ATXReview
Included In
Sometimes, a building finds itself in a situation where it’s playing some weird, inanimate version of musical chairs with restaurants rotating in and out every couple of years. In Austin’s case, it’s that corner spot next to Counter Cafe near 6th and Chicon. Over the years we’ve seen it play host to a couple different restaurants, a tiki bar, and, at one point, a really big USPS office. Fortunately for you, there’s still a tiny post office next door, so there’s no need to resort to pigeons, owls, or any other alternative methods of mail transport.
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Now it’s the home of Canje, a Caribbean restaurant from the team that brought you Hestia, Kalimotxo, Emmer & Rye, and Henbit. This spot, however, is a passion project from chef Tavel Bristol-Joseph—originally from Guyana—who you might know as the creator of those chocolate chip cookies from Henbit that are roughly the thickness of a copy of War and Peace, but a lot less dense. And much like the Napoleonic chronicle, we think Canje is going to endure the test of time.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
This is a fun, busy space with a lot of energy, but not in a way that ever feels too crowded. It’s cozy and inviting, with hip hop pumping from the speakers—the kind of place you’d want to come with a date or a group of friends. And given how much of the menu is made up of shareable plates, that’s probably your best bet. Start off with some tangy sour orange ceviche with housemade taro chips. Then grab an order of perfectly charred grilled shrimp with a zippy “green sauce” made from a puree of all the extra greens the kitchen has lying around.
Next, move on to some heartier portions from the suppa section, like the wild boar pepper pot—a Guyanase specialty usually served at Christmas because of how long it takes to make. It could be a toasty 110° Austin summer evening, but those first few sips of rich, gingery cassava broth will throw All I Want For Christmas Is You right back into your head. And Jamaican classics like the sweet, extra-spicy jerk chicken are one of the rare instances where the poultry dish on the menu isn’t just there for the picky eater in your group.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Then there are the cocktails. Rum is the highlight here—though pretty much all of the major spirits show themselves in some form or another—and it truly shines in drinks like the T’i Punch. Vaguely reminiscent of an Old Fashioned, it’s a darker, boozier take on the national cocktail of Martinique. Other drinks like the Good Neighbor, featuring banana-infused Plantation rum and the always fun and funky Smith+Cross, are so unique and fun, you’ll leave asking “why is the rum gone?” in your best Jack Sparrow. And if you’d rather keep things simple, we’ve found that an ice cold Red Stripe goes pretty well with just about everything on the menu.
We had high hopes moving into the dessert section. Every other spot this team has opened has had at least one firework of a finisher—Hestia’s kakigori, Kalimotxo’s Basque cheesecake, Henbit’s monster cookies, to name a few—but the approach here is a bit more mild. There are some really fun tropical takes on classics, like a wonderfully fluffy flan covered in tart dots of passion fruit. But there are also things like a guava and white chocolate tres leches that sounds more exciting on paper than they taste. While you won’t see any pyrotechnics here, the simpler approach they’ve taken still leads to a pretty satisfying finish. This is Toy Story 4. Did we enjoy it? Sure. But Toy Story 3 made us cry.
Some of the timing can be a bit wonky, and there's a chance that after the first couple of dishes, you'll never see your original server again—it’s safe to say they’re still figuring a few things out at Canje. But with an exciting space, some really standout menu items, and a cocktail menu worthy of being a standalone bar, we think Canje just might be the one to end this never-ending game of musical chairs.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Ceviche
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Grilled Blue Prawns
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Wild Boar Pepper Pot
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Roti
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Jerk Chicken
photo credit: Richard Casteel