5th Oak co-owners Ana Luisa Fuentes (left) and Ursula Clayton are a mother-daughter team.[/caption]Imagine hanging out with friends on someone’s patio and enjoying a beer and pizza. That is the feeling Ursula Clayton and her mother, Ana Luisa Fuentes, wanted to create with their new restaurant, 5th Oak.
“We wanted to create something more for the neighborhood that has embraced us so much after opening eight|11 Place,” Clayton said. “We really want to revitalize Main Street.”
Ursula and her husband, Lance Clayton, own another restaurant called eight|11 Place at 7080 W. Main St., which they opened in 2012 after they moved from Austin.
Ursula said she and her husband were searching for an eatery that had an Austin vibe but could not find anything similar, so they decided to create their own.
After the success of eight|11 Place, Ursula said she wanted to continue to revitalize the historical downtown area with a place that would make residents come out, enjoy themselves and have a good time.
Eight pizzas ($17.50 each) are served at 5th Oak with various toppings.[/caption]So she and her mother decided to open up a new eatery serving local pizza and craft beer.
5th Oak is in a small house that has been renovated into a classic rustic eatery. Customers can hear ’70s and ’80s music from the speakers outside.
There are no menus, but a blackboard features eight different pizzas from which to choose and each costs $17.50. The pizzas do not have names but are numbered, and the board lists the ingredients of each.
The restaurant is still waiting to obtain its liquor license to be able to start selling craft beer. Until then the restaurant has growlers, glass containers to transport beer, with the 5th Oak logo printed on the side. Customers can take the growlers to eight|11 Place to have them filled for a discount. Customers can also bring their own beer or beverage.
“We’re trying to get this to be a self-serving kind of place where you place your order, take it to the kitchen, then we call you to pick it up,” Fuentes said. “We want it to be just simple and environmentally friendly.”
5th Oak uses eco-friendly napkins and encourages its customers to recycle by having recycle bins out front.
Ursula also said the restaurant opened at a great time because the weather is cooling down, creating the perfect patio weather.
“We want people to come out and enjoy our patio with friends and new friends,” Ursula said. “It just feels nice, and 5th Oak creates a feeling of togetherness and building a community.”
