Edgar and Christina Torres crafted School House Pub as a nod to the building. Edgar Torres said the pub’s structure looked like an old school house which inspired the pub’s theme. (Courtesy School House Pub)
School is in session on Manor Road. Co-owners Christina and Edgar Torres are serving up elevated bar food, local brews and specialty cocktails at School House Pub, a local eatery part of the Mi Madre’s and Techo Mezcaleria & Agave Bar family.
A family affair
Husband and wife duo Edgar and Christina Torres met at the Culinary Institute of America in New York. Years later, the pair moved to Austin, Edgar Torres’ hometown, where his parents have been running Mi Madre’s since 1990.
Mi Madre’s was founded by Aurelio and Rosa Torres—commonly known as Mr. T and Mama Torres, Christina Torres said. The Mexican restaurant is where Edgar Torres grew up—working as a dishwasher, server and cook.
The backstory
Before owning School House Pub, Edgar and Christina Torres opened Zandunga Mexican Bistro in East Austin, serving Mexican food with a modern flare. The restaurant closed after two years, spurring the couple to transition from fine dining to a new concept.
“I wanted good consistent food [and] somewhere where you can get good craft beer, good cocktails .... and then really good wine as well,” Edgar Torres said.
The couple officially opened School House Pub in 2013 next to Mi Madre’s.
The pub's fish and chips feature a beer battered pollock with garlic fries and a goat cheese tarter sauce ($18). (Courtesy School House Pub)
From the oven
As chefs, Edgar and Christina Torres crafted the food menu with intentionality, bringing together housemade favorites, local ingredients and bold flavors. A fan favorite, Edgar Torres said, is the fish and chips served with garlic fries and a goat cheese tartar sauce.
“People rave about our fries,” Edgar Torres said. “We hand punch them and then we toss them in sea salt, garlic and chopped parsley. And when you come in here, you know right away that you know those fries are full of garlic.”
Other menu highlights include the Asian crunch salad, mac and cheese, burgers, house made pretzels, Italian grilled cheese and the chicken gyro with onion rings.
Cocktail options at School House Pub include Band Camp, shaken with vodka, lavendar, honey, cucumber and lemon. (Courtesy School House Pub)
It’s 5 o’clock somewhere
For patrons looking to grab a drink, the pub’s menu is stocked with local beers, red and white wines and specialty cocktails with a nod to school spirit.
Beer options include Austin Beer Works Peacemaker, Blue Owl Spirit Animal Sour and Convict Hill Oatmeal Stout. Cocktails include the Trapper Keeper, made with mezcal, ginger liqueur and apricot-orange blossom marmalade.
In recent years, the School House Pub menu has expanded to include more non-alcoholic beers and mocktails upon noticing an increase in non-alcoholic drink sales. Customers looking for alcohol-free beverages can order the Phony Negroni or the Crossing Guard, made with pear juice, apple-mint shrub and citrus.
“We like to cater to everybody for sure,” Edgar Torres said.
Growing challenges
The School House Pub team took to Instagram in late July to announce that the pub was broken into and all of the employee tips were taken from the restaurant’s safe. In the post, the team invited customers to visit the pub and order a cocktail, beer or fish and chips. The response, Edgar Torres said, was astounding.
“I feel like we've built a little community,” Edgar Torres said. “We've had people that have been here since we've opened, and we've had regulars that didn't know each other before they met here, now they're friends and they come [here] together.”
For locals who haven’t been to the pub before, Edgar Torres encourages people to check it out.
“I guarantee you you'll want to stay and have another and come back,” Edgar Torres said. “I credit that a lot to our wonderful staff that we have.”
