An Exclusive Local Club

Once he has represented Austin and his own restaurant at the Beard House in August, Shawn Cirkiel will join a very small group of local chefs who have also been invited there. Chefs David Garrido of Jeffrey's and Dan Haverty of the Shoreline Grill presented their Beard dinners after winning the Texas Beef Challenge recipe competition held in conjunction with the Texas Hill Country Wine & Food Festival here in Austin. During the mid-Nineties, the annual winners of that competition garnered the opportunity to present their signature beef dishes at the Beard House with the sponsorship of the Texas Beef Council. Chef Garrido has also assisted his mentor and former employer, Dallas celebrity chef Stephan Pyles, at numerous Beard House dinners during the past decade. Chef Miguel Ravago of Fonda San Miguel re-created that restaurant's famous Fiesta Sunday Brunch at his first Beard House appearance. Using folk art, fabrics, and pottery pieces from the restaurant's extensive collection, Fonda owner Tom Gilliland and Laredo interior designer Bill Luft transformed the old brownstone into a Mexican hacienda for the occasion, dazzling the New Yorkers in attendance. On their second visit, the Fonda team served a sit-down dinner complemented by Austin author Lucinda Hutson's distinctive tequila punches. On both occasions, Ravago was assisted by his longtime chef de cuisine, Oscar Alvarez.