The capital of Texas has moved on to adding a variety of international dishes from Asia, Italy, Africa, Mexico, and other countries to its delicious menu. From well garnished omakase to sal de gusano, tacos, salad nebbe, and more. The city uses a combination of dishes from various countries to create unique meals.
You’ll never get tired of deliciously enjoying a meal in this city because there is a lot to try out. In this article, we’ll be looking at the 10 Best Restaurants In Austin serving you with whatever flavor, price, or time you need it. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner, we got you covered. Read through and explore the dishes that Austin is well known for.
Table of contents
What Is A Restaurant?
Restaurants are business establishments where meals and refreshments are cooked and served.
Why Are Restaurants Important?
One basic importance of restaurants is that they have a big impact on the economy by providing jobs and paying for utilities and taxes.
Restaurants benefit the agricultural sector’s growth because most of them get their supplies from fresh farm products.
Asides from the economical benefits of restaurants, they’re the quickest way of getting already made especially when you have a busy schedule, or you just feel lazy. Restaurants are also beneficial when you travel to new places for vacations or short stays.
They’re also places to meet people and build new friendships or connections.
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What Are The 10 Best Restaurants In Austin?
We’ll be looking at the best restaurants in Austin below:
- Barley Swine
- Odd Duck
- La barbeque
- Clark’s Oyster Bar
- Otoko
- Josephine’s Place
- Cuanto’s Taco
- Distant Relatives
- Justine’s Brasserie
- Sammies
1. Barley Swine
Barley Swine opened in 2010. Formerly located at Saint Lamar, the restaurant recently moved to Burnet road. They opened with a commitment to patronize local farmers and ranchers by using their products in every meal prepared by the restaurant.
Barley Swine is a great place to have a great time with family and friends while enjoying the creative meals prepared by executive chef Bryce Gilmore and his team. The relocation by the restaurant has created more seating, a craft cocktail program, a full bar, and a redesigned menu focused more on seafood. Some visually appealing meals served by the restaurant include mushroom salad, kimchi gelee, deviled egg, butternut squash puree, candied fennel, grilled greens, onion jam, and lots more.
2. Odd Duck
Odd Duck was founded by brothers Bryce and Dylan Gilmore in 2009. It is the sister restaurant of Barley Swine. Odd Duck purchases farm products for preparing their meals from local farmers. It is one of the best restaurants in Austin where the chefs work tirelessly to prepare meals that’ll leave you looking for more.
At Odd Duck, the sumptuous meals are prepared by chef-partner Bryce Gilmore and his ever-creative team. The culture of Austin shapes the food and services. The trailer-turned-restaurant is the best place to enjoy a meal while relaxing with family and friends. Next time you visit the restaurant, try out meals like sweet potato leches, Texas orange, chicory salad, squash and pepita butter, Cajun pork, grilled quail, and more.
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3. La barbeque
La barbeque is owned by LeAnn Mueller and his wife Alison Clem, is located in East Texas. The restaurant specializes in preparing central Texas-style barbeques with unique blends of salty and savory rubs; they don’t add sugar to the mix and prepare meals honoring LeAnn’s German relatives.
You can wrap your briskets as a sandwich with pickles and onions with a slather of chipotle sauce. This is the best restaurant in Austin when enjoying steamy barbequed meat with your friends and family.
Here are some delicious meat meals on their menu you can try out, turkey, pulled pork, sausage, and brisket. Their sandwiches include brisket, chopped beef, sausage, El Sancho, you can enjoy these with toppings, vegetables, and starch and finally wash it down with a chilled glass of beer, umeshu, sake, hojicha, and more.
4. Clark’s Oyster Bar
Clark’s Oyster Bar is a small West Austin restaurant open during the day and at night. This is a great restaurant for casual hangouts, business lunches, family relaxation, night outings, and dates.
The restaurant serves one of the best oysters. They also wipe up a delicious pan-roasted black Angus hamburger slather with gruyere. You need to get to the restaurant on time if you don’t want to wait for a table at the bar. Enjoy dishes like fresh oysters, red snapper ceviche, lobster roll, classic steak tartare, and more.
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5. Otoko
Otoko is a 12 seat Japanese restaurant located at South Congress Hotel in Austin owned by Kyoto-born chef Yoshi Okai. The 20-course omakase experience at the restaurant combines Tokyo-styled sushi and Kyoto-style kaiseki into a special tasting menu using seasonally available ingredients. The chef uses fish flown directly from Japan.
The chef adds an extra touch to the restaurant with cool music playing in the background. He also spiced up the menu with Mexican dishes like hoja Santa, sal de gusano, and more. Though tickets are expensive and based on reservations, you wouldn’t want to miss eating at this restaurant, especially if you’re craving Japanese dishes.
6. Josephine’s House
Josephine’s House also made it to our list of best restaurants in Austin. The cottage-style restaurant uses locally sourced products to prepare delicious dishes. Work up your appetite with a baked dish like a slice of vegan blueberry banana bread and then move on to a rice meal with red rice, avocado, pickled seasonal vegetables, and a delicious red pepper chimichurri, with eggs.
This restaurant is cool for family outings, anniversaries, etc. You can also decide to get a takeaway. You can get your breakfast, lunch, or dinner here. Popular dishes here include fruit salad, shrimp and grits, salmon avocado toast, steaks, eggs, etc.
7. Cuanto’s Taco
Tacos are one of the best Mexican dishes and seeing Luis Robledo carry on this tradition in Austin is by starting up his taco restaurant is great.
Established in 2019 the restaurant is best known for creativity preparing delicious palm-sized tacos stuffed with confit meats like buche, lengua, carnitas, and suadero. Specially wrapped in tortillas produced at a San Antonio colonial tortilla factory and sprinkled with tiny chopped herbs like onion, cilantro, and fiery salsa, this dish will leave a delicious taste in your mouth. If you’re craving a taste of Mexican dish then this restaurant is your best bet.
8. Distance relatives
Distance relatives are also one of the best restaurants in Austin that serves modern African American dishes. Chef Damien Brockway prepares dishes that explore the various culinary traditions of Africans in the diaspora. He has created some of the best meals in Austin by getting inspiration from African history, flavor, and texture of the African diaspora in America especially his root.
Check out dishes like salad nebbe, pulled pork crowned with green mango slaw, Senegalese black-eyed pea salad. You can also check out other dishes like chicken leg quarter, beef brisket, chili sauce, preserved cabbage, red onion, along with side dishes like chives, Lima beans, as well as snacks. Before reserving a table at the restaurant you have to confirm if the meal you would like to have is on the menu because products used in preparing the dishes are seasonal.
9. Justine’s Brasserie
Justine’s Brasserie is also one of the best restaurants in Austin. One thing popular about the restaurant is their late-night dinner service, they close by 1:30 am. Thinking of a restaurant that is romantic, dark, lovely, and lively at night? Then Justine’s is your best choice. Let the restaurant bless your taste buds with delicious French meals like never before. From the French onion soup served with cheese crusting the ramekin and escargot along with a sidecar.
Check out chef Justin Huffman’s mouth-watering accouterments, such as the smoked heirloom potato garottes or the perfectly prepared menu of Brasserie like the duck confit.
When next you plan on going on a date you should consider booking a reservation here and you’ll not regret it. Don’t forget the bottle of Beaujolais to top it up.
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10. Sammie’s Italian
Sammie’s brings a little taste of Italy to Austin. The restaurant was named for the matriarch of the family who initially started Sammie’s drive in 1939. McGuire Moorman Lambert Hospitality recently acquired the restaurant; they have a history of acquiring historical spots and one other restaurant acquired by them is the Swedish hill.
When co-founder Larry McGuire took over the historic Hut’s hamburger he knew he wouldn’t be able to replace the delicious smell of Dagburgers and peppered onion rings however he decided to go with his intuition, and the result was mind-blowing. Checking out similar restaurants like Dan Tana’s in Los Angeles they decided to recreate something unique. The quality services at the restaurant are provided by red uniforms and tie waiters.
You can check out mouth-watering meals like homemade mozzarella sticks, clams casino, spaghetti with meatballs, veal marsala, baked manicotti, and more along with different varieties of cocktails including Martinis.
FAQs On Best Restaurants In Austin
Austin has special dishes like barbeques, Tex Mex, and tasty breakfast tacos however there’s still so much food you might want to explore in the city.
Tex Mex dishes include nachos, fajitas, and any food that has black beans, beef, wheat flour, canned vegetables, or yellow cheese.
There are more than 2,000 restaurants in Austin.
Conclusion
Most restaurants in Austin offer takeaways, deliveries, and catering services. Before going to a restaurant in Austin you should reserve a table and make inquiries to know if the dish you want to have is on the menu because some restaurants prepare dishes using the products in season.
These are the best restaurants in Austin whether you want sushi, tacos, grilled chicken, or barbeque the restaurants have them all though each has an area of specialization.
References
- austinmonthly.com – The 25 Best Restaurants In Austin
- cntravelers.com – 20 Best Restaurants In Austin
- timeout.com – The 23 Best Restaurants In Austin For 2023
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