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— While Philip Speer works on his downtown restaurant, the chef is collaborating with West 10th Street pizzeria 40 North on two new dishes, which will be available during the month of July. The “Philly North” special is the clam and nduja pizza, which comes with pecorino, shaved apples, micro-arugula, and lemon. Then there’s the ice cream sandwich made with dark chocolate gelato from Dolce Neve, fig jam, mole ganache, puffed amaranth, and chocolate cookies. One dollar from each pie will be donated towards the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Immigrant Services (RAICES). It begins on Sunday, July 1 for dine-in orders only.
— Lockhart’s legendary barbecue restaurant Black’s BBQ opened a third smoked meats spot in New Braunfels this month, with the usual meaty array from brisket, beef ribs, pork, sides, and desserts. It’s found at 036 Loop 337.
— Another expansion: Important Tex-Mex restaurant Casa Chapala is expanding into Bastrop with its second location in Bastrop. It’s set to open at 1800 Walnut Street on Wednesday, July 11.
— For Pride Month, Wu Chow, Swift’s Attic, and Guild are donating all proceeds from the Pride punch cocktail to the Trevor Project. The punch is mixed up with white rum, grapefruit and lime juices, pineapples, and topped with dark rum and Velvet Falernum. The $10 cocktail is available through Sunday, July 1.
— Australian Thai restaurant Sway revamped its weekend brunch menus. New dishes include a congee with coconut rice grits and sugar-cured pork butt, French toast topped with toasted rice and mango custard, and the chiang mai chili with fermented black bean and pork chili and crispy chicken skins. The new menu begins at the South Austin restaurant on Saturday, June 30, followed by the Rock Rose restaurant on Saturday, July 7.
— Finley’s, the restaurant that took over shuttered Round Rock spot Scarlet Rabbit, is now open at 410 West Main Street, with a catch-all type menu.