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January 2009
Restaurant deals: Saturday
From 4 to 6 p.m. daily, appetizers at Manuel’s are half-price. Photo by Kelly West.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. This is our seventh and final day of listing specials by day of the week in Forklore. Find other days by scrolling down. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering.
SATURDAY
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings.
• Aquarelle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price dishes from the bar menu.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) $1 sushi. $2 sake bombs.
• The Daily Grill: (4 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Draught House Pub & Brewery: Free bratwurst.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 10 p.m. to midnight.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Imperia: (5:30 to 7 p.m.) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi.
• Jeffrey’s: 9 to 10:30 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• Manuel’s: I’ve made meals out of Manuel’s half-price appetizers, which include grilled potato and corn masa cakes with venison chorizo and a chicken mole broiled with cheese. The special runs from 4 to 6 p.m. every day, and to sweeten the deal, house margaritas are $4.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 to 6:30 p.m. Domain: 3 to 5 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: (all day) Mediterranean sandwiches and pitas for less than $4.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price.
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Downtown, changes for Starlite
Starlite has made a name or itself with dishes like a Niman Ranch pork rib-eye (top) and a calamari and citrus salad (left). Photos by the American-Statesman.
The Austin Business Journal reported last week that Starlite, the ambitious home of chef Joshua Hines’ forward-thinking New American cooking, was closing, but that a firm date had not been set.
But that’s not the full story. The restaurant’s public-relations firm sent this information Feb. 16:
“Changing with the tempo of downtown development, the Starlite (407 Colorado) will alter its offerings and hours to accommodate more corporate and private events as well as off-site catering. That side of their business continues to grow dramatically, especially with the legislative in session. They will continue to serve up their very popular Sunday brunch, but for the rest of the week, will reserve the restaurant for special events. Week of SXSW they are completely booked with private parties every night of the week.”
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Restaurant deals: Friday
At Louie’s 106, the jumbo lump crab and avocado appetizer is among the half-price offerings during happy hour, from 4 to 7 p.m. Photo by Tammy Perez.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back tomorrow to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
FRIDAY
• Abuelo’s: (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) $6.99 Mexican lunch specials.
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings.
• Aquarelle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price dishes from the bar menu.
• Athenian Grill: (4 to 7p.m.) $5 food and drink specials and $10 bottles of Greek wine.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Austin Land & Cattle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Bar-menu discounts, including half-price, hand-cut burgers.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Cannoli Joe’s: (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) Quality Italian lunch buffet for $9.99 ($5.99 for kids 12 and younger, free if they’re 3 or younger).
• Chez Zee: (3 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $3 frozen drinks, wells and wine.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) $1 sushi. $2 sake bombs.
• Chuy’s: (4 to 7 p.m.) Free chips, queso, salsa, beef and beans in the bar area. $3.50 margaritas.
• Corazon at Castle Hill: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and $1 off drinks.
• Cuba Libre: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $5 martinis, $3 draft beer.
• The Daily Grill: (4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• Freddie’s Place: (4 to 7 p.m.) $2 frozen margaritas, wells, Jack-and-lemonade slushies and tall boys. Free brisket and wings starting at 6 p.m.
• Green Mesquite BBQ & More: From a week’s worth of reasonable daily specials, Friday’s pork rib plate for $6.99 with two sides (try fried okra and corn on the cob) stands out.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant: (4 to 6:30 p.m.) Sushi rolls are $2.99, sushi is $1.50 per piece and beer is $2 a bottle.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 3 to 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. to midnight.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Imperia: (4 to 7 p.m.) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: $5 appetizers and sushi rolls 4 to 7 p.m.
• La Familia: Lunch plates (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), $4.99.
• Louie’s 106: During happy hour (4 to 7 p.m.), appetizers from the dinner menu are half-price, landing most of them in the $4.25 to $5 range. Choices include smoked salmon crostini, crispy soft-shell crab, ahi tuna tartare, Prince Edward Island mussels, a jumbo lump crab and avocado salad and an antipasto platter. Cocktails and wines by the glass are 20 percent off.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 to 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 to 11 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: (all day) Mediterranean sandwiches and pitas for less than $4.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. Any martini in the house is $5.
• Sagra: Half-price pizza and $2 off drinks 4 to 7 p.m. “Recession Lunches” less than $10 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Serranos: (3 to 6:30 p.m.) $2.50 margaritas, $1.50 pints of Bud Light and Shiner Bock, $1 nachos, quesadillas and flaquitos.
• 219 West: (5 to 9 p.m.) Appetizers are half-off (plus 50 cents). Martinis $5, wine flights $12.
• Z Tejas: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers. $1 off margaritas.
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Restaurant deals: Thursday
Happy hour specials from the Daily Grill at the Domain. Clockwise from bottom (with happy hour prices): chicken pot pie ($2.94), mini cheeseburgers ($1.94), Mexican martini ($5), seared ahi tuna sashimi ($2.94). Photo by Mike Sutter
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back for each of the next two days to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
THURSDAY
• Abuelo’s: (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) $6.99 Mexican lunch specials.
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings.
• Aquarelle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price dishes from the bar menu.
• Athenian Grill: (4 to 7p.m.) $5 food and drink specials and $10 bottles of Greek wine.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Austin Land & Cattle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Bar-menu discounts, including half-price, hand-cut burgers.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Cannoli Joe’s: (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) Quality Italian lunch buffet for $9.99 ($5.99 for kids 12 and younger, free if they’re 3 or younger).
• Chez Zee: (3 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $3 frozen drinks, wells and wine.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) $1 sushi. $2 sake bombs.
• Chuy’s: (4 to 7 p.m.) Free chips, queso, salsa, beef and beans in the bar area. $3.50 margaritas.
• Corazon at Castle Hill: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and $1 off drinks.
• Cuba Libre: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $5 martinis, $3 draft beer.
• The Daily Grill: (4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Draught House Pub & Brewery: Because beer is food, house pints are $2.25.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• Freddie’s Place: (4 to 7 p.m.) $2 frozen margaritas, wells, Jack-and-lemonade slushies and tall boys. Free brisket and wings starting at 6 p.m.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant: (4 to 6:30 p.m.) Sushi rolls are $2.99, sushi is $1.50 per piece and beer is $2 a bottle.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 3 to 6 p.m.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Imperia: (4 to 7 p.m.) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: $5 appetizers and sushi rolls 4 to 7 p.m.
• La Familia: Lunch plates (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), $4.99.
• Louie’s 106: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and 20 percent off cocktails and wines by the glass.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 to 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 to 11 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price sushi.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: (all day) Mediterranean sandwiches and pitas for less than $4.
• Quality Seafood: Peel-and-eat shrimp are a quarter apiece, and Lone Stars are $2.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. Any martini in the house is $5.
• Sagra: Half-price pizza and $2 off drinks 4 to 7 p.m. “Recession Lunches” less than $10 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Serranos: (3 to 6:30 p.m.) $2.50 margaritas, $1.50 pints of Bud Light and Shiner Bock, $1 nachos, quesadillas and flaquitos.
• Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina: (3 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers.
• Sullivan’s Steakhouse: The bar and lounge area at Sullivan’s swings with half-price bar entrees (blue cheese meatloaf, peppercorn tenderloin tips), half-price cigars and $5 martinis.
• 219 West: (5 to 9 p.m.) Appetizers are half-off (plus 50 cents). Martinis $5, wine flights $12.
• Z Tejas: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers. $1 off margaritas.
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Mirabelle wine dinner with Bordeaux’s “Bad Boy”
The reception and four-course dinner will feature dishes like Asian lobster crisps, herbed Chilean sea bass, roasted squab, beef short ribs and tastings of six wines. Proceeds benefit the TEXSOM Sommelier Conference.
Tickets are $85, $75 for foundation members. Reservations at 327-7555 or www.winefoodfoundation.org.
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Restaurant deals: Wednesday
At Doc’s Motorworks, Wednesday means it’s dollar taco day. Mexican beers in cans are $2 each. Photo by Mike Sutter.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back for each of the next three days to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
WEDNESDAY
• Abuelo’s: (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) $6.99 Mexican lunch specials.
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings. On Wednesdays, bottles of wine are half-price with an an entree.
• Aquarelle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price dishes from the bar menu.
• Athenian Grill: (4 to 7p.m.) $5 food and drink specials and $10 bottles of Greek wine.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Austin Land & Cattle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Bar-menu discounts, including half-price, hand-cut burgers.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Cannoli Joe’s: (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) Quality Italian lunch buffet for $9.99 ($5.99 for kids 12 and younger, free if they’re 3 or younger).
• Chez Zee: (3 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $3 frozen drinks, wells and wine.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) $1 sushi. $2 sake bombs.
• Chuy’s: (4 to 7 p.m.) Free chips, queso, salsa, beef and beans in the bar area. $3.50 margaritas.
• Corazon at Castle Hill: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and $1 off drinks.
• Cuba Libre: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $5 martinis, $3 draft beer.
• The Daily Grill: (4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Doc’s Motorworks: Pay just a dollar for crispy tacos and $2 for Mexican canned beers.
• Draught House Pub & Brewery: Like you need an excuse to hit a place with this many beers on draft, including six made in-house. But a dude’s gotta eat. And on Wednesday, the pizza’s free.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• Freddie’s Place: (4 to 7 p.m.) $2 frozen margaritas, wells, Jack-and-lemonade slushies and tall boys. Free brisket and wings starting at 6 p.m.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant: (4 to 6:30 p.m.) Sushi rolls are $2.99, sushi is $1.50 per piece and beer is $2 a bottle.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 3 to 6 p.m.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Hut’s Hamburgers: Most all the burgers at this mecca of meat on a bun are two-for-one from 6 to 10 p.m. A Ritchie Valens and a Wolfman Jack, please.
• Imperia: (4 to 7 p.m.) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: $5 appetizers and sushi rolls 4 to 7 p.m.
• The Jackalope: Two-for-one burgers on Wednesdays, including the fiery four chile burger and the crimini mushroom burger.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• La Familia: Lunch plates (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), $4.99.
• Louie’s 106: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and 20 percent off cocktails and wines by the glass.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 to 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 to 11 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price sushi.
• Parkside: The high life for half. From 5 p.m. to close, champagne and oysters are half-price at this minimalist wonder-bar and bistro on Sixth Street. The deal puts a half-dozen oysters within reach for six to eight bucks, and champagne by the glass as low as $3.50.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: (all day) Mediterranean sandwiches and pitas for less than $4.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price. Kids 10 and younger eat free with the purchase of adult meal from 4 to 8 p.m.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. Any martini in the house is $5.
• Sagra: Half-price pizza and $2 off drinks 4 to 7 p.m. “Recession Lunches” less than $10 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina: (3 to 7 p.m.) Wings are 25 cents, and draft beers are $2.
• Serranos: Free child’s plate with an adult entree. From 3 to 6:30 p.m.: $2.50 margaritas, $1.50 pints of Bud Light and Shiner Bock, $1 nachos, quesadillas and flaquitos.
• Shoal Creek Saloon: (after 4 p.m.) One-pound pork chop with two sides, $9.29.
• 219 West: (5 to 9 p.m.) Appetizers are half-off (plus 50 cents). Martinis $5, wine flights $12.
• Z Tejas: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers. $1 off margaritas.
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Longtime Austin chef instructor Roger Mollett dies
In this photo from 2000, Roger Mollett, right, prepares food to be served to students at the Central Market Cooking School. Photo by Deborah Cannon.
Word reached us today that longtime Austin chef and cooking instructor Roger Mollett died Tuesday.
In his tenure with Central Market, Mollett progressed from foodie in 1994 to executive chef of the six Central Market cooking schools in Texas before he left in May 2003. Later that same year, Mollett was hired as a chef and instructor at Grapevine Market. In 2004, friends, chefs and Austin foodies organized a dinner and fundraiser for Mollett, who was suffering from a serious liver disease at the time.
Mollett was being treated at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, Minn., when he died. He was 53.
Vance Ely, a chef and cooking school administrator with Central Market, said Mollett “was the reason I got into cooking school at Central Market in the first place.” Ely said Mollett’s love of teaching extended to helping children with disabilities learn to cook. “He touched so many lives,” Ely said.
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Artz Rib House is open today
On the heels of a benefit show yesterday to help Artz Rib House owner Art Blondin — struggling with hospital bills and tax problems — reopen the restaurant, a quick call confirms that they’re open today (2330 S. Lamar Blvd, 442-8283, www.artzribhouse.com).
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Restaurant deals: Tuesday
At Cannoli Joe’s, the $9.99 lunch buffet (11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Friday) includes, from left: roasted potatoes, Italian sausage and peppers and grilled vegetables. Photo by Mark Matson.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back for each of the next four days to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
TUESDAY
• Abuelo’s: (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) $6.99 Mexican lunch specials.
• Alligator Grill: (all day) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings.
• Aquarelle: (5 to 7 p.m.) The wine bar and patio at this upmarket French restaurant offers half-price dishes from the bar menu Tuesday-Saturday. But this is no ordinary wine bar, and these are no ordinary appetizers — mussels, a cheese plate, a croque monsieur sandwich — with none topping $6 after the discount.
• Athenian Grill: (4 to 7 p.m.) $5 food and drink specials and $10 bottles of Greek wine.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Austin Land & Cattle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Bar-menu discounts, including half-price, hand-cut burgers.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Brick Oven Restaurant: Choose from 10 bottles of wine for $10.
• Burger House: This no-nonsense burger stand does the two-for-one dance on Tuesday. Double the chili double cheeseburger for a modest $4.20.
• Cannoli Joe’s: (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) It’s easy to dismiss a buffet as a human feedlot, no matter how much it costs. But I’ll vouch for Cannoli Joe’s at lunchtime, when their Italian buffet is only $9.99 ($5.99 for kids 12 and younger, free if they’re 3 or younger). From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Friday (pricing and hours change for weekends and dinner), highlights at the plaza-style serving area include sausage and peppers, tangy bone-in pieces of chicken cacciatore, creamy rigatoni Bolognese and salads with fresh tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and mozzarella. My kids love the pizzas, the hand-dipped ice creams and the namesake cannoli.
• Central Market: (5 to 9 p.m.) At the north location of this grocery market/culinary safari park, kids eat free with the purchase of an adult entree.
• Chez Zee: (3 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $3 frozen drinks, wells and wine.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) $1 sushi. $2 sake bombs.
• Chuy’s: (4 to 7 p.m.) Free chips, queso, salsa, beef and beans in the bar area. $3.50 margaritas.
• Corazón at Castle Hill: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and $1 off drinks.
• Cuba Libre: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $5 martinis, $3 draft beer.
• Cypress Grill: Sure, the Carino’s chain has “Two Can Dine for $19.99,” but for a penny more on Tuesday nights, this local Cajun spot will feed both of you with soup or salad, an entree (crawfish enchiladas, for example) and a dessert to share.
• The Daily Grill: (4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• El Arroyo: From 5 p.m. to close, cheese enchiladas are two-for-one and margaritas are $1 from 2 to 6 p.m., then $2 from 6 to 7 p.m.
• Freddie’s Place: (4 to 7 p.m.) $2 frozen margaritas, wells, Jack-and-lemonade slushies and tall boys. Free brisket and wings starting at 6 p.m.
• Green Mesquite BBQ & More: All-you-can-eat barbecue for $10.99.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant: (4 to 6:30 p.m.) Sushi rolls are $2.99, sushi is $1.50 per piece and beer is $2 a bottle.
• Hang Town Grill: (4 p.m. to close, Burnet Road location only) Kids eat free with the purchase of an adult entree.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 3 to 6 p.m.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Imperia: (4 to 7 p.m.) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi.
• The Jackalope: Half-price pizza night.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: $5 appetizers and sushi rolls 4 to 7 p.m. $5 martinis.
• La Familia: Lunch plates (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.), $4.99.
• Louie’s 106: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers and 20 percent off cocktails and wines by the glass.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 to 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 to 11 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price sushi.
• Patsy’s Cowgirl Cafe: (5 to 10 p.m.) At Patsy’s, the burgers have names: Vince Young, Molly Ivins, Don Walser, Clifford Antone. And on Tuesdays from 5 to 10 p.m., their reflected glory is worth a 50 percent discount, making them all less than $4.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: (all day) Mediterranean sandwiches and pitas for less than $4.
• Quality Seafood: (6 to 9 p.m.) Our favorite fish market and seafood dive puts Tuesdays on the map with $2 seafood tacos and $2 draft beer.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: The Austin branch of this minichain is running an everyday offer to buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price. Good. Even better, kids 10 and younger eat free with the purchase of adult meal Tuesday and Wednesday from 4 to 8 p.m.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) Appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. Any martini in the house is $5.
• Sagra: Lean times can be fat and happy times, too. Find out how many mussels you can eat for $12 on Tuesdays at this rustic Italian bistro. Also: half-price pizza and $2 off drinks 4 to 7 p.m. “Recession Lunches” less than $10 from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina: (3 to 7 p.m.) $2 tacos and $2 Tecates.
• Serranos: (3 to 6:30 p.m.) $2.50 margaritas, $1.50 pints of Bud Light and Shiner Bock, $1 nachos, quesadillas and flaquitos.
• Shoal Creek Saloon: (all day) One-pound pork chop with mashed potatoes and green beans, $9.29.
• 219 West: (5 to 9 p.m.) Appetizers are half-off (plus 50 cents). Martinis $5, wine flights $12.
• Z Tejas: (4 to 7 p.m.) Half-price appetizers. $1 off margaritas.
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A call to arms for Artz Rib House
Art Blondin has had to close Artz Rib House “temporarily, hopefully,” as he deals with tax problems and the hospitalization of his wife. 2003 photo by Kelly West.
The American-Statesman’s John Kelso reports today that Artz Rib House — the South Austin home of good barbecue and live music — is going through some hard times. In response, a group of friends and musicians is putting on a fundraiser tonight (Monday) at Artz, 2330 S. Lamar Blvd. Here’s Kelso’s post from statesman.com:
Some days the humor columnist isn’t funny or even trying to be. And today is one of those days.
Art Blondin, who plays bass and owns Artz Rib House at 2330 S. Lamar Blvd., needs help.
A well-known figure among Austin musicians, Art had to close his business Sunday — “temporarily, hopefully,” he said — because of financial problems. He owes back taxes to the IRS. and his wife of 24 years, Zenobia Sutton , is in Brackenridge Hospital in serious condition.
It’s like this guy told me one time: Bad things happen to good people. The hospital expenses are “the thing that put us over the edge,” Art said. Art’s musician friends are having a fundraiser for him tonight (Monday night) after 6 at Artz Ribs, with plans for a larger fundraiser down the road soon.
The Monday night fundraiser, said Austin musician Danny Britt , a friend of Art’s, was to get together all the Artz regulars who come out on Monday nights and see how much money they can put together for starters.
“Then we’re going to plan a large concert venue, hopefully in the next two or three weeks,” Britt said. He added they don’t have a location yet for the larger concert, but they’re hoping to land Scholz Garten on San Jacinto Boulevard.
If anybody deserves the backing of his fellow musicians it’s Art Blondin. On any given night you could see a small folk, blue grass, western swing or country band playing at Artz. At Artz, the hat was for passing as much as it was for wearing.
“Art has fed countless musicians and countless people at benefits, so it’s basically time for us to help him now,” Britt said. “Anybody who has ever eaten barbecue at a benefit show, it probably came from Artz. Art has employed musicians, he’s supplied food at benefits for musicians. He’s just had a huge role in the musician community for years.”
The Z in Artz Ribs, Art points out, comes from his wife’s name, Zenobia.
Art is hoping the benefits will help him reopen the restaurant. How much money do they need to get back on their feet? “I don’t even know what the figure is, but a lot,” Art said. He says the place has suffered from the down economy “and some basic bad business decisions.”
Art may be the only barbecuer in the state of Texas who comes from Vermont . Does anybody in Vermont barbecue? “No,” Art said. “Barbecuing in Vermont is cooking burgers out on the grill.” Art, who moved to Austin in 1980 , learned to barbecue when he was operating Artz Caboose , a little restaurant on West Fifth Street that did business out of an actual caboose. He’s had Artz Rib House for the past 17 years, and he ran the caboose operation for six years. Artz Caboose was known for its tortilla soup, among other things.
So how does a Vermonter learn how to barbecue?
“Huuum, when I leased the caboose they had a nice stone barbecue pit in there, and I just started messing around with it,” Art recalled. “Ended up entering a barbecue contest (called the Rib Ticklin’ Affair) and won all four first prizes.”
So it would be a good thing to get this guy’s place up and smoking again.
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Restaurant deals: Monday
At all seven Austin-area Bill Miller Bar-B-Q locations, $2.99 will get you this plate right here, including the tea. Photo by Mike Sutter.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back for each of the next five days to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
MONDAY
• Abuelo’s: (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) The best restaurant at Barton Creek mall does Mexican food in a big way, and when it starts tossing around a $6.99 price tag for plates that usually clock in closer to $10, it’s worth a look. For a limited time, Abuelo’s is offering lunches like a nine-layer Mexican stack, an El Paso burrito and a chimichanga for $6.99.
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) 20-cent shrimp, 50-cent oysters and wings.
• Athenian Grill: Off and running at its new Congress Avenue spot, this Greek favorite wasted no time offering $5 food and drink specials and $10 bottles of Greek wine Monday-Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. The $5 menu includes a kabob plate, spinach pie, Greek meatballs and a killer chicken salad. $5 drinks include a Mediterranean margarita and something called “Ouzo Greek Lightning.”
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) Late-night half-price appetizers.
• Austin Land & Cattle: (5 to 7 p.m.) Austin’s family-owned carnivore’s carnival puts samples of some of its best work on sale during happy hour. From the bar menu, a steak sampler of filet, rib-eye and sirloin is $9, Buffalo-style lambchops slim down to $12, and hand-cut burgers (including the Redeye, with crispy fried greens and a sunny-side egg) are half-price, which puts one in your hands for $5 or less. Also, Tito’s martinis are $5.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: (all day) $2.99 plates with a side, roll and tea.
• Brick Oven Restaurant: Buy a large pizza and get a medium pizza of equal or lesser value free.
• Cannoli Joe’s: (11 a.m. to 2 p.m.) Quality Italian lunch buffet for $9.99 ($5.99 for kids 12 and younger, free if they’re 3 or younger).
• Chez Zee: (3 to 6 p.m.) $4.50 will buy crab quesadillas, a basil cheese torta or chicken beignets during happy hour, when they and a host of other appetizers are half-price. Pair them with $3 frozen drinks and house wines.
• Chuy’s: (4 to 7 p.m.) Say it with me: “Nacho car.” Ride along with free chips, queso, salsa, beef and beans in the bar area. Sweet house margaritas are $3.50.
• Corazon at Castle Hill: Appetizers are half-price (which means the savory lamb empanadas are an astonishing $2.50) and drinks are $1 off from 4 to 7 p.m. The empanadas, plus a frozen mango swirl ’rita for $3.50? Twenty minutes of delight for $6.
• Cuba Libre: (4 p.m. to close) This half-price appetizer deal gets its mojo from the bar’s Cubanesque flair. The choices include plantain chips and lump crab tostados, and specialty martinis are $5.
• Cypress Grill: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price wine by the glass or bottle.
• The Daily Grill: (4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close.) Happy-hour specials from $1.94 to $2.94. $2 all-day kids’ menu.
• Doc’s Motorworks: Patios with bright retro patio chairs and solid beer-food get even better on Mondays, with two-for-one burgers and $2.50 pints of Bud.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 p.m. to close) Half-price appetizers, $1 off drinks.
• El Arroyo: Burgers are two-for-one from 5 p.m. to close, and Tecates are $1 all day long.
• Freddie’s Place: South Austin gets its weirdness on with $2 frozen margaritas, well drinks, Jack-and-lemonade slushies and tall boys all day (the rest of the week, it’s only 4 to 7 p.m., so lucky you). Happy-hour customers get free brisket and wings starting at 6 p.m. “until it runs out.”
• Green Mesquite BBQ & More: The dark-horse, mack-daddy deal of them all? All-you-can-eat barbecue for $10.99.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant: (4 to 6:30 p.m.) Sushi rolls are $2.99, sushi is $1.50 per piece and beer is $2 a bottle.
• Hang Town Grill: (4 p.m. to close, both locations) Kids eat free at this family-oriented burger, fish tacos and pizza restaurant with the purchase of an adult entree.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: $5 sushi rolls, $5 sliders, $2.50 wine 3 to 6 p.m.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Bar drinks and appetizers at half-price.
• Hut’s Hamburgers: Veggie burgers are two-for-one from 6 to 10 p.m.
• Imperia: (4 p.m. to close) $5 dim sum, small plates and specialty martinis. Two-for-one sushi until 7 p.m.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price small-plates menu in the bar.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: $5 appetizers and sushi rolls 4 to 7 p.m.
• La Familia: Lunch plates (11 a.m. to 3 p.m.) at this tucked-away gem are $4.99 and include rice and beans and iced tea. Choices include flautas and enchilada and taco combos.
• Louie’s 106: During happy hour (4 to 7 p.m.), appetizers from the dinner menu are half-price, landing most of them in the $4.25 to $5 range. Choices include smoked salmon crostini, crispy soft-shell crab, ahi tuna tartare, Prince Edward Island mussels, a jumbo lump crab and avocado salad and an antipasto platter. Cocktails and wines by the glass are 20 percent off.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 4 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 to 11 p.m.) Happy-hour food deals from $1.95 to $4.95.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price sushi.
• Olivia: 30 percent off the bar menu and bottles of sparkling wine. Beer is $1 off.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli: This Mediterranean market, besides being stacked high with Middlle Eastern, Greek and Persian specialties, sells a joyous array of sandwiches and pitas for less than $4: falafel, gyros, kaftas, corned beef, even prosciutto.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) Half-price pizza.
• Red Robin: (all day) Free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with purchase of an adult entree.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to close) Deeply discounted Southwestern specialties.
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House: (4:30 to 7 p.m.) It’s only one of the best and most enduring steak places in town. Which makes a deal at Ruth’s Chris worth paying attention to. From 4:30 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday, appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. A sampling, all around $6 at happy hour: stuffed mushrooms with crab, seared ahi tuna, beef tenderloin kabobs. Also, and I had to ask twice to make sure, any martini in the house is $5.
• Sagra: Pizza is half-price and drinks are $2 off from 4 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday. And for lunch, Sagra has rolled out a line of “Recession Lunches” for less than $10 Monday-Friday 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina: After 3 p.m., fajitas for two are $11.95.
• Serranos: Buy one enchilada dinner, get one free. From 3 to 6:30 p.m., margaritas are $2.50, pints of Bud Light and Shiner Bock are $1.50, and nachos, quesadillas and flaquitos are $1.
• Shoal Creek Saloon: (all day) Chicken-fried steak with two sides, $6.99.
• 219 West: (5 to 9 p.m.) Appetizers are half-off (plus 50 cents). Martinis $5, wine flights $12.
• Z Tejas: Enough with the happy hours, already, right? Just one more, but I promise it’s worth it. From 4 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday, Z Tejas makes half-price appetizers that tweak their Southwestern pedigrees: green chile pulled pork nachos, catfish beignets, shrimp-and-guacamole tostadas. None of the appetizers climbs much above $5 at half-price, and margaritas are $1 off.
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Restaurant deals: Sunday
At Olivia, lamb sliders at the bar are 30 percent off on Sundays and Mondays. Photo by Ricardo B. Brazziell.
A sampling of above-average food at some of Austin’s signature places for below-average prices. Check back for each of the next six days to find more deals arranged by day of the week. Be aware that specials change with alarming regularity. Call ahead (restaurant directory here) or check with your server before ordering
SUNDAY
• Alligator Grill: (3 to 7 p.m.) This is pure happy-hour business, because the Alligator insists you buy an alcoholic drink or a full-price dish to partake, but it’s worth mentioning. From 3 to 7 p.m. daily (and all day on Tuesday), pay just 20 cents for shrimp and 50 cents for oysters and wings.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar: (11 p.m. to 2 a.m.) The menu is a daily scattershot of lunch and dinner specials, including $5.99 chicken-fried steak and $6.99 fish and chips. But the reason it makes this list is for the daily 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. late-night half-price appetizers (Southwest egg rolls or fried crawfish tails for $4? OK.).
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q: In what might be the granddaddy of deals in this entire list, Bill Miller Bar-B-Q steps up with $2.99 deals all day, every day, everywhere. That buys a meat, a side, a roll and a glass of tea. The choices: a sliced beef sandwich, two pieces of fried chicken, half a sausage link (two sides) or chicken strips.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar: (5 to 7 p.m.) About a dozen kinds of sushi for $1 during happy hour, from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Plus $2 sake bombs.
• The Daily Grill: (4 p.m. to close) The people at the Daily Grill have clearly lost their minds, a dollar at a time. For $1.94, the happy-hour menu includes fried calamari, a hummus plate and Parmesan-crusted chicken sandwiches. At $2.94, take your pick of spinach artichoke dip, ahi sashimi or chicken pot pie. And this is no blink-and-you-miss-it special: 4 to 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close Monday-Friday and 4 p.m. to close Saturday-Sunday. Further evidence of insanity: a $2 all-day kids’ menu that includes entree, drink and dessert.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill: (4:30 p.m. to close) Another place that works like a street dealer in a ’70s drug movie, offering a taste for half-price (there’s even some jazzy background music). They know you’ll be back for more. Half-price ahi tartare, a Maryland crab cake, Maine lobster-and-shrimp bisque and more during happy hour. Plus $1 off drinks.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine: (all day) $5 sushi rolls (crunchy spicy crab, spicy tuna, eel avocado, seven spice), $5 calamari and kobe sliders and $2.50 house wine by the glass.
• Hoover’s Cooking: (4 to 7 p.m.) Comfort food meets happy hour. There should be a special category for that: comfy hour? Seven days a week from 4 to 7 p.m., Hoover’s offers bar drinks and appetizers at half-price. No small thing, considering that price means smoked wings for about $3.50, chipotle chicken quesadillas for about $4.25 and spinach-artichoke dip for about $3.75.
• Imperia: (5:30 p.m. to close) It’s nice to find low-cost entry points in a high-end place. How’s this? Imperia’s $12.95 sea bass skewers are $5 during happy hour. So are specialty martinis, including the Imperia Pearl (Grey Goose and Nigori sake), and small plates like buttery edamame potstickers or a Black Angus rib-eye roll.
• Jeffrey’s: (5 to 7 p.m.) When one of the best restaurants in town says, “Have some foie gras pate for $8.50,” the correct answer is, “OK, when?” or “Really?” From 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday-Friday and 9 to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Jeffrey’s offers a half-price happy-hour menu in the bar. Other choices include risotto and duck sausage croquettes ($6), wagyu hanger steak and fries ($14) and a mini bison burger with blue cheese ($3.50).
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar: (all day) Appetizers (like Asian short ribs, sesame scallops and dumplings with lobster and shrimp) are $5, and four types of sushi rolls (California, Philadelphia, spicy tuna, shrimp tempura) are $5.
• Louie’s 106: Bottles of wine are 50 percent off.
• Manuel’s: (4 to 6 p.m.) Half-price appetizers, $4 house margaritas.
• McCormick & Schmick’s: (Congress Avenue: 5 p.m. to close. Domain: 3 to 5 p.m.) Insane happy-hour menus, with equally head-spinning schedules. The $1.95 menu includes tomato bruschetta and chicken satay. For $2.95, a half-pound cheeseburger with fries joins the fray. At $3.95, add red curry mussels. And for $4.95, choose from a lamb gyro, cheeseburger sliders and Baja fish tacos.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi: (5 p.m. to close) Half-price sushi.
• Olivia: The small bar at the entrance serves its own limited menu, including lamb sliders ($9), a bowl of fries ($5) and a cheese and charcuterie platter ($14). The bar menu and bottles of sparkling wine are discounted 30 percent, and beer is $1 off.
• Red House Pizzeria: (5 to 7 p.m.) The best parts of the late Stortini Italian bistro live on at Red House, where pizza is half-price every day from 5 to 7 p.m., making a large sausage with roasted red peppers a mere $8.75.
• Red Robin: “All day every day” is a sentiment I can get behind. At Red Robin, they combine that sentiment with a family restaurant aesthetic, and what you get is a free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with the purchase of an adult entree. The options include spaghetti, a burger and chicken tenders, plus a side (fries, apple slices, carrots with ranch) and a bottomless drink.
• Roaring Fork: (4:30 to close) This Southwestern standout shows off with happy-hour specials that range from green chile pork stew for $6 (regularly $10) to a giant burger for $8 (regularly $13) and a fondue pot with lamb chops for $8 (usually $14).
• Rome’s Pizza: Buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price.
• Shoal Creek Saloon: (after 4 p.m.) Chicken-fried steak with two sides, $6.99.
• 219 West: During happy hour (6 to 9 p.m. Sundays), appetizers from each of the six themed menus are half-off (plus 50 cents), which puts many of them in the $4 to $6 range. Highlights include chipotle mac and cheese, seafood beignets, calamari steak fingers, beef carpaccio and six kinds of mini burgers. Martinis start at $5, and select wine flights are $12 for five 2-ounce tastes.
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Restaurant deals, Part 3
Every day from 5 to 7 p.m., pizza is half-price at Red House Pizzeria. Photo by Matt Lankes.
I’ve got a few more Super Savors to add to my lists from Tuesday (click here) and Wednesday (click here).
This Sunday, I’ll start posting the restaurant deals I’ve uncovered by day of the week, posting a new batch daily straight on through Saturday, Jan. 31. Eat better, pay less. There are worse ways to live.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar
2013 Wells Branch Parkway. 989-5559, www.chonsom.com.
The deal: About a dozen kinds of sushi for $1 during happy hour, from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. Plus $2 sake bombs.
• Red House Pizzeria
1917 Manor Road. 391-9500, www.redhouselounge.com.
The deal: The best parts of the late Stortini Italian bistro live on at Red House, where pizza is half-price every day from 5 to 7 p.m., making a large sausage with roasted red peppers a mere $8.75.
• Red Robin
— 4809 U.S. 290 W. 891-7331.
— 13000 N. Interstate 35 (southbound frontage), Building 5. 997-9500.
— 13315 U.S. 183 N., Building E. 249-8902.
— www.redrobin.com.
The deal: “All day every day” is a sentiment I can get behind. At Red Robin, they combine that sentiment with a family restaurant aesthetic, and what you get is a free kids’ meal (12 and younger) with the purchase of an adult entree. The options include spaghetti, a burger and chicken tenders, plus a side (fries, apple slices, carrots with ranch) and a bottomless drink.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House
107 W. Sixth St. 477-7884, www.ruthschris.com.
The deal: It’s only one of the best and most enduring steak places in town. Which makes a deal at Ruth’s Chris worth paying attention to. From 4:30 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday, appetizers from the bar menu are half-price. A sampling, all around $6 at happy hour: stuffed mushrooms with crab, seared ahi tuna, beef tenderloin kabobs. Also, and I had to ask twice to make sure, any martini in the house is $5.
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Restaurant deals: The directory
This is a directory of the restaurants featured among the Super Savor deals I’ve uncovered in the last few weeks.
• Abuelo’s. 2901 S. Capitol of Texas Highway (Loop 36), No. 7 (at Barton Creek Square mall). 306-0857, www.abuelos.com.
• Alligator Grill. 3003 S. Lamar Blvd. 444-6117, www.alligatorgrill.com.
• Aquarelle. 606 Rio Grande St. 479-8117, www.aquarellerestaurant.com.
• Athenian Grill. 600 Congress Ave., Suite 150. 474-7775, www.athenianbargrill.com.
• Aussie’s Grill & Beachbar. 306 Barton Springs Road. 480-0952, www.aussiesbar.com.
• Austin Land & Cattle. 1205 N. Lamar Blvd. 472-1813, www.austinlandandcattlecompany.com.
• Bill Miller Bar-B-Q.
— 709 E. Ben White Blvd. 443-3533.
— 8103 Burnet Road. 458-3244.
— 136 Slaughter Lane. 280-8364.
— 14718 N. Interstate 35. 251-1977.
— 8700 U.S. 290 E. 926-3502.
— 1930 William Cannon Drive. 444-1032.
— 908 N. Loop 4, Buda. 512-295-1665.
— www.billmillerbbq.com.
• Brick Oven Restaurant.
— 9911 Brodie Lane, Suite 600. 292-3939.
— 1209 Red River St. 477-7006.
— 10710 Research Blvd. 345-6181.
— www.brickovenrestaurant.com.
• Burger House. 4211 Spicewood Springs Road. 346-7200, www.burgerhouse.com.
• Cannoli Joe’s. 4715 U.S. 290 W. 892-4444, www.cannolijoes.com.
• Central Market. 4001 N. Lamar Blvd. 206-1000, www.centralmarket.com.
• Chez Zee. 5406 Balcones Drive. 454-2666, www.chez-zee.com.
• Chon Som Asian Cuisine and Sushi Bar. 2013 Wells Branch Parkway. 989-5559, www.chonsom.com.
• Chuy’s.
— 1728 Barton Springs Road. 474-4452.
— 10520 N. Lamar Blvd. 836-3218.
— 11680 N. Research Blvd. 342-0011.
— 2320 N. Interstate 35, Round Rock. 255-2211.
— 4301 W. William Cannon Drive. 899-2489.
— www.chuys.com.
• Corazón at Castle Hill. 1101 W. Fifth St. 476-0728, www.corazonatcastlehill.com.
• Cuba Libre. 409 Colorado St. 472-2822, www.cubalibreaustin.com.
• Cypress Grill. 404 W. William Cannon Drive, Suite L. 358-7474.
• The Daily Grill. 11506 Century Oaks Terrace, Suite 100 (the Domain). 836-4200, www.dailygrill.com.
• Doc’s Motorworks.
— 1123 S. Congress Ave. 448-9181.
— 5207 Brodie Lane, Suite 100. 892-5200.
— www.docsaustin.com.
• Draught House Pub & Brewery. 4114 Medical Parkway. 452-6258, www.draughthouse.com.
• Eddie V’s Edgewater Grill.
— 301 E. Fifth St. 472-1860.
— 9400-B Arboretum Blvd. 342-2642.
— www.eddiev.com.
• El Arroyo.
— 1624 W. Fifth St. 474-1222.
— 7032 Wood Hollow Dive, 345-8226.
— www.ditch.com.
• Freddie’s Place. 1703 S. First St. 445-9197, www.freddiesplaceaustin.com.
• Green Mesquite BBQ & More.
— 1400 Barton Springs Road. 479-0485.
— 7010 Texas 71 W. 288-8300.
— www.greenmesquite.net.
• Haiku Japanese Restaurant. 9600 S. Interstate 35, Suite C (Southpark Meadows). 291-5600.
• Hang Town Grill.
— 701 S. Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360). 347-1039.
— 5800 Burnet Road. 420-9430.
— www.hangtowngrill.com.
• Hayashi Modern Japanese Cuisine. 1335 E. Whitestone Blvd., Cedar Park. 986.7176, www.hayashigrill.com.
• Hoover’s Cooking.
— 2002 Manor Road. 479-5006.
— 13376 Research Blvd., No. 400. 335-0300.
— www.hooverscooking.com.
• Hut’s Hamburgers. 807 W. Sixth St. 472-0693, www.hutsfrankandangies.com.
• Imperia. 310 Colorado St. 472-6770, www.imperia-austin.com.
• The Jackalope. 404 E. Sixth St., 469-5801, www.jackalopeaustin.com.
• Jeffrey’s. 1204 West Lynn St. 477-5584, www. jeffreysofaustin.com.
• Kenobi Restaurant & Sushi Bar. 10000 Research Blvd, Suite 138-A. 241-0119, www.kenobiaustin.com.
• La Familia. 3601 W. William Cannon Drive., Suite 900. 892-1311, www.lafamiliaaustin.com.
• Louie’s 106. 106 E. Sixth St. 476-1997. www.louies106.net.
• Manuel’s.
— 310 Congress Ave. 472-7555.
— 10201 Jollyville Road. 345-1042.
— www.manuels.com.
• McCormick & Schmick’s.
— 401 Congress Ave.. 236-9600.
— 11600 Century Oaks Terrace, Suite 100 (the Domain). 836-0500.
— www.mccormickandschmicks.com.
• Momiji Hibachi & Sushi. 13201 RM 620 N., No. U208. 219-7070, www.eatmomiji.com.
• Olivia. 2043 S. Lamar Blvd. 804-2700, www.olivia-austin.com.
• Parkside. 301 E. Sixth St 474-9898, www.parkside-austin.com.
• Patsy’s Cowgirl Cafe. 5001 E. Ben White Blvd. 444-2020, www.patsyscowgirlcafe.com.
• Phoenicia Bakery and Deli.
— 2912 S. Lamar Blvd. 447-4444.
— 4701A Burnet Road. 323-6770.
— www.phoeniciabakery.com.
• Quality Seafood. 5621 Airport Blvd. 454-5827, www.qualityseafoodmarket.com.
• Red House Pizzeria. 1917 Manor Road. 391-9500, www.redhouselounge.com.
• Red Robin.
— 4809 U.S. 290 W. 891-7331.
— 13000 N. Interstate 35 (southbound frontage), Building 5. 997-9500.
— 13315 U.S. 183 N., Building E. 249-8902.
— www.redrobin.com.
• Roaring Fork. 701 Congress Ave. 583-0000, www.eddiev.com.
• Rome’s Pizza. 9225 W. Parmer Lane. 996-8890, www.romespizza.com.
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House. 107 W. Sixth St. 477-7884, www.ruthschris.com.
• Sagra. 1610 San Antonio St. 535-5988, www.sagrarestaurant.net.
• Santa Rita Tex-Mex Cantina. 1206 W. 38th St. 419-7482, www.santaritacantina.com.
• Serranos.
— 1111 Red River St. 322-9080.
— 5030 U.S. 290 W. 891-7592.
— 2701 Parker Road (La Frontera), Round Rock. 218-4888.
— 11100 Pecan Park Blvd., Cedar Park. 258-3441.
— 10000 Research Blvd. 250-9555.
— 9500 S. Interstate 35 (Southpark Meadows). 280-7770.
— www.serranos.com.
• Shoal Creek Saloon. 909 N. Lamar Blvd. 474-0805, www.shoalcreeksaloon.com.
• Sullivan’s Steakhouse. 300 Colorado St. 495-6504, www.sullivansteakhouse.com.
• 219 West. 219 W. Fourth St. 474-2194. www.219west.com.
• Z Tejas.
— 1110 W. Sixth St. 478-5355.
— 9400-A Arboretum Blvd. 346-3506.
— 10525 W. Parmer Lane. 388-7772.
— www.ztejas.com.
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For the Austin Black Expo, a soul-food showdown
“Kitchen Diva” Angela Shelf Medearis will help judge a soul-food cookoff at the Austin Black Expo Jan. 31. Photo by Philip Curry.
Soul food will be the star at Saturday’s Austin Black Expo, when Angela Shelf Medearis, who hosts “The Kitchen Diva” cooking show and writes a monthly column for the American-Statesman, will join TV chef G. Garvin and American-Statesman food writer Addie Broyles to judge the Soulful Taste of Austin Cook Off.
≤br>The free expo, staged by the Capital City African American Chamber of Commerce, will run from noon to 6 p.m. at the Monarch Event Center, 6406 N. Interstate 35, Suite 3100. The soul-food event is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. For a full expo schedule, including a paid-admission step show and concert, see www.austinblackexpo.com.
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A wheel of cheese, a mug of beer and thou
This Saturday, North by Northwest Restaurant and Brewery (10010 N. Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360), 467-6969, www.nxnwbrew.com) is holding a beer-and-cheese pairing class, featuring house-made beers from brewers Don Thompson and Ty Phelps. The class, the first in a three-part beer-education series, costs $35. Call 467-6969 for reservations.
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At Cissi’s Wine Bar, a high-profile arrival and departure
Sean Fulford, formerly of Zin Bistro in Austin, is taking over as exceutive chef of Cissi’s Wine Bar. Photo by Ricardo B. Brazziell.
Cissi’s Wine Bar (1400 S. Congress Ave, 225-0521, www.cissismarket.com) apparently has a nose for good talent. On the heels of the departure of executive chef Deegan McClung to front the renowned Jeffrey’s, Cissi’s is bringing in Sean Fulford to take McClung’s place. Fulford’s name will ring a bell for regulars of the now-closed Zin Bistro on 38th Street. His efforts at Zin earned him a s pot on the American-Statesman’s roster of Hot New Chefs in 2005. According to Cissi’s, Fulford recently worked for the Pacific Islands Club hotel and resort.
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Changes coming for Jeffrey’s
Alma Alcocer-Thomas will serve as executive chef at Jeffrey’s through Feb. 14. Photo by Amber Novak.
For Austin diners with a love for the cooking of Alma Alcocer-Thomas at Jeffrey’s in West Austin, Valentine’s Day will be the last opportunity to show their affection. Alcocer-Thomas, who has cooked at Jeffrey’s for 16 years, the last three as executive chef, will leave the landmark West Austin restaurant after Feb. 14.
Alcocer-Thomas, who has developed a following with seafood bisques and inventive soups, said she’ll help develop a menu for a friend’s restaurant in Mexico, but that she wants to continue working in Austin. “I want to keep on cooking,” she said. “ I love to cook. I want to explore every possibility, beyond just the four walls of Jeffrey’s.”
Jeffrey’s co-owner Ron Weiss said Alcocer-Thomas is leaving “on the best of terms. Alma’s put her heart and soul and life into this.” McClung will debut as Jeffrey’s executive chef Feb. 16, featuring what Weiss describes as “an entirely different menu. You’ll see some pretty amazing things.”
McClung, 32, said he’ll draw on French, New Orleans and Asian influences to create “perefctly executed upscale classic dishes.”
Alcocer-Thomas replaced David Garrido as executive chef at Jeffrey’s in 2006, when Garrido left to work for the Chuy’s group of restaurants. Garrido is planning to open a restaurant this spring at 360, the condominium tower at Third and Nueces. Details here.
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Your A-List: Best vegetarian restaurant
Eastside Cafe works magic with vegetables in soups, salads and main courses. Photo by Kelly West.
Today’s “Your A-List” poll asked readers to vote on their favorite spots for vegetarian food. And though there were no real surprises, the 350-plus votes amounted to a reaffirmation of what makes Austin’s vegetarian scene click: fresh, local, good. Simple, no? Well, that’s the whole idea, isn’t it?
Eastside Cafe (2113 Manor Road, 476-5858, www.eastsidecafeaustin.com) took almost a quarter of the votes to win. And though it’s not exclusively vegetarian, Eastside shines with roasted vegetable enchiladas, wild mushroom crepes and artichoke manicotti to please the carnivorally challenged, plus a gluten-free menu.
Mother’s Cafe (4215 Duval St., 451-3994, www.motherscafeaustin.com) took second, and its popularity was made clearer to me last Friday night, when I was stopped in the American-Statesman parking lot by a family in a pickup wanting to see the bats (they’ve migrated for the winter) and eat at Mother’s. Their guest from Houston was a vegan, and that’s the place she wanted to go in Austin. I ran back into the building to print a map, knowing they wouldn’t be disappointed.
Here’s a list of the Top 10 vegetarian spots chosen by Your A-List voters:
Eastside Cafe: 22.28%
Mother’s: 14.76%
Mr. Natural: 11.14%
Casa de Luz: 10.58%
Clay Pit: 10.58%
Veggie Heaven: 8.64%
Bouldin Creek Coffee House: 6.41%
Thai Passion: 5.01%
Wheatsville: 3.06%
Sarovar: 2.79%
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Super savors: Restaurant deals, part 2
The Clifford Antone Blues Burger is among the half-price hamburger deals on Tuesday nights at Patsy’s Cowgirl Cafe. Photo by Jay Janner.
In Wednesday’s Food & Life section and at austin360.com, I put together a list of 40-plus good restaurant deals around town. Since that list came together, readers have made me aware of many more. I’ll add to this list in the coming days, but for now, here’s another helping of cheaper ways to dine out:
• Abuelo’s
2901 S. Capitol of Texas Highway (Loop 36), No. 7 (at Barton Creek Square mall). 306-0857, www.abuelos.com.
The deal: The best restaurant at Barton Creek mall does Mexican food in a big way, and when it starts tossing around a $6.99 price tag for plates that usually clock in closer to $10, it’s worth a look. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday-Friday for a limited time, Abuelo’s is offering lunches like a nine-layer Mexican stack, an El Paso burrito and a chimichanga for $6.99.
• Austin Land & Cattle
1205 N. Lamar Blvd. 472-1813, www.austinlandandcattlecompany.com.
The deal: Austin’s family-owned carnivore’s carnival puts samples of some of its best work on sale during happy hour, which runs 5 to 7 p.m. Monday-Friday. From the bar menu, a steak sampler of filet, rib-eye and sirloin is $9, Buffalo-style lambchops slim down to $12, and hand-cut burgers (including the Redeye, with crispy fried greens and a sunny-side egg) are half-price, which puts one in your hands for $5 or less. Also, Tito’s martinis are $5.
• Hang Town Grill
— 701 S. Capital of Texas Highway (Loop 360). 347-1039.
— 5800 Burnet Road. 420-9430.
— www.hangtowngrill.com.
The deal: On Monday (and Tuesday at the Burnet Road location) from 4 p.m. to close, kids eat free at this family-oriented burger, fish tacos and pizza restaurant with the purchase of an adult entree.
— 2002 Manor Road. 479-5006.
— 13376 Research Blvd., No. 400. 335-0300.
— www.hooverscooking.com.
The deal: Comfort food meets happy hour. There should be a special category for that: comfy hour? Seven days a week from 4 to 7 p.m., Hoover’s offers bar drinks and appetizers at half-price. No small thing, considering that price means smoked wings for about $3.50, chipotle chicken quesadillas for about $4.25 and spinach-artichoke dip for about $3.75.
• Jeffrey’s
1204 West Lynn St. 477-5584, www.jeffreysofaustin.com.
The deal: When one of the best restaurants in town says, “Have some foie gras pate for $8.50,” the correct answer is, “OK, when?” or “Really?” From 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday-Friday and 9 to 10:30 p.m. Saturday, Jeffrey’s offers a half-price happy-hour menu in the bar. Other choices include risotto and duck sausage croquettes ($6), wagyu hangar steak and fries ($14) and a mini bison burger with blue cheese ($3.50).
• Patsy’s Cowgirl Cafe
5001 E. Ben White Blvd. 444-2020, www.patsyscowgirlcafe.com.
The deal: At Patsy’s, the burgers have names: Vince Young, Molly Ivins, Don Walser, Clifford Antone. And on Tuesdays from 5 to 10 p.m., their reflected glory is worth a 50 percent discount, making them all less than $4.
• Rome’s Pizza
9225 W. Parmer Lane. 996-8890, www.romespizza.com.
The deal: The Austin branch of this minichain is running an everyday offer to buy a large pizza and get a second large at half-price. Good. Even better, kids 10 and younger eat free with the purchase of adult meal Tuesday and Wednesday from 4 to 8 p.m.
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Restaurant news: Fleming’s, Finn & Porter, Shoreline Grill, Kenobi, Cissi’s and European Bistro
The new Fleming’s at the Domain is set to open Jan. 26. Photo by Mike Sutter.
• The steakhouse scene is set to grow by one on Jan. 26, when Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, the national chain that has another Austin location on Second Street, opens in the Domain shopping center (11600 Century Oaks Terrace, Suite 140. 835-9463, www.flemingssteakhouse.com).
• Finn & Porter, the steakhouse, seafood and sushi restaurant at the downtown Hilton Austin hotel (500 E. Fourth St. 493-4900, www.finnandporter.com) is reopening Wednesday (Jan. 21) after a $600,000 renovation. The restaurant, with an expanded sushi bar and new seating and decor, will be open 5 to 11 p.m. daily.
• The Shoreline Grill (98 San Jacinto Blvd. 477-3300, www.shorelinegrill.com) has added a prix fixe wine dinner every Wednesday, featuring a choice of appetizers, main courses and desserts chosen by chef Scotty Szekretar, each paired with wine. Cost is $45 with wine, $35 without.
• On Wednesday (Jan. 21), Kenobi Restaurant and Sushi Bar (10000 Research Blvd. 241-0119, www.kenobiaustin.com) will celebrate the Chinese New Year, (the year of the ox begins Jan. 26), its first anniversary and a new menu by chef Egil Valentin with a four-course prix fixe menu for $40 per person, $52 with a premium sake flight.
• Cissi’s Wine Bar (1400 S. Congress Ave. 225-0521, www.cissismarket.com) is hosting a blogger bash it calls RSS (Really Sweet Syn) on Wednesday (Jan. 21) from 7 to 10 p.m. Pastry chef Faith Hoi Yan Chan will offer specialties like hot Belgian ale doughnuts and a tangerine financier, and Cissi’s will prepare free Kohana coffee drinks and sell select sparkling and dessert wines for $5 a glass. Reservations are accepted at jette@decorjette.com
• European Bistro in Pflugerville (111 E. Main St. 835-1919, www.european-bistro.com) has added lunch service Friday-Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with selections — most of them less than $8 — such as chicken schnitzel and garlic pork loin from its Hungarian- and German-influenced menu, below.
Photo by Laura Skelding.
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… and Binky here will have the tap water du jour
If you’re not sure how you feel about dogs roaming the patio where you’re eating, you should make up your mind before taking an outside table along South Congress Avenue on the weekends, where hounds, Harleys and hellions (you know, kids) abound. On Saturdays and Sundays next to Gueros, there’s even a spot with real-live dogs to adopt if you’re feeling left out. If we could add a Harley-Davidson shop and a rent-a-stroller, service, then everybody would be covered. Except the ones who don’t like any combination of the three. I’ll stay out of that fray for now, except to say that two out of three ain’t bad.
But speaking of dogs, Cuatro’s (1004 W. 24th St. 243-6361, www.cuatrosaustin.com) is planning a Doggie Happy Hour on Monday, Jan. 26, from 5 to 7 p.m. The four-legged animals get free treats, and the two-legged ones get free chips and salsa. Be especially wary of double-dipping that day.
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Picture this: The future of El Sol y La Luna’s spot
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Karibu says ‘welcome’ with Ethiopian food
ABOVE: Owners Anteneh Fanta, left, Yodit Kassa, who is also the chef, and Solomon Kassa opened Karibu last month. BELOW LEFT: The Karibu combo, $13.95, features doro wot (chicken with hard-boiled egg), alicha wot (chopped beef in a curried herb sauce) and kay wot (beef). The coffee service includes Ethiopian beans that are roasted in the kitchen. Photos by Mike Sutter.
Karibu (kah-REE-boo, which the menu says is Swahili for “welcome”) opened on East Seventh Street on Dec. 19, with a lunch buffet, dinner service and late-night hours seven days a week. For Ethiopian food, Karibu joins Aster’s (just down the road at Interstate 35 and Dean Keeton Street) and Taste of Ethiopia in Pflugerville.
The husband-and-wife team of Yodit and Solomon Kassa, along with partner Anteneh Fanta, run Karibu in the former De Las Casas restaurant building. The Kassas ran a restaurant in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa before moving to the United States 12 years ago. Yodit Kassas does the cooking, and her ethos is simple: “All of my dishes have garlic and ginger. Without that, I don’t cook.”
But the results are a complex brew of Ethiopian favorites, from doro wot (chicken with a hard-boiled egg, clarified butter and spicy berebere sauce) to abesha gomen (collard greens, peppers and onions). She also roasts green Ethiopian coffee beans for Karibu’s ceremonial “buna” coffee service, punctuated by a smoking incense tray.
Main courses range from $8.95 for a three-vegetable combo and $10.95-$13.95 for chicken, beef and lamb dishes, all of which come with plate-sized rounds of spongy injera bread for scooping. The lunch buffet is $9.99, usually featuring a half-dozen vegetarian options and two meat options.
(1209 E. Seventh St. 320-5454, www.ethiopianrestaurantaustin.com. Open 11:30 a.m. to midnight Sundays-Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m. to 2 a.m. Thursdays-Saturdays. Lunch buffet 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mondays-Fridays.)
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Wine 101: A class in classification
Sommelier Devon Broglie will teach “Wine 101” at Kenobi on Wednesday. American-Statesman photo.
Here’s a chance to learn how to tell a pinot grigio from a pinot noir.
The Wine and Food Foundation of Texas is offering a beginner’s “Wine 101” class from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at Kenobi Restaurant and Sushi Bar in the Arboretum.
The class will be taught by Austin sommelier Devon Broglie of Whole Foods Market, who will cover basic wine theory and evaluation methods.
The event, which costs $50 for foundation members and $60 for the public, includes tastings of seven wines and light food offerings from Kenobi. Register at www.winefoodfoundation.org or 327-7555.
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What’s your favorite dining deal?
We know that Hut’s Hamburgers has two-for-one burgers on Wednesdays from 6 to 10 p.m. We know that Doc’s Motorworks has $1 tacos and $2 Mexican beers on Wednesdays. What we’d like to know are your favorite restaurant deals and steals for an upcoming special report. Let us know with an e-mail to restaurant critic Mike Sutter at msutter@statesman.com.
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Zoot goes dark to prepare for Bee Cave Road move
Zoot, the little house with the big reputation as one of Austin’s top restaurants, is moving from its cozy spot on Hearn Street (above) in West Austin to a new home on the growing commercial stretch of Bee Cave Road just east of Texas 71.
The restaurant, owned by Stewart Scruggs and Mark Paul, has been closed this month in preparation for its move to the former site of the Bee Cave Bistro at 11715 Bee Cave Road, across the road from Lake Pointe Elementary.
Scruggs said the move, which will allow the operation to expand from 70 to 100 seats and eventually add lunch and full bar service, was prompted by a study showing that Zoot attracted a strong customer base from the 78746 ZIP code, which encompasses West Lake Hills and is just down the road from the new site.
Scruggs said he and co-owner Mark Paul hope to have the new Zoot open in mid- to late February, with Scruggs designing the menu, assisted by sous chef Andreas Exarhos, who recently spent a week working with “Iron Chef” Michael Symon at his restaurant Lola in Cleveland.
In a review of Zoot in the fall, American-Statesman writer Patrick Beach praised the duck confit appetizer, shrimp bisque, grilled strip steak and roasted Gulf snapper.
Beach wrote: “With a menu that changes to reflect the seasons and an ever-shifting list of ingredients that emphasizes freshness, Scruggs and Paul offer dishes both classic and contemporary, and they do it all with an abiding poise and grace.”
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A second (and third) P. Terry’s on the way
A rendering by Michael Hsu Design Office of the new P. Terry’s hamburger stand location at 3303 N. Lamar Blvd., which is scheduled to open in March.
P. Terry’s, the hamburger stand on South Lamar Boulevard that’s made the top of austin360.com’s Your A-List poll two years running, is working on a second location at 3303 N. Lamar Blvd.
The building, which is under construction at a former Hill-Bert’s Burgers location, is being designed by Austin architect Michael Hsu of Olivia and Parkside fame. Owner Patrick Terry said he hopes to have the new location open in March.
A third location is in the works at William Cannon Drive and MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1), with an opening planned this summer, Terry said.
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The sun will rise again for El Sol y La Luna
By now, you’ve likely seen the papered-over windows at 1224 S. Congress Ave., the home for 13 years of Tex-Mex favorite El Sol y La Luna. The restaurant closed during the Christmas holidays in preparation for its move to 600 E. Sixth St., near Emo’s.
Owner Nilda De La Llata said the new El Sol y La Luna spot will be bigger and include a stage, dance floor, expanded full bar and an extended menu. The new spot will open in mid-February, possibly sooner, De La Llata said. “I’m working as fast as I can to get it open. Really fast.”
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Up and running at Flip Happy Crepes
After some time off for one of the chefs to recover from hand surgery, the Flip Happy Crepes trailer is back in business today, with a lineup of meal-worthy savory crepes and sweet dessert crepes.
The trailer, renowned for winning a Food Network “Throwdown” with Bobby Flay, is at 400 Jessie St., just off South Lamar Boulevard near the P. Terry’s hamburger stand. Their hours are 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday-Friday and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.
Look for my review of the Flip Happy experience in the Jan. 15 edition of XL and on austin360.com.
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Yu Sushi Izagaya’s appetizing downtown glow
Yu Sushi Izagaya, the upscale cousin of Gary Chiu’s Sushi Sake in North Austin, opened in the Second Street District on Dec. 9. The gyu-tataki appetizer, below right, has medium-rare prime rib-eye beef with garlic, pine nuts, radish sprouts, ponzu sauce and spicy sweet potato hay. Photos by Mike Sutter.
The stylish Yu Sushi Izagaya, which opened Dec. 9 in the Second Street District, glows a quiet blue seen from the outside, a serene prelude to the angular interior design, toned in earthy greens, blacks and light browns and throbbing with beat-happy techno music.
Appetizers average about $12.50, grilled choices go for $7 to $20, with sushi rolls for $9 to $18. Lunch averages $15, Kim said.
206 Colorado St. 708-8887. 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday-Friday, 5 to 10 p.m. Sunday-Monday, 5 to 11 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, 5 p.m. to midnight Thursday-Saturday.
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Restaurant deals: Give us the cheap stuff
We know that Hut’s Hamburgers has two-for-one burgers on Wednesdays from 6 to 10 p.m. We know that Doc’s Motorworks has $1 tacos and $2 Mexican beers on Wednesdays. What we’d like to know are your favorite restaurant deals and steals for an upcoming special report. Let us know with an e-mail to restaurant critic Mike Sutter at msutter@statesman.com.
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Elvis’ birthday at Chuy’s on Thursday
Austin’s King of Cheesy Tex-Mex salutes the King of Overindulgence on what would have been his 74th birthday on Thursday with specials on the Elvis Presley Memorial Combo (at right, with three enchiladas, a taco and queso) and Elvis Green Chile Fried Chicken. Plus, Elvis and Priscilla Presley dress-alikes get a free entree, and an Elvis impersonator will show up at each of the five Austin-area Chuy’s locations at these times:
• 1728 Barton Springs Road
(6:30 p.m.).
• 10520 N. Lamar Blvd. (8 p.m.).
• 11680 N. Research Blvd. (5 p.m.).
• 2320 N. Interstate 35, Round Rock (5:30 p.m.).
• 4301 W. William Cannon Drive (5:30 p.m.).
