Tamale House East will host their first alcoholic bar pop-up, Bar Frida, according to Scrumptious Chef. Starting this Saturday, March 14, and throughout SXSW, guests will find boozy punches and a special bar menu at Bar Frida, situated on the back patio. The pop-up is the Tex Mex restaurant's way of celebrating their newly acquired liquor license, owner Carmen Valera told Eater Austin over the phone, as well as their third anniversary. Tamale House East has hosted food-centric pop-ups in the past, but this time, she wanted to do something different. She said, "Wait a minute, I want to do a bar pop-up because that sounds more fun."
Bar Frida will test out potential drinks that Tamale House East will introduce in the future. Valera visited New Orleans for bar research and was inspired by the city’s cocktail scene and Mardi Gras. She loved that "every bar had a big giant punch bowl on the bar," which is why the pop-up will feature punches, but with "Latin influences," as she described. Originally, she toyed with calling the bar Antoinette and having a French cocktail theme, but decided against that. Instead, the pop-up is named after Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, because Valera loved that "all of her artwork has these crazy surrealistic gardens and animals." She also wants to use ingredients like basil and mint from Tamale House East's garden in the cocktails.
A special bar menu will be created by Tamale House East cook Yani Diaz Smith, who used to work at the shuttered Airport Boulevard institution Tamale House #3. The exclusive menu will feature signature items from the late Bobby Vasquez’s Tex Mex restaurant, which will more than likely include brisket tacos, along with other dishes. Don’t worry, the pop-up will still serve migas and fish tacos, and the regular menu will still be available inside the restaurant.
Tamale House East will open the Fifth Street exit as a dedicated entrance for the bar pop-up. The hours will be from 10 a.m.-10 p.m. every day. The proposed last day will be Saturday, March 21, but Valera said she might extend Bar Frida into Sunday, March 22 until 3 p.m.