tex-Mex fave El Chilito’s three Austin locations are now offering the soul-affirming masa dish to-go. Customers can order a half-dozen tamales in black bean and cheese, Puerco Rojo, or Pollo Verde variants, all of which come frozen with instructions for reheating. Tamales run $10 per half dozen and can be ordered now through the holidays (or until supplies run out) at elchilito.com for contactless curbside pickup during business hours.

You're going to need something to drink with all those tamales, right? Austin-based Twin Liquors is pouring specialty cocktail and wine boxes this year to keep spirits merry and bright during this strange holiday season. Order up specialty kits such as Aperol Fizz or Irish Italian Manhattan, which come with all the ingredients needed to whip up craft cocktails at home. If wine is more your thing, select from themed boxes such as California reds or Pacific Northwest varietals. Order online here for delivery or curbside pickup.

A new Milwaukee-based business is flying into Austin. Jettset Local’s pocket-sized Foodie Flight Passports, which retail for $25, give customers a handy guide for exploring 25 Austin-area restaurants, with offerings from Tex-Mex to barbecue to Asian cuisines. When Jettset Passport holders visit such local favorites as Scholz Garten or 24 Diner, they can get their passport stamped and receive $10 off the total bill. For consumers looking to also pamper themselves, the company’s similar Fab Flight Passport offers deals at 25 local Austin beauty and fitness businesses, including free blowouts, yoga classes, and deals on massage, waxing, and more. Both the 2021 Foodie and Fab Flight passports are currently available for purchase at jettsetlocal.com.