News You Can Eat

7 things to know in Austin food right now: Lauded birria taco spot reopens

Birria tacos with cheese by Palo Seco 512 (fka La Tunita 512) in Austin

Palo Seco 512, a family-owned trailer, has more Instagram followers than many of Austin's top restaurants.

Photo by Brianna Caleri

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.

Openings

Birria tacos never taste better than they do outside of a gas station. La Tunita 512, a well-loved, extremely tiny Austin trailer selling birria — and frequently selling out — took a three-month hiatus for inspection and “some changes,” and suddenly returned on September 16 as Palo Seco 512. The tacos are loaded with brisket and cheese fried right on the grill, with consommé as a separate side order. For a fun twist, try it in an instant ramen bowl. Palo Seco 512 is located at 2400 Burleson Rd., open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 am to 5:30 pm, and announces on Instagram when it sells out.

Yes, there are tons of hard seltzers out in the world right now. But the Austin brand Big Country claims to be the “first-ever fair trade-certified, organic hard seltzer,” and it’s launching across Texas at H-E-B, Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Sprouts, Total Wine & More, and independent sellers. This product comes from a maker that has gone through a few pivots, starting with baked goods and including canned cocktails, although the website now focuses almost entirely on seltzer. There are four flavors in the 12-packs: blackberry grapefruit, passionfruit kiwi, prickly pear peach, and watermelon pineapple.

Other news and notes

One of Austin’s favorite taco chains, Tacodeli, is supporting the National Multiple Sclerosis Society with a new seasonal drink, the Jalapeño Pepino Fresca. The base mix is cucumber, lime juice, and jalapeños ($4.50), and with an upgrade of Tito’s Handmade Vodka, it becomes Tito’s Spicy Pepino. All orders of the vodka cocktail from now until November 4th will prompt a $1 donation from Tacodeli, and a matched donation by Tito’s.

Fierce Whiskers Distillery, in Southeast Austin next to Meanwhile Brewing, is celebrating its first birthday on September 24. In partnership with Virtue Craft Spirits and Liber & Co, they’ve organized a Bourbon Battle featuring 10 bartenders from some of the top bars in the city. Guests will get to try the drinks and vote for a people’s choice winner. There will also be live music by Molly Burch, a limited-edition bottle release, bites, and more. Tickets ($40) available on Eventbrite.

Two Top Chef competitors in Austin, Jo Chan and Amanda Rockman are hosting a two-night chef’s table called “Midnight in the Garden.” The top-secret location will be announced to guests before the dinner, but the invitation does promise Texas oaks. The number of courses is also a mystery, but the dinner will never happen again. There are some slots still open on September 25 at 5 pm, but 8:30 pm is sold out, as is all of September 24. Reserve ($225) or join a waitlist on Tock.

Texas taps into its German roots the weekend of September 24 (and beyond) with many Oktoberfests. In Austin, head to Meanwhile Brewing, Hi Sign Brewing, and Easy Tiger, just to name a few with very active PR teams. Koko’s Bavarian, a beer hall in the Govalle neighborhood of East Austin, is hosting the actual Prince of Bavaria Konstantin Prinz von Bayern, who is flying in to continue a tradition since 1810. Follow the links for more information on each festival.

Sour Duck Market is all about local goods, so its partnership with the YMCA is totally on-brand. On September 28, the market is donating 25% of all sales to the community center, and YMCA team members will be on-site to chat with visitors. It takes about 10 minutes to drive from Sour Duck to the Townlake and East Communities YMCAs, so this could be a great day to start a new routine of snacks and drop-in classes.

Fresher Now

Elite omakase counter returns to Austin after rebrand and upgrade

Sushi by Scratch Margarita Kallas-Lee and Phillip Frankland Lee

Photo by Carly Snook

Margarita Kallas-Lee and Phillip Frankland Lee are bringing their elite sushi counter back to Austin.

Sushi by Scratch Restaurants, the omakase spot formerly known as Sushi|Bar, has gone through lots of change in and around Austin since it debuted as a sort of speakeasy in 2020. After a slight rebrand and a physical absence, Sushi by Scratch is returning to Austin in a downtown space starting Friday, December 6.

Sushi|Bar was a big deal right away. The concept, occupying a bar tucked into the space that was already carefully split between Bento Picnic and Saba San's Wine & Sake, was originally a pop-up, but it later decided to stay. It was sexier the more elusive it was — and with the constant bookings reaching a waitlist of 25,000 by the restaurant's count, it became very elusive.

Part of its draw was name recognition for chef-owner Phillip Frankland Lee, who competed on Top Chef; he shared ownership with his wife, Margarita Kallas-Lee, who has since become one of Austin's favorite pastry chefs.

Sushi|Bar was the couple's introduction to Austin since moving from Los Angeles, but they quickly started building a new empire here, including Pasta|Bar, NADC Burger, and Wolf and Wheat (which has since closed to continue meeting baking demands for the other two restaurants).

As reported by Eater, the couple sold Sushi|Bar in 2021, and it eventually took over the whole space. The former owners rebranded existing locations to Sushi By Scratch, opening a new location in Cedar Creek — specifically, that location's at Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa. A December 3 press release explains that this absence from Austin was to fulfill a noncompete agreement, which has now been completed.

Sushi by Scratch will make its comeback at 603 Brazos St., right behind 6th Street businesses like Eureka! and Voodoo Doughnut. Sushi|Bar at the Hyatt Regency will remain open, too.

The downtown menu features 21 courses in total; four canapés will be served in the lounge, and 17 more courses will be served at the the sushi counter. About a dozen of those sushi items are new.

According to the release, Frankland Lee and Margarita Kallas-Lee gathered inspiration for the new menu items while traveling around the world. In addition, Frankland Lee has spent time working with sushi chefs in Japan over the past three years.

Some new items, both in the lounge and at the sushi bar include an edible cocktail experience; Japanese jellyfish with soy sauce, lemon, and sea salt; a medium-rare Wagyu with a sauce made of local egg yolk, soy, scallion, and black truffle; Japanese bigfin reef squid that is cut as small as sushi rice, with ponzu made with imported cherry blossoms and local cherries; and a yuzu creamsicle and tonka bean custard.

Products from other Austin businesses will make an appearance. CM Smokehouse contributes brisket, and Vacancy Brewing presents a co-branded Japanese-style rice lager.

The performance aspect of fine dining is alive and well in the new restaurant, where chefs will carve an aged piece of tuna that hangs on display in the lounge, or cut and season rice so that guests can see it before trying it.

Beverages will be available for an optional pairing, including sakes and Japanese whiskies, among "other libations."

Sushi by Scratch Restaurants will offer downtown seatings at 5 pm, 7:15 pm, and 9 pm. Reservations are available via Tock. Reservations require a $25 deposit that will be applied to the check after dinner, along with a 20 percent service fee.

sushi omakase fine dining