Crash Course

87 local eateries make prix fixe menus for Austin Restaurant Weeks

Whatever Siti cooks up for Austin Restaurant Weeks, it's going to be colorful.

Photo by Mackenzie Smith

Multi-course dining feels like the height of fanciness, but Austinites may be surprised at what they can get for the cost of a few cocktails. That's especially true during Austin Restaurant Weeks, a city-wide initiative that asks restaurants to prepare special prix fixe menus for as low as $25, encouraging diners to try new local restaurants. The deals will be available from August 29 to September 14.

Restaurants are given the creative freedom to make whatever menus they want; all Restaurant Weeks does is ask them to commit to a standard pricing structure. Lunch or brunch are $25, and dinner can be $50 or $75. Beverages including cocktails, beer, and wine can also be added.

In addition to drumming up business for local eateries, Restaurant Weeks will benefit the Central Texas Food Bank by donating a portion of the cost of each meal. Plus, cocktails that cost $12, will result in a $2 donation, while all glasses of wine or beer add a $1 donation.

So far, 83 Austin restaurants have signed up (including a small number of duplicates from restaurants with multiple locations). Many of them have yet to nail down a menu, but here are CultureMap's top 5 places to consider based on recent news:

Bureau de Poste: Why make an adventure out of Restaurant Weeks? The building this charming French restaurant resides in won a prestigious architecture award this year, specifically for being so welcoming and connected to neighbors. Grab an omelette (if it's on the menu), go grocery shopping, and pick up a new book all on the same lot.
Café Largesse: This new café combines Spanish, French, and Latin American flavors with an emphasis on hospitality. The restaurant's specialty is Spanish-style pizzas, and no visit is complete without a visit to the wine bar.
Electric Gravy: By the team behind popular Chinese restaurant Old Thousand, this new Indian restaurant adds its own color to the street cuisine of Mumbai. Creative cocktails are a big part of the restaurant's mission.
Gusto Italian Kitchen: Supporting the community is the main purpose of Restaurant Weeks, so folks should consider stopping by this restaurant that has just temporarily closed to renovate after a car struck the building. Gusto has been in town since 2012, and diners love the meatballs.
Siti: This new Southeast Asian restaurant by Chef Laila Bazahm replaces Poeta at the Frances Modern Inn. It also follows up the effort that really cemented Bazahm's reputation as a great Austin chef, El Raval.

Cities across the country have their own Restaurant Weeks, but they're not all at the same time, nor do they all have the same rules. People who think San Antonio restaurants are worth traveling for (they are) can stop by now through August 23 to take advantage of their Restaurant Weeks, too.

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Out to Pasture

New hotel and restaurant open at historic Austin 'pastures'

Photo by Casey Dunn

Henry's gives a chic, updated look to an old property.

Mattie's at Green Pastures, a Southern restaurant on a historic property with famous peacocks, already felt like a retreat from the more urban parts of Austin. Now the property at 811 W. Live Oak St. has reached its hospitality potential with the addition of the Inn at Green Pastures, with 63 new guest rooms, a private pool, a lounge, a bar, and even a whole new restaurant called Henry's. Room reservations will open Friday, December 12.

The Green Pastures property in the Bouldin Creek neighborhood used to cover 50 rural acres, but now it's down to seven — still a healthy size considering its always-changing surroundings. The pièce de résistance is a 120-year-old Victorian farmhouse that was built by local minister and physician Dr. Eugene W. Herndon and later purchased by lawyer Henry Faulk, who moved his family in and ran the surrounding land as a farm.

By 1946, the owner's daughter Mary Faulk Koock and her husband, Chester Koock, turned the home into a restaurant — the first racially integrated restaurant in Austin, according to Green Pastures — and more family members stewarded the property until it was sold by a local investment group of more than 100 members in 2015. The restaurant became Mattie's in 2017.

The biggest news for Austinites is the new restaurant, which will be open day-to-night for morning coffee service, snacks, full meals, and cocktails. For now, it's just open from 4-11 pm, and will open in its full capacity starting December 12.

Foodies can still get the famous mini-biscuits from Mattie's, plus hot smoked salmon on a bagel, a hotdog with relish, a burger using beef from Grassfield Farm in Hondo (about 50 miles west of San Antonio), and grilled redfish with German potato salad. These dishes will be served in the restaurant as well as to guests in their rooms. Small plates like charcuterie boards and oysters will be available at the pool.

Henry's at Green Pastures hotdog Not everything at Green Pastures is fancy.Photo by Jessica Stephens

Cocktails aren't relegated to the nighttime hours. Guests can order a breakfast martini with gin, red berry liqueur, lemon and strawberry jam; then they can come back at lunch or dinner for a Hugo Spritz or a signature cocktail. Draft cocktails like an Artemis Cup, Back Porch Tea, and Espresso Martini keep things simple and can be served without alcohol.

For travelers and staycationers, the guest rooms and nine suites in the newly constructed, three-story hotel offer a "quiet, restorative retreat," according to a press release. Both room styles show off high ceilings and windows that maximize that height, plus hardwood floors, marble sinks, anddeep bathtubs. The suites are all named after wildlife that might be found on the property, and the building is shaped like an "L" to work around existing live oaks. Even parking is out of the way, hidden underground.

Inn at Green Pastures guest rooms The guest rooms keep things simple and serene.Photo by Casey Dunn

The new structure was designed by the highly regarded local architecture firm Clayton Korte. Its many recognizable projects include other historically sensitive builds, like major renovations just announced in November at Austin's Paramount and State Theatres. On the interior, local design studio Noah Marion is responsible for leather goods around the property including catchall tray, decor, games, apparel, and more that will all be for sale to guests.

Completing the resort feel, a luxury spa is planned for a 2028 opening.

Finally, the property will also be available for events, including weddings, with access to its gardens, event hall at Mattie's, and Green Pastures ballroom. A cottage also provides a space to get ready for the events to come.

Inn at Green Pastures The new addition looks nothing like the Victorian farmhouse it accompanies.Photo by Casey Dunn

“The Inn at Green Pastures is our way of offering guests a deeper connection to this special place,” said Jeff Trigger, chairman of the investor board and president of La Corsha Hospitality Group, in a press release. “Whether you're here for a wedding, a quiet getaway or drinks at Henry’s, we want every stay to feel personal, elevated and rooted in the beauty of Austin.”

Rooms at the Inn at Green Pastures start at $395.

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