Full English

Husband and wife Smith and Bachini-Smith thought of opening a restaurant after customers of their British baked goods at the Sunset Valley Farmer’s Market requested a cafe that serves tea with the food. The owners wanted to evolve the business past a farmers market stand, Bachini-Smith said.

In 2010, they opened Full English off Manchaca Road north of Stassney Lane. Bachini-Smith said the neighborhood at the time was not as popular as it is now, and Full English provided a nearby cafe and coffee shop for locals to eat or socialize.

“We thought of opening a place where we would want to go because we live here,” Bachini-Smith said.

For the first few years, the duo worked 60 hours per week trying to get the restaurant to be profitable, Alice said. Now, the restaurant has staff. Additionally, the restaurant was originally meant to be complementary to the farmers market stand, but the restaurant quickly became more than what the couple could handle, Smith said.

Inside Full English, tables, furniture and decor are all procured from thrift stores and secondhand shops, Bachini-Smith said, evoking a do-it-yourself, improvised punk theme. If a piece of furniture needs to be replaced, then the owners go to a thrift store and get any available furniture, not needing to find an exact replacement of the broken chair or table, Bachini-Smith said, saving costs and adding to the eatery’s D.I.Y. charm.

Full English’s all-day breakfast menu, which includes the Full English meal, also offers breakfast sandwiches, pancakes, pastries and granola. The breakfast food is the reason why most people come to Full English, Bachini-Smith said.

Full English’s high tea ($15 per person), which must be booked 24 hours or more in advance, includes an assortment of tea sandwiches, scones, desserts and tea.

Full English 2000 Southern Oaks Drive, Austin 512-240-2748 • www.fullenglishfood.com Hours: Wed.-Thu. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Fri. 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Sat. 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-5 p.m., closed Mon.-Tue.