business in the front, party in the back

Verdant sandwich shop and custom cocktail lounge sneak into Downtown Austin

Austin Powder Room cocktail lounge interior

Manny's and Powder Room are like yin and yang at their shared space in the Warehouse District.

Photo courtesy of Lobos Hospitality

Most Austinites aren't particularly invested in any hospitality group, but those who care to read about food online likely recognize their impacts. Lobos Hospitality was a bit of an anomaly when it popped up in January 2024 with news of three upcoming restaurants, despite having no prior presence in Austin.

Toasty Badger Diner, a retro diner transforming the site of a former Dairy Queen on South Congress Avenue, was the first to arrive. It did so to relative excitement, thanks especially to the nostalgic and unassuming aesthetic. As much as Austinites love a theme, they get tired of glam and glitz. That's a win-win.

Next up, soft-opening April 18, are "community-driven delicatessen" Manny's and an accompanying secret lounge called Powder Room. These sister spaces at 301 W. 5th St. will seat guests in a "limited capacity" until April 24, when the soft-opening phase ends. They'll take a day off on April 25, and be in full service the next day.

“We wanted to create an inviting corner sandwich shop in the heart of Austin that offers an eclectic menu curated from fresh, local ingredients,” said general manager Dawn Catagnus in a press release. The release also dubs the space a "garden oasis," and a photo offers a sneak peek of a greenery-draped patio. (We'll update this story when we can share more of a look inside.)

Austin Manny's sandwich shop exterior Manny's is somewhat hidden behind all these plants.Photo courtesy of Lobos Hospitality

Aside from the prominent plants, the interior design is shaped by some Art Deco prints, mid-century decor, and a desire to create an escape from urbanity, according to designer Peter Bowden of Petermax.

“I wanted to create a space with a bright and fresh appearance that also doubles as a sanctuary from a citythat never sleeps,” said Bowden in the release. “The space has a mystique, a definite element of surprise and discovery. Each visit provides a different experience, and each person will experience it differently."

The food menu matches this breezy description, with sandwiches, bowls, and salads. Instead of sticking to one regional cuisine, the through-line is freshness and accessibility to a variety of diets (including vegetarian, vegan, and gluten free). From a BLT to a bánh mì, or a chicken salad to a cubano, these are casual favorites wherever they are. One specialty shared in the release is a Crying Tiger Sandwich, made with roast beef, mint, tomato, toasted rice powder, and Crying Tiger sauce on a baguette.

Drinks will be equally mutable, ranging from smoothies to specialty cocktails, both with and without alcohol. Once it's time for cocktails, though, it might be time to head toward the back and enter the entirely different world of Powder Room. This dimly lit, artsy space looks much more cloistered, and is equally escapist — but in a very different flavor. Rather than fleeing the city, guests are inviting into a different time with "vintage" cocktails and retro interior design.

Cocktail lovers who want more of a say of what's going into their drink can participate in "tableside mixology," customizing drinks and getting an up-close angle on the art.

“Bartending right at tableside where guests can watch their server build a personalized cocktail offers an elevated experience unique to Powder Room,” said head mixologist Drew Record. “We want to help make memories for guests they would be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.”

Manny’s, the sandwich shop, will accept walk-ins only, but the more formal speakeasy, Powder Room, accepts reservations through OpenTable. Validated parking for both is available across the street at Lavaca Plaza Garage (504 Lavaca St.) for $5 plus tax.

openings cocktails sandwiches vegan

Peak Plates

7 Austin restaurants make OpenTable's top 100 for 2024

Jeffrey's Restaurant/Instagram

Jeffrey's Restaurant is a great example of the type of fancy, well-established restaurant that made the list.

Restaurant reservation website OpenTable has issued its new list of the top 100 restaurants in America for 2024, and seven Austin restaurants have made the list. That's already impressive at a glance — 7 percent of the entire national list in just one city — but compared to other Texas cities, it's huge. Austin is the only Texas city to have more than one restaurant on the list.

The "2024's Top 100 Restaurants" list is a compilation of the most sought-after and top-ranked restaurants in the U.S. based on 14 million verified reviews on OpenTable from October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024. Restaurants are not ranked, but arranged in alphabetical order by state.

Austin's seven restaurants (including several repeats from OpenTable's 2023 list) are:

Aba: Known for its laid-back, yet fancy patio and being a popular spot for visiting celebrities
J Carver's: Known for a commitment to the classic steakhouse experience and legitimately fancy dining
Jeffrey's Restaurant: Known for fine dining, a connection to Austin before its boom, and a fantastic wine program
Red Ash Italia: Known for approachable, yet high-quality Italian food with rustic touches
Sammie's Italian: Known for its romantic take on the archetype of an East Coast Italian joint
Uchi: Known for bringing Austin into the national sushi conversation and defining the scene
Uchiko: Known for a cool atmosphere and getting creative with sushi and other small plates

Austinites will probably not be surprised by this list, which names some very well-established restaurants that are all upscale. These qualities tend to appeal to similar lists, regardless of who's curating them.

It is interesting, given that the list was democratically based on user ratings, that there were not more beloved food trailers or casual spots. However, other factors that led to high rankings included alerts set and reservations made ahead — things that don't really apply to even the most awesome taco truck.

Mediterranean food was a trend among the Austin picks. Red Ash Italia and Sammie's Italian are, as the names would imply, completely dedicated to Italian food, while Aba covers a wider swath of the Mediterranean. There were also two steakhouses: J Carver's and Jeffrey's Restaurant.

As list-perusers may have guessed, Uchi and Uchiko are in the same family of restaurants, with Uchi being the more formal and Uchiko being a bit more accessible for drop-in meals and cocktails. But are two more incognito duos of sibling restaurants on the list: J Carver's and Red Ash, and Jeffrey's Restaurant and Sammie's Italian.

That could be a coincidence. It could also be a reflection of the utility of money and experience in opening a good restaurant, or a lesson about the effects of good (and expensive) marketing. Whatever it is, it doesn't sound like hospitality groups had any direct sway on how OpenTable made its choices.

This list was different from the inaugural list of OpenTable Icons, which launched in 2024. The "Icons" list chose restaurants that are getting a lot of buzz, which ended up being more subjective. It also seemed to let in — as a side effect of the process, rather than a hard eligibility rule — more new and Mexican restaurants. Two restaurants are on both lists: Red Ash and Jeffrey's.

Restaurants outside of Austin that made the Top 100 list, organized alphabetically, are:

Hudson House — Dallas
Steak 48 — Houston
Signature — San Antonio

awards bests media lists