Juniper and Via 313 Are Opening an Italian Cafe With Sandwiches

Austin is getting a new Italian cafe and bar courtesy of Italian restaurant Juniper, Detriot-style pizzeria Via 313, and neighborhood bar Nickel City. The Italian spot Uncle Nicky’s is taking over Dolce Vita’s gelato space on 4222 Duval Street (which is closing on Sunday, November 11) sometime in January 2019.

Involved in Uncle Nicky’s are chef Nicholas Yanes (Juniper), Travis Tober (Nickel City), and Brandon and Zane Hunt (Via 313, Nickel City).

The casual restaurant will focus on Northern Italian cuisine, like sandwiches, pasta, and salads. Dishes will be available for dine-in or takeout. For drinks, there will be cocktails, beer, and wine.

Once open, Uncle Nicky’s hours will be more 7 a.m. to midnight daily. The Dolce Vita space will be renovated before opening next year.

Dolce Vita founders Bick and Erica Brown decided to close the gelato shop, which they opened in 1995, because of increasing rents and general property costs.

It’s not the first time Via 313 and Juniper has worked together: the two restaurants, plus barbecue spot La Barbecue, collaborated on a smoked ham pizza, benefitting Tecolote Farm, back in March 2017.

Nicholas Yanes, who worked his way through Uchi for two years, opened his own Italian restaurant, Juniper, on 2400 East Cesar Chavez Street in October 2015.

Via 313 brothers Brandon and Zane Hunt have been slowly branching outside of the pizza game lately. They opened a neighborhood bar on East 11th Street with Travis Tober (Nickel City), and they invested in Callie Speer’s downtown restaurant (Holy Roller).

Julia Keim

• Uncle Nicky’s [Official]
• Uncle Nicky’s [Facebook]
• Uncle Nicky’s [Instagram]
• 23-Year-Old Gelato Shop Is Closing in Hyde Park [EATX]
• All Coverage of Juniper [EATX]
• All Coverage of Via 313 [EATX]