Where Chefs Eat in Austin

by Phaidon

Updated 15 December 2023

You’re in luck. The world’s best chefs are sharing their favorite places to dine out in Austin. We’ve partnered with Phaidon’s Where Chefs Eat, the best-selling restaurant guidebook with over 7,000 recommendations across the globe, to create a list of restaurants in Austin where chefs love to eat. Grab your copy of this must-have guide, and get 30% off, just for being an OpenTable diner.

Vespaio Austin

4.7

4.7 (1723)

$31 to $50

Italian

Downtown

About the restaurant

"This is one of the first good restaurants to open, when Austin was still a sleepy college town. It's laid-back and neighborhood-y but they have great food and bartenders." – Larry McGuire

Top review

CooperVIP

Dined 2 days ago

Great experience! Staff was helpful and food was amazing. An Austin gem

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Popular dish

Pappardelle Bolognese

Popular dish

Linguine con Vongole

June's All Day

4.8

4.8 (1047)

$30 and under

Contemporary American

South Austin

About the restaurant

Recommended by Chef Kevin Fink from Emmer & Rye

Top review

Allison

Dined 4 days ago

We had a great time! Lovely ambience and the food was delicious.

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Experience

Happy Hour | Monday - Friday

Uchiko Austin

4.8

4.8 (6046)

$50 and over

Sushi

Central Austin

About the restaurant

Recommended by Chef Kevin Fink from Emmer & Rye

Top review

Gina

Dined 3 days ago

Wonderful food, as usual, first time at this location and the noise level is definitely better than Uchi!!

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4.7

4.7 (282)

$30 and under

Mexican

East Austin

About the restaurant

Recommended by Chef Jesse Griffiths from Dai Due Butcher Shop & Supper Club

Top review

Dan

Dined 3 days ago

Authentic food coked perfectly and served by an outstanding staff. What more could anyone want.

Perla's Seafood and Oyster Bar

4.8

4.8 (3726)

$31 to $50

Seafood

Downtown

About the restaurant

"Great, simple seafood and oysters. Very consistent, with good service and fun wines." – Jesse Griffiths

Top review

Andres

Dined 4 days ago

My girlfriend and I made a last-minute decision to visit Perla's, and we're pleasantly satisfied with just about everything. We ordered 3 appetizers: Octopus, crab cake, and tuna tostada. All of them are excellent in different ways. Individually: - Crab : great brightness from the (celery?) And green apple salad to compliment the fresh brightness and creamy sweet aroma of the crunchy cake. By far my favorite. - Octopus: the sauce it's served over has a nice subtle dimension without overpowering the octopus. Nice smoky spicy profile. - The tuna tostada is what you expect from a Tuna Tostada. Nothing special, but you get exactly what you pay for. The tostada integrity and texture and crunch was phenomenal. The tuna itself was of fantastic quality and generous portion. Wouldve preferred some sort of spicy ponzu instead of the typical habanero aioli. Seems played out, but maybe that's just my preference. Then, we finished with the lobster bucatini. Now, this was value! Super rich and creamy and filling. The lobster was stupendous. Only gripe is there was one claw that I couldn't pry open. Sadly, that was tossed out. Dining room was clean and beautiful but quite tame. Service was fast and intelligent. We had dinner in about 60 minutes and left full and extremely satisfied. Overall. Dishes were pretty and tasty. Everything was great. Will visit again Didn't get my servers name, but that man was obviously a seasoned server as he read the room perfectly and approached exactly at the right time and for the right amount of engagement. 5/5

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Nova Scotia Lobster Bucatini

Via 313 - East Side

$30 and under

Pizzeria

East Austin

About the restaurant