From left: Lox, Box & Barrel Prep Chef Nathan Pearlman, owner Sebastien Caillabet, Front of House Manager Andrea Speck and Operations Manager Chozet are the team members who are opening the restaurant. From left: Lox, Box & Barrel Prep Chef Nathan Pearlman, owner Sebastien Caillabet, Front of House Manager Andrea Speck and Operations Manager Chozet are the team members who are opening the restaurant.[/caption]

What began as the supper club of a local lox, or smoked salmon, supplier has blossomed into a new fast-casual American deli for the Southwest Austin area, providing boxed lunches to take along on brewery tours or a dine-in experience with local beer and wine.

Lox, Box & Barrel is the creation of Sebastien Caillabet, a chef who also owns Celtic Seafare, a boutique lox company that sells directly to chefs and to the public at farmers markets. The fast-casual deli opened March 23 for lunch service. Breakfast hours are planned to begin in April.

For the past two years, Celtic Seafare was operating a reservations-only supper club every Friday and Saturday, offering seasonal menu items.

“We wanted to expand a bit more and do ... something fairly simple, natural and fresh that everyone can appreciate,” Caillabet said.

Caillabet started Lox, Box & Barrel on Hwy. 290 in Southwest Austin because of the lack of delis in Austin, he said. The name aims to represent the smoked salmon, boxed lunches and alcohol offered at the restaurant, Caillabet said. The name is also a nod to “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels”—one of Caillabet’s favorite films.

Lox, Box & Barrel, which was slated to open in late March on Hwy. 290 at press time, smokes its own salmon in its kitchen daily. The restaurant also ferments its own sauerkraut, cures its own pork belly in the kitchen, and creates other items from scratch, Caillabet said. Lox, Box & Barrel, which opened March 23, smokes its own salmon in its kitchen daily. The restaurant also ferments its own sauerkraut, cures its own pork belly in the kitchen, and creates other items from scratch, Caillabet said.[/caption]

Ingredients are locally sourced and natural, he said. Smoked salmon, Caillabet’s Celtic Seafare staple, appears in a bagel and lox sandwich ($10.25) and a lox and goat cheese sandwich ($9.85). Soups, sides, desserts and salads include the Green Goddess Cobb Salad ($12.25) with bibb lettuce and micro cress, romaine lettuce, chicken, bacon, tomatoes, blue cheese, chives, avocado and egg.

Dine-in customers can also order Duchman Family Winery wine and local beer from breweries such as Real Ale Brewing Co., Live Oak Brewing Co. and Argus Cidery.

Lox, Box & Barrel 9521 W. Hwy. 290, Ste. 100, Austin www.loxboxandbarrel.com March hours: Mon.-Sat. 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Sun. 10 am.-1 p.m. April hours: Mon.-Fri. 6 a.m.-4 p.m., Sat. 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-1 p.m.