See ya 2017

Our A-to-Z guide to the best Austin restaurants for New Year's Eve

Kemuri Tatsu-ya’s feast includes a menu full of festive delights as well as drink specials.

We know that New Year’s Eve is a time to party hardy, but you won’t make it to that midnight kiss unless you have something to eat first. This year, skip the house party cheese tray and dine at one of the restaurants on our A to (almost) Z list. 2017 was a hard year. You deserve this!

Andiamo Ristorante
Executive chef Victor Ibarra bids buon anno with antipasti, mains like lobster risotto and pan roasted branzino, and desserts like warm chocolate soup with crushed red pepper and torta di cioccolato.

Aviary Wine + Kitchen
Escape from the holiday hubbub with a laid-back buffet of cheese, charcuterie, seafood, and all the accoutrements. Entry is free, but $25 gets you access to the spread and a glass of bubbles for the midnight toast.

Backyard at Waller Creek
Say see ya to 2017 with a brunch featuring chorizo and pepper jack grits Benedict or Texas French toast, or with dinner featuring a champagne toast. Both services include live music performances.

Boiler Nine Bar + Grill
Have dinner on the mezzanine before moving downstairs for late night bites, classic cocktails, music, and a toast.

The Carillon
Party with standouts like a Wagyu New York strip or king crab scampi, plus optional wine pairings from the restaurant’s encyclopedic list.

District Kitchen + Cocktails
Caviar and champagne service sets the scene for a festive evening starring dishes like wild mushrooms, wagyu tartare, lobster rolls, or prime New York strip steak. End the evening with a rich chocolate torte.

The Driskill
Enjoy seasonal prix fixe choices likes pancetta cannoli with house lemon ricotta, lamb osso bucco with blue corn polenta, and roasted cauliflower soup. Each guest gets a wristband for a party in the Driskill Bar.

Emmer & Rye
The lauded Rainey Street restaurant is doubling up the fun with a five-course menu offered both December 30 and 31. Expect dishes like New Mexico Wagyu strip; blue crab with potato espuma, chow chow, and fried bread. Don't miss pastry chef Tavel Bristol-Joseph's new take on the classic Baked Alaska.

Fonda San Miguel
The holiday decor at this classic restaurant sets the scene for a sparkly evening enjoying some of the city’s best interior Mexican cuisine and cozy cocktails.

Geraldine’s
Akina Adderley and the Vintage Playboys rock out as you enjoy chicken fried eggs, honey-glazed pork shops, Gulf redfish, chocolate toffee tarts, and more.

Guero’s Taco Bar
Ringing in the new year with queso and margaritas is about as Austin as it gets. And bonus, this Tex-Mex mainstay does not require reservations.

Juliet Italian Kitchen
The a la carte includes family favorites like wild mushroom and black truffle risotto, steak tartare, and scallops and pork belly. For something sweet, try the champagne float.

Juniper
The contemporary Italian restaurant is starting off the feast with their popular bar snacks and a pasta course before moving on to mains like chicken saltimbocca and halibut with blue crab, fennel gratin, lemon, and capers.

Kemuri Tatsu-Ya
The Japanese smokehouse’s feast includes delights like ora king salmon sashimi, karaage and cornbread, smoked Texas quail, and mochi tacos — plus a choice of two Kemuri cocktails, a bottle of sake, or a pitcher of beer.

Launderette
Welcome 2018 in style with foie mousse, escargot, king crab legs, a chocolate custard tart, and other prix fixe options at this East Austin favorite's annual shindig.

L’Oca d’Oro
The Mueller restaurant sets the scene for a Venetian masquerade with a luxurious four- or five-course, prix fixe menu, decadent wine pairings, and an open bar option. Come dressed in your finest so you can win the best costume prize.

Lone Star Court
The hotel’s on site restaurant, The Water Trough provides the bites, DJ OG Sprocket provides the tunes — plus a midnight toast and special bar offerings.

Mattie’s at Green Pastures
Have a Southern inspired New Year’s with chef Joshua Thomas’ menu and a performance by the Lost Counts. Two seatings available.

Native Hostel
The upscale hostel’s crash and bash includes DJ performances, a photo booth, and late night snacks. General admission tickets include party favors and a drink ticket, but special packages are available for those who would like to spend the night.

Olamaie
The contemporary Southern restaurant hosts a four-course, New Year’s celebration including their cult biscuits and a sparkling wine toast. Optional wine pairings are available at two levels.

St. Genevieve
Choose your own adventure with either a four-course dinner with optional champagne pairing or a rager with a DJ and party favors later in the night.

Second Bar + Kitchen Downtown
A black eyed pea and kale fritter amuse bouche with ham and comeback sauce starts the year off on a good foot. Keep the good luck going with small plate and entree specials.

Second Bar + Kitchen Domain Northside
Four course selections include charred salmon belly, white crab bisque, grilled ribeye loin, and chocolate mousse.

Searsucker
The celebratory dinner includes chorizo croquettes, beef cheek cassoulet, dry ribeye, and more — plus a toast when the hour strikes.

Stagecoach Inn
Take a drive to Salado to enjoy Southern specialties like bacon cheddar grits and biscuits and gravy for brunch. Dinner offerings include turkey and dressing or prime rib.

Swift’s Attic
The lively atmosphere at Swift’s will be amped up for New Year’s Eve with a four-course meal including choices like rutabaga tagliatelle, bacon wrapped dates, lamb tartare, and olive oil poached salmon — plus the traditional champagne toast at midnight.

Taverna
Celebrate a traditional Italian New Year’s Eve with specialty pastas, mains like pan roasted veal or roasted jumbo prawns, and a dessert of a classic flourless chocolate cake with gelato and mixed berries.

Toulouse Cafe and Bar
Feast en Francais on lobster tail tournedos, diver scallops and sweetbreads vol au vent, and a rack of lamb with sweet potato puree, crispy lardon, and wild mushrooms.

Trace at the W
Indulge in dishes like a baby lettuce salad, tuna carpaccio, agnolotti two ways, and a luxurious 30 day dry-aged Niman Ranch strip sirloin.

Vince Young Steahouse
Pan-seared scallops, thick pork chops, and, yes, steaks — plus wine, whiskey, and cigars.

Visconti Ristorante
Two seatings offer two distinct menus. A lighter but still decadent three-course meal starts at 6 pm, followed by a five-course feast featuring dishes like a champagne poached oyster and a beef filet with seared foie gras and warm apple-chestnut crostata.

Vox Table
Chefs Joe Anguiano and Annabelle Turner are ringing in 2018 with a five-course menu that includes luxe ingredients like black truffles, foie gras butter, and sturgeon caviar — and a few lighter offers in between to make sure you aren’t too weighed down by midnight.

Wu Chow
Enjoy an eight-course feast with optional wine pairings or an order of the restaurant’s famous Shanghai soup dumplings. Or give yourself a good foundation for a day of drinking by enjoying their dim sum service earlier in the day.

Yuyo
The contemporary Peruvian restaurant’s New Year’s special includes a lobster cebiche, steak churrasco with chimichurri, bubbles, and a selection of sweets.

brunch holidays dinner

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.