New Texas law allows beer and wine to be sold on Sundays at 10 a.m.

New liquor law
Soon, Texans will be able to buy beer and wine before noon on Sundays, thanks to a long-awaited law this week. The bill was passed on June 18 and comes into force on Wednesday, September 1. Previously, stores were not allowed to start selling beer and wine on Sundays before noon, a longstanding law established in response to the repeal of the ban. A similar bill stalled in the Texas Legislature in 2019, the same year takeout beer was legalized.

There’s another bill currently pending that would allow liquor sales in Texas on Sundays — under the same post-prohibition-era laws — but it doesn’t look like it will become legal. Earlier this summer, Texas Governor Greg Abbott permanently legalized takeout cocktails.

space station bartender
Elon Musk, new resident of Texas Private space company SpaceX is looking for a “spaceport mixologist”, who would mix drinks for staff in Brownsville, Texas.

Austin Black Food Week
Austin’s Black Food Week begins this week, where a different black-owned restaurant is highlighted each day. Participating companies include Bird Bird Biscuit, Aster’s Ethiopian Food, Emmer & Rye, Sam’s BBQ, Sassy’s Vegetarian Soul Food, R&B’s Steak & Fries, Hoover’s Cooking and many more. It begins on Monday August 30 and ends on Sunday September 19. It has three phases, two weeks dedicated to restaurants and one week to food trucks. It is organized by the non-profit Austin Justice Coalition.

Rollingwood City doesn’t want Park Bakery
Houston Imports Tiny Boxwoods wanted to open a physical location of its Milk & Cookies bakery and cafe in Rollingwood Park in Rollingwood City, but the city council rejected the idea, as reported by Statesman. The publication shared that citizens who were against the idea “dislike the idea of ​​a permanent retail establishment on park land” and “worr[ied] about the increased traffic in the area.

Feed the teachers
Austin’s takeout/delivery restaurant Tso Chinese Delivery aims to donate $25,000 worth of meals to teachers and other employees at Greater Austin-area schools through its charitable arm Tso Giving. The restaurant will distribute $25 gift cards to 1,000 school staff. Applications are currently being accepted online.

Wine recognition
Bufalina Wine Director Rania Zayyat Named ’40 Under 40 Tastemaker’ by Publication Passionate about wine this month. The magazine highlighted her efforts as founder and president of wine association Lift Collective, as well as her work the curation of Bufalina’s natural wine list and the launch of the accompanying online store and wine club.

Opening of the ghost kitchen
Austin’s Italian restaurant Juliet has opened a new ghost kitchen restaurant as part of its new company Veneto Hospitality. Benvolio’s serves an Italian menu with Greek and Texas inflections, leading to salads, sandwiches and pizzas available for takeout and delivery orders through third-party companies Uber Eats, Grubhub and DoorDash.

instant shutter
London-born donut popup 1235Donuts halted services over the weekend.

Downtown expansion opening alert
Whimsical salad chain Sweetgreen has opened its third downtown Austin location. The new restaurant can be found at 200 West Second Street starting August 24.

Getting to San Antonio Attraction
San Antonio food truck Naco Mexican Eatery is opening a physical restaurant in the fall. It is on the 2015 I-410 northeast loop in the Los Patios development. Couple Francisco Estrada and Lizzeth Martinez opened the truck in 2018, serving a Mexican menu of tacos, tortas, chilaquiles and other dishes.

Rosh Hashanah dinner
Mediterranean restaurant Aba, imported from Chicago, is preparing a take-out meal for Rosh Hashanah next week. Dishes include matzo ball soup, latkes, za’atar roast chicken, and honey pie. Orders must be placed by noon on Sunday, September 5 for pickup on Monday and Tuesday, September 6 and 7 from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Reheatable meals are $59.95 per serving.

More Whataburger Clothing
The Texas-based Whataburger chain has created an apparel set with Academy Sports, including shirts, shorts and hats, now available on the sports chain’s website and in physical stores.