Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit Satellite co-owners Marty (left) and Mark Kamburis opened the restaurant in 1999.[/caption]

Changes are in store for Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit—formerly Satellite Bistro & Bar—as its 17-year anniversary approaches in October.

Owners Mark and Marty Kamburis said one of the major changes for Satellite will be the renovation of its live music area into a happy hour and sporting-event lounge with a communal table and additional seating for about 40 people to emphasize a more social setting.

“[Live music] was going OK, but lately we just decided to move in a different direction,” Mark said. “You could say the guests have spoken, and they would rather mingle and converse.”

The owners plan to keep live music for Sunday brunch service and special events, Mark said. The restaurant may also experiment with a live DJ in the outdoor patio area, he added.

The Kamburis brothers, who founded Flipnotics coffee shop on Barton Springs Road in the 1990s, opened Satellite in Oak Hill in 1999 and then relocated to Circle C Ranch in 2006. The restaurant has become a regular happy hour setting for neighborhood groups, such as cycling clubs, Marty said.

The other major change for Satellite is the renaming to Eat Drink Orbit, words meant to evoke energy and action, Marty said. “Bistro” was an old term and did not represent the restaurant, Mark said.

“There’s not a definition to ‘Eat Drink Orbit,’” Mark said. “It’s what we can make it to be. That’s why we liked ‘Flipnotics.’ We made that word up so when you thought of the name, you had to think of our place.”

Other renovations to the restaurant include new outdoor tables, new flooring, newly painted walls, new uniforms for servers and more seasonal menu items, Mark said. The remodeling brightens the restaurant and makes it more vibrant, Mark said.

As the brothers plan for Satellite’s 17th anniversary, they reflect on how far they have come. Marty said he feels proud of making a community establishment for employees and guests alike. Staff form friendships, and guests become regulars who come by multiple times per week, Marty said.

“[Regular customers’] nickname for us is ‘Cheers,’” Mark said.

Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit The crab-stuffed avocado salad ($14) is served with a garlic-chili ranch dressing.[/caption]

Seasonal offerings

Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit’s seasonal menu includes Airline Chicken Breast ($18) made with locally sourced ingredients from farms that use responsible farming techniques, Marty said. Some of the regular menu items will start incorporating more local ingredients, he said.

  • Beef tartare ($16)—Angus tenderloin, shallot oil, capers, lemon, parsley, quail yolk, grilled toast
  • Summer Beet Salad ($12)—baby beets, watermelon, Texas goat cheese, summer lettuce, mint, basil, garlic-herb vinaigrette
  • Seared Diver Scallops ($28)—creamy corn, poblano, Texas peaches, arugula, green beans, charred jalapeno vinaigrette
  • Beer-glazed Chicken ($18)—beer-honey sauce, herb butter fingerling potatoes, baby kale, wild mushrooms
  • Fredricksburg Peach Panna Cotta ($8)—Greek yogurt, peach compote, peach relish, blueberry, peach shortbread
Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit Satellite...Eat Drink Orbit’s is renovating its patio and adding new dining tables.[/caption]