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As we enter another cursed pandemic year, at least there are new dining options to look forward to. 2022 is starting off strong with several exciting restaurant openings: there’s the new restaurant location of beloved taco truck Mi Trailita Y Mas heading to Windsor Park, a sandwich shop with a porchetta specialty opening downtown, and acclaimed chef Mashama Bailey’s restaurants, all opening sometime in the earlier portion of the year.
Later on in the year, look for Aaron Franklin’s po’ boy shop on East Sixth, the Suerte team’s Mexican seafood restaurant Este, and a new third restaurant from talented dim sum chef Ling Qi Wu in Southwest Austin.
Read on for 2022’s most exciting restaurant openings, listed in chronological order. This guide will be updated as the year continues.
Mi Trailita Y Mas
Address: 5706 Manor Road, Windsor Park
Opening: January 21, 2022
Beloved Windsor Park taco truck Mi Trailita is expanding to a physical restaurant down the road. The new restaurant will have tacos, tostadas, gorditas, and tortas like the truck, but will add new items like enchiladas and chile rellenos. The truck will remain in operation.
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Meat & Bread
Address: 360 Nueces Street, Downtown
Opening: January 2022
Vancouver-based fast-casual restaurant Meat & Bread is opening its only location in the U.S. in downtown Austin. The restaurant is known for its sandwiches like porchetta and meatball, and also serves dips, soups, salads, and more along with beer and wine.
The Grey Diner Bar and Grey Market
Address: 506 San Jacinto Boulevard, Downtown (in the Thompson hotel)
Opening: Early 2022
James Beard Award-winning chef Mashama Bailey, behind famed Savannah restaurant the Grey, is opening two Austin restaurants in the forthcoming Thompson hotel downtown with her business partner Johno Morisano. Bailey has said Grey Diner Bar will work as a “cocktail bar-slash-snack thing” with sandwiches, charcuterie, and classic dishes from the Savannah Grey. On the other hand, Grey Market will be a “bodega-meets-lunch counter,” with counter service and grab-and-go items like boxed lunches.
Hildee’s Dine-Inn
Address: 14111 Winters Mill Parkway, Wimberley
Opening: Early 2022
Former Houston chef Ryan Hildebrand is opening a restaurant in Wimberley, focusing on Hill Country and Southern fare. Look for smoked meats, chicken-fried venison, and confit tomato pie. The restaurant will include a covered patio and lounge seating along the creek and lawn.
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Este
Address: 2113 Manor Road, Cherrywood
Opening: Late Spring 2022
The team behind modern Mexican restaurant Suerte — executive chef Fermín Núñez and Sam Hellman-Mass — are opening a new restaurant focused on Mexican coastal cuisine in the former Eastside Cafe space. That means local, sustainable fish and shellfish, and heavy use of a charcoal grill.
Uptown Sports Club
Address: 1200 East Sixth Street, East Sixth
Opening: Summer 2022
Barbecue great Aaron Franklin of Franklin Barbecue is teaming up again with James Moody of the Mohawk (his partner in the Hot Luck food/music festival) to open a neighborhood bar and sandwich shop in the long-vacant Uptown Sports building. The menu will focus on sandwiches like po’ boys, gumbo, and breakfast. Cocktails will come from Chris Bostick of Rainey Street bar Half Step. The space is being designed by lead designer and project manager Tenaya Hills, with drawings and collaboration by the ubiquitous Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, who also designed Franklin’s other collaboration restaurant, Asian smokehouse Loro.
Ling Wu Asian Restaurant
Address: 7415 Southwest Parkway, Southwest Austin
Opening: Fall 2022
Chef Ling Qi Wu, who’s behind Lin Asian Bar + Dim Sum in Clarksville and Qi in downtown, is opening a third restaurant in the Lantana Place complex. In addition to the dishes she is known for — dumplings, noodles, and dim sum — Ling Wu Asian Restaurant will serve recipes from Wu’s grandmother and raw fish dishes.
The Butcher’s Burger
Address: TBD
Opening: 2022
The team behind butcher shop Salt & Time is opening a sibling restaurant, the Butcher’s Burger, with a menu centered around the shop’s famed namesake burger, made from trimmings around the shop. Other burgers on the preview menu included a lamb birria burger, a breakfast burger, and halloumi grilled cheese, alongside beef-fat fries and coleslaw. Until the restaurant opens, the burgers are available through third-party delivery service Caviar.
Honey Pig
Address: 11301 Lakeline Boulevard, Lakeline
Opening: 2022
East Coast Korean barbecue restaurant Honey Pig BBQ is coming to the same shopping center as H Mart in Lakeline. The restaurant features grill-it-yourself meats like bulgogi, pork belly, tripe, duck, squid, and more, as well as Korean dishes like kimchi pancakes, dumplings, tteokbokki, and noodles. The original restaurant opened in Maryland in 2007 and has expanded across the country and in Taiwan.
Marufuku Ramen
Address: 1900 Aldrich Street, Mueller
Opening: 2022
San Francisco ramen shop Marufuku is bringing its famed Hakata-style tonkotsu to Austin this year. The menu will also include chicken paitan ramen, rice bowls, gyoza, karaage, takoyaki, and steamed buns.
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- All Coming Attractions [EATX]