Two new restaurants have openings this weekend, Olivia gets new life, and Old Thousand jams in today’s news bites.
Fun ideas for Austin Italophiles:
A) Convert all Downtown’s streets into canals populated by gondoliers wearing striped blue and white shirts.
B) Dance the rumba with wild-eyed abandon in a tattered dress.
C) Eat out at Red Ash on the opening day this Saturday, Oct. 15. St., the latest restaurant to enter the Italian sweepstakes in Austin. The menu from chef John Carver, the founding partner behind Roaring Fork, Wildfish, and Eddie V’s Prime Seafood features wood-grilled entrées, small plates like burrata and meatballs, and plenty of pastas and risottos. 303 Colorado.
Fun ideas for Austin New York-a-philes:
A) Convert all Downtown streets into subway tunnels populated by transit police officers wearing Hood by Air.
B) Repeat the same phrase in a mirror with various intonations. Later, get an unfortunate haircut.
D) Have drinks at Cedar Tavern at before crossing through the study to dine at Eberly on the opening day. The menu from executive chef Jim Tripi, and executive pastry chef Natalie Gazaui’s new classics like braised short rib with ricotta gnudi, and celeriac fondue and dulce de leche alfajores. 615 S. Lamar.
James Holmes’ already-missed restaurant Olivia may have just closed its doors on Oct. 9, but from its ashes, a phoenix, err chicken, err phoenix-chicken hybrid will arise. Construction is already on the way to converting the space to Lucy’s on the Fly, a takeout version of Lucy’s Fried Chicken. The new space should be open in just a few weeks.
Old Thousand, the new Chinese concept from SMGB Hospitality with chefs James Dumapit and David Baek, is just a few weeks from opening too. Since music will play a huge role in the eatery’s environment, they have created a Spotify playlist that isn’t the new Solange album on loop, but we’ll listen to anyway.
Chef Harold Marmulstein and his Salty Sow crew has been invited to participate in the grand tasting of the New York Wine & Food Festival this weekend, which is sort of like being invited to the Met Gala except you won’t have to deal with excruciating awkwardness of seeing Anna Wintour pretend like she likes various Kardashians. The sample dish, duck breast with turnip purée and olives, will also be featured at the restaurant here in town.
Mayor Steven Adler has declared tomorrow Hopdoddy Burger Day, which is just the bold move we expect from our political leaders.
To celebrate the fact that Austinites are now able to walk outside without instantly sweating through their clothes, Olamaie has launched a new patio menu featuring bottle and punch bowl service plus some new bites from chef Michael Fojtasek including pimento lady sandwiches, Mississippi slugburgers, and a Southern ham flight.
This article appears in October 7 • 2016.