We told you that
Tavel Bristol-Joseph of
Emmer & Rye (and
Hestia and
Henbit, et. al.) was
recently awarded a Best New Chef accolade from Food & Wine, and that his and
Kevin Fink's Rainey Street venue has reopened for limited dine-in service
and they're rolling out a to-go Italian concept called, um,
Emmeroni's, right? Cool.Know also that a Clarksville-based bastion of fine dining,
Wink, is
similarly back in the (limited) dine-in business (with an expanded patio), as is South Lamar's
Aviary and
El Naranjo and Downtown's
Scholz Garten and
Cherrywood Coffeehouse on the Eastside.
And the SoCo location of
Hey, Cupcake! is again flowing with a veritable river of icing-topped confections for your sweetest tooth. And there's more to come, we're sure; which is great, because we like to spread good news; although, with
Covid-19 numbers spiking again, it remains to be seen what's still regarded as
good news in the months ahead.Definitely among the service industry's bad news this week are the destructive break-ins reported by South First's vegan favorite
Bouldin Creek Cafe and Westlake's
Trianon Coffee – and that lobster-lavishing
Garbo's is trying to recover from the recent heist of their thousand-dollar power generator. Sweet baby Tony Bourdain, people! Like things aren't bad enough for the food-service community right now, someone has to kick 'em while they're down?Further sad to relate that
Be More Pacific, the beloved powerhouse of Filipino-inflected vittles, has decided to shutter indefinitely, and so now Anderson Lane suffers a harsh reduction in flavor – while still boasting the goodness of
Eldorado and the newly reopened
Jack Allen's Kitchen (among other terrific eateries).Counter that sorrow with the now-open-for-dining patio of
Buenos Aires Cafe Este on East Sixth (where you can get,
fight us, some of the best empanadas in this hemisphere; and whose
Father's Day Grill Box is sure to have Dad roleplaying as Supreme Sorcerer of the Meat-Searing Coals) … and the knowledge that
Killa Wasi, the acclaimed Brazilian food-truck-that's-actually-a-food-
bus, continues to provide all the delicious to-go family meals you can order at
Independence Brewing Company. (And of course Independence itself offers
many excellent varieties of that beverage you might have heard of? It's called … beer? Spoiler alert: Yes.)Further good news – in the odd, pandemic-spurred Venn crossover of eating well
and supporting social justice – the international
Bakers Against Racism project has
a fierce local contingent that's currently taking orders, cooking up the treats, and readying Saturday delivery of much bready brilliance and pastry perfection to all of Austin.But maybe you don't have the money to spend right now? Maybe you can't scrape up enough for
anything and you really need to eat something? We end this week's column with the
best news, then:
Red Beans and Ricely Yours, a program headed by
Chris Cubas and
Maris Clegg, is dedicated to providing free meals (of red beans and rice, andouille sausage, cornbread, fruit, dessert, and a drink) to Austinites in need. "On Tuesdays, we will provide a link to sign up for a free home-made meal delivered to you with safety in mind," goes their announcement on Facebook. "There is no judgment and the form is anonymous. If you have been affected by the impact of Covid-19 or are having a hard time, we would like to make a small portion of your day a little bit better." Or, if you'd like to donate your time in driving, baking treats, or providing cases of non-alcoholic beverages, please reach out to redbeansaustin@gmail.com.