Bits and Bites

As I am sure many of you have seen online, there is a small business grant opportunity via Chase Bank and Living Social. Today's the last day to vote! I know I have already submitted votes for Sugar Mama's Bakery, Cocoa Puro, and Salt and Time who I believe have all reached the minimum voting requirements to get to the next round. One more -- Austin Slow Burn -- please vote for them today!!! Click on Mission Small Business, log in, and then enter Austin, TX as your search criteria. (I've been unsuccessful in searching by business name on this site, not just for ASB, but for others too.) Jump to page 38, and you should see Austin Slow Burn, and hit vote! Jill & Kevin Lewis have become friends of mine, and their products if you aren't familiar are truly fantastic! Best darn queso in the world! No joke!

Exciting neighborhood news! The original location of the Soup Peddler at the southeast corner of South 1st and Mary, is now offering a walk up window with soup and Juicebox selections! I may walk over and get a shake once I finish this post!

And on the national restaurant scene, Eater has named sushi chef Angela Majko of Uchiko one of their Eater Young Guns for 2012. The one time I sat at the sushi bar at Uchiko, Angela was our chef, and frankly, she kicked ass! My friend and I were so impressed with how well she multi-tasked, and could put together tastes that would please us. Congrats!


Upcoming openings...
Have more lives than a cat, it looks like Celis Brewery is going to return to the Austin area. {They seem to have two Facebook pages....Celis Beer and Celis Brewery, the latter being the more current, with mention of their return.} Daughter of (now deceased) founder Pierre, Christine Celis has reclaimed (bought?) back the family name, though there's no word yet on when or where the brewing will occur.


The restaurant group behind Austin Java is going to transform the downtown spot at City Hall into a Texas/Cajun themed eatery, with live music as well. They're working with the man behind Austin City Limits (which is now conveniently across the street), Terry Lickona, who undoubtedly will plan the music. Currently in planning stages, there's no timetable yet for the conversion.


Temporarily closed is Mirabelle, who apparently are revamping their entire concept. Hope they do in fact reopen.

Wonder when (if?) Mercury Pizza will reopen?