The restaurant opened in October 2024 inside the first floor of Arrive Austin Hotel. (Courtesy Mars Tello)
Kalimotxo is serving up Spanish cuisine and wine in East Austin, offering tapas, pintxos, cocktails and wines. The spot serves as a gray area between a fine dining establishment and a bar, according to the restaurant’s website.
Kalimotxo, an Emmer and Rye Hospitality restaurant, celebrates Basque cuisine, a niche of Spanish cuisine, said Rand Egbert, partner and Creative Director at Emmer and Rye Hospitality Group. The space is a unique meeting spot where patrons can enjoy happy hour, cocktails, small bites or dinner, all in good company, Egbert said.
“There's nothing like it in Austin, and it's really special,” Egbert said.
As Egbert curated Kalimoxto’s interior design, he tried to use Spanish materials and artists when possible. The bar is resurfaced with marble from Alicante, Spain, he said. (Courtesy Mars Tello)
Egbert has worked in restaurants his whole life, starting as a dishwasher in high school and later training at the Culinary Institute of America in New York. Later in his career, Egbert moved back to Austin to open his own business and teamed up with the Emmer and Rye team, starting as a general manager before becoming the brand’s creative director.
“Kalimotxo was my brainchild from the group,” Egbert said. “When I was in culinary school, I took a year off and lived in Spain. I lived in Valencia and I fell in love with Spanish culture [and] Spanish food.”
On the menu
Kalimotxo’s food menu is inspired by the pintxo bars in San Sebastian, where patrons can indulge in hundreds of hors d'oeuvres and small plates while having a glass of wine or a beer and socializing, Egbert detailed.
The menu includes a range of tapas, including oysters, salads, tuna crudo, beef tartare, batatas bravas and cheese churros. Pintxos range from piquillo and cheese tostas, which feature sweet Spanish pepper and goat cheese, as well as the pincho moruno, made with grilled chicken, pomegranate molasses and fried capers.
“The great thing about pintxos and small plates is you get to try so many different things,” Egbert said. “It’s really about this sharing and communal experience.”
The restaurant also offers meat and cheese plates, as well as bigger dishes. Entree-style meals include the Kali Burger, served with angus beef, onions and mahon cheese, as well as the pan-seared cod and Texas wagyu sirloin.
The restaurant opened in October 2024 inside the first floor of Arrive Austin Hotel. (Courtesy Mars Tello)
Looking for a libation?
Kalimotxo customers can expect to see a wide variety of beverage offerings, including Spanish classics like the Spanish G&T, featuring gin, elderflower tonic, citrus and juniper berries. Other cocktails include the Bad Rabbit, made with reposado tequila, carrot, ginger, spicy honey and lime.
The East Austin establishment also has a wine list that showcases white, red, orange and rose offerings, as well as ciders, sherry, vermouth and beer.
The restaurant serves tapas, including the croquetas de jamón, which are Spanish ham fritters with jamón serrano ($14). (Courtesy Mars Tello)
What’s in a name
Kalimotxo is named after the Basque beverage, which is a mixture of red wine and Coke, Egbert explained. The drink tastes like sangria, he said.
“You don't need an expensive red wine to make it because you're going to add Coke to it and put it on ice, and you just have this simple, delicious cocktail, which I drink a lot of when I lived in Spain,” Egbert said.
In their own words
“Spain has a culture of community and walking around and going to the plaza with your family and friends, and hanging out for hours just talking over a spritzer and some olives and cured meats and some potato chips and just enjoying life,” Egbert said. “Kalimotxo really celebrates that vibe.”
