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Where To Eat In Austin Right Now, July '13

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Tipsters, readers, friends and family of Eater Austin always want to know: Where should I eat right now? What are the buzziest new restaurants? What haven't I heard of? What's everyone talking about?

To answer those questions, we present our 25th edition of the Eater Austin Heatmap, welcoming two of Austin's highest-profile, most-anticipated restaurants of the year: Paul Qui's Qui, and Daniel Olivella's Barlata Tapas Bar.


7/11/13: Added: Qui, Barlata / Dropped: Pieous, Winflo Osteria

6/6/13: Added: Searsucker, Eden East, Mettle / Dropped: Josephine House, Michi Ramen, Hi Hat Public House

5/2/13: Added: Jeffrey's, Pieous / Dropped: Sway, East Side King @ Hole In The Wall

4/4/13: Added: John Mueller Meat Co., Daruma Ramen

3/7/13: Added: Salt & Time, Hi Hat Public House

2/7/13: Added: Michi Ramen, Winflo Osteria, Buzz Mill Coffee/Blue Ox, Josephine House / Dropped: Tapas Bravas, El Naranjo, Banger's Sausage House & Beer Garden, Restaurant Jezebel

1/3/13: Added: épicerie, Freedmen's / Dropped: Bar Mirabeau, Swift's Attic

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QUI Restaurant

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Qui is not a hot restaurant. Qui is the hottest restaurant. The most anticipated opening of the year, Qui is Top Chef winner Paul Qui's east side flagship, the first all-Qui all-the-time locale where he's really been able to stretch his culinary legs, with a menu that features his take on Mexican street corn, seven preparations of rabbit, a gorgeous Wagyu steak to share and a mind-blowing "Ode to Michel Bras" cold soup. But part of Qui's genius is his decision to surround himself with other brilliant people, like front-of-house maven June Rodil, assistant GM Bill Man, chef consultant Tim Dornon and bar manager Michael Simon.

Barlata

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Chef Daniel Olivella's Austin outpost of his Barlata Tapas Bar stands to be one of the most popular spots of the summer, as the NoCal chef introduces Austin to the brilliance of his authentic Spanish tapas menu.

Eden East at Springdale Farm

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Chef Sonya Coté's name is inextricably associated with the term "locavore" and related buzzwords, and she comes by it honestly. Her new Eden East restaurant—open weekends dinner service and brunch—sources ingredients directly from the surrounding Springdale Farm.

Mettle, the east side restaurant venture from Bridget "Queen of Rainey Street" Dunlap, opened in early June at the tail-end of East Sixth Street at Calles. Chef Andrew Francisco's menu is diverse—diners will find everything from bone marrow to tacos—but if anyone can pull it off, it's this Olivia veteran.

Searsucker

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San Diego cheflebrity Brian Malarkey's first sartorially named Austin venture, Searsucker, is part of his "fabric of social dining" concept, an anything-goes style of eating and drinking, from a menu of "approachable and unpretentious dishes."

Jeffrey's

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This nearly forty-year-old Clarksville wine-and-dine institution has been reimagined as a kind of Wes Anderson-meets-Junior League retreat by cheftrepreneur Larry McGuire. Will Austin take to the martini carts, seersucker-clad valets and pricey steak cuts?

John Mueller Meat Company

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Feisty meat cook John Mueller is back in action behind the Kellee's Place dive bar with his new John Mueller Meat Co. truck. Yes, there will be a line. Yes, there will be beer.

Daruma Ramen

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This cozy little downtown spot from Komé's Take and Kayo Asazu softly opened in early April, serving a somewhat lighter take on traditional ramen than other noodle shops in town. They're currently the only ramen restaurant in Austin that serves vegan ramen on the regular.

Salt & Time

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After impressing Austinites with their farmers' market offerings, Salt & Time has finally gone brick-and-mortar on the east side. Grab a hearty sandwich at lunch and take home a nice cut of meat for dinner later on.

Epicerie

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Thomas Keller-trained chef Sarah McIntosh, formerly of Olivia, opened her artisan grocery, cafe and bar to serve the French-Louisiana inspired food she loves making at home with her friends and family.

Freedmen's

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Freedmen's features a stunning antique bar, craft cocktails and show-stopping barbecue from pitmaster Evan LeRoy, who smokes everything from brisket to banana pudding.

Buzz Mill Coffee

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The Buzz Mill serves coffee, booze and beer 24 hours a day on up-and-coming East Riverside, while out in the sprawling yard, the Blue Ox barbecue truck serves smoked meats and a see-and-be-seen brunch for the tattoos-and-Ray Bans crowd.

QUI Restaurant

Qui is not a hot restaurant. Qui is the hottest restaurant. The most anticipated opening of the year, Qui is Top Chef winner Paul Qui's east side flagship, the first all-Qui all-the-time locale where he's really been able to stretch his culinary legs, with a menu that features his take on Mexican street corn, seven preparations of rabbit, a gorgeous Wagyu steak to share and a mind-blowing "Ode to Michel Bras" cold soup. But part of Qui's genius is his decision to surround himself with other brilliant people, like front-of-house maven June Rodil, assistant GM Bill Man, chef consultant Tim Dornon and bar manager Michael Simon.

Barlata

Chef Daniel Olivella's Austin outpost of his Barlata Tapas Bar stands to be one of the most popular spots of the summer, as the NoCal chef introduces Austin to the brilliance of his authentic Spanish tapas menu.

Eden East at Springdale Farm

Chef Sonya Coté's name is inextricably associated with the term "locavore" and related buzzwords, and she comes by it honestly. Her new Eden East restaurant—open weekends dinner service and brunch—sources ingredients directly from the surrounding Springdale Farm.

Mettle

Mettle, the east side restaurant venture from Bridget "Queen of Rainey Street" Dunlap, opened in early June at the tail-end of East Sixth Street at Calles. Chef Andrew Francisco's menu is diverse—diners will find everything from bone marrow to tacos—but if anyone can pull it off, it's this Olivia veteran.

Searsucker

San Diego cheflebrity Brian Malarkey's first sartorially named Austin venture, Searsucker, is part of his "fabric of social dining" concept, an anything-goes style of eating and drinking, from a menu of "approachable and unpretentious dishes."

Jeffrey's

This nearly forty-year-old Clarksville wine-and-dine institution has been reimagined as a kind of Wes Anderson-meets-Junior League retreat by cheftrepreneur Larry McGuire. Will Austin take to the martini carts, seersucker-clad valets and pricey steak cuts?

John Mueller Meat Company

Feisty meat cook John Mueller is back in action behind the Kellee's Place dive bar with his new John Mueller Meat Co. truck. Yes, there will be a line. Yes, there will be beer.

Daruma Ramen

This cozy little downtown spot from Komé's Take and Kayo Asazu softly opened in early April, serving a somewhat lighter take on traditional ramen than other noodle shops in town. They're currently the only ramen restaurant in Austin that serves vegan ramen on the regular.

Salt & Time

After impressing Austinites with their farmers' market offerings, Salt & Time has finally gone brick-and-mortar on the east side. Grab a hearty sandwich at lunch and take home a nice cut of meat for dinner later on.

Epicerie

Thomas Keller-trained chef Sarah McIntosh, formerly of Olivia, opened her artisan grocery, cafe and bar to serve the French-Louisiana inspired food she loves making at home with her friends and family.

Freedmen's

Freedmen's features a stunning antique bar, craft cocktails and show-stopping barbecue from pitmaster Evan LeRoy, who smokes everything from brisket to banana pudding.

Buzz Mill Coffee

The Buzz Mill serves coffee, booze and beer 24 hours a day on up-and-coming East Riverside, while out in the sprawling yard, the Blue Ox barbecue truck serves smoked meats and a see-and-be-seen brunch for the tattoos-and-Ray Bans crowd.

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