Los Pinos Mexican Restaurant
Los Pinos Mexican Restaurant has been serving food inspired by the entire region of Mexico, from Chihuahua to Mexico City to Yucatan, for nearly two decades in the Lake Travis community.
Owner and chef Margarito Maldonado worked in various kitchens around Austin for about 30 years before opening Los Pinos in 2005 with wife Maria.
The menu is full of Mexican classics such as street tacos, fajitas, flautas, quesadillas, chalupas, enchiladas, rellenos, menudo, pozole and a variety of seafood dishes, plus breakfast plates and tacos. For dessert, there’s classics like sopapilla and flan, plus creme brulee and fried ice cream.
Read the full story by Reporter Brittany Anderson.
Lee's Kitchen + Cocktails
Lee’s Kitchen + Cocktails has been serving up classic Vietnamese dishes, including their highly-coveted pho and Hainan chicken rice dishes, to the Westlake community since April 2023.
Owners Pat and Sara Lee both grew up in the service industry. Sara’s parents owned a restaurant, and Pat, born in Vietnam, is the son of Tom and Thang Lee, who opened the Asian grocery store MT Supermarket in North Austin in 1983.
While their menu features classics such as pho, egg rolls, vermicelli bowls and a variety of meat, seafood, vegetable, rice and noodle dishes, Lee’s Kitchen serves Vietnamese-style Hainan chicken rice—a rarity among Asian restaurants in the area.
Read the full story by Reporter Brittany Anderson.
Jersey Giant Pizza
Jersey Giant Pizza recently celebrated a decade of being open in Bee Cave. Owned and operated by New Jersey native Paul Serraino, the pizzeria features an extensive menu of giant pizzas, desserts and more, inspired by Serraino’s East Coast childhood.
Jersey Giant is best known for its giant 28-inch pies but also offers 12-, 18-, 20-, 22- and 24-inch pizzas with classic meat, cheese and veggie toppings, plus gluten-free options.
These pizzas, along with other menu items such as chicken wings, pizza rolls, calzones and garlic knots, are made on the “largest stone pizza oven that they make,” which Serraino said is the authentic way of doing things. The menu also features meatballs, sub sandwiches, salads and desserts such as cinnamon rolls and cheesecake bites.
Read the full story by Reporter Brittany Anderson.
Cho Sushi
Before pandemic-related challenges could claim yet another beloved Lakeway business, Cho Sushi was saved in 2022 by Steven Xue, a young, serial entrepreneur and trained sushi chef.
Hailing from Los Angeles, Xue was only 25 when he rescued the 15-year-old Japanese restaurant, determined to preserve the offerings community members knew and loved.
Today, only the Steiner Ranch location remains, while the Lakeway location was closed and leased to Blue Fin Sushi & Ramen.
The menu features a variety of traditional sushi, nigiri and sashimi, with the blue fin tuna and fresh-caught yellowtail fish being the most popular, Xu said.
Other seafood offerings include the pan-seared Chilean sea bass, spicy crab salad and pan-seared diver scallops.
Read the full story by Reporter Kameryn Griesser.
