As is the tradition at Eater, our closeout of the year is a survey of friends, industry types, bloggers, and readers. We've already discussed the city's best new restaurants, and now we wonder: what were the year's reliable stand-bys? Readers, please add your thoughts to the comments.
Komé. [Photo: Raymond Thompson/EATX]
Q: Name your top restaurant standbys of 2012—the restaurants you returned to most?
Megan Giller of Let's Eat ATX!: "Parkside, La Condesa, Fresa's, Clay Pit, Blue Dahlia."
Paula Forbes of Eater National: "Contigo for weeknight dinners, La Condesa for brunch, Barley Swine for celebrating, any of the East Side Kings for happy hour, Fricano's for lunch."
Christian Remde, filmmaker: "Contigo, Uchiko, East Side King, Kome, Asia Cafe."
Layne Lynch, writer for Texas Monthly and CultureMap Austin: "I have trouble naming 'favorite restaurants,' simply because I don't eat at a lot of the same places over and over again. I'm always up for trying new things, but I have to say one of the "top restaurant" contenders of this year has to be Lenoir. I've fallen in love with the creativity and elegance of each dish I've sampled there. I love what Jessica and Todd have created through Lenoir."
Andrea Grimes, editor, Eater Austin: "Komé for lunch—even if it wasn't in my neighborhood, I'd make the trek here for their excellent sushi lunch and hangover-curing ramen. Brunch at La Condesa and Contigo—especially when I'm showing out-of-towners around. And you can usually find me out on the patio at Workhorse Bar of an evening, drinking a pint of Live Oak."
