ATXGuide
The Best French Restaurants In Austin
photo credit: Richard Casteel
We have the French to thank for the Statue of Liberty, inventing braille, and figuring out that a thick layer of baked cheese makes onion soup taste better. Austin might not be known for its French restaurants, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few spots serving great steak frites and escargot. The next time you feel like swirling around a big glass of red wine before ripping apart a baguette, head to one of these places.
THE SPOTS
People come to this French brasserie in East Austin to feel sexy while eating fries, either with a date or in hopes of finding one. And if you’re not here to flirt, we can only assume you’re just a fan of patios with chandeliers and private cabanas, or very French wine lists. Justine’s thrives on all of the above while serving textbook-ready classics like buttery escargot and glistening steak tartare that could pass for a movie prop. The food is good, but it’s all secondary to the experience of drinking a martini at the large wooden bar or a tiny marble tabletop.
photo credit: Holly Dirks
Head to Péché in the Warehouse District when you need somewhere cold and dark to escape the Austin sun or a sh*tty week. The lack of windows will help you lose track of time, and they have a great Happy Hour deal every night (and all day Sunday and Monday). Péché also offers one of the biggest absinthe selections in town, in case you’re in the mood to vibrate from highly alcoholic anise or you’re a time traveler from the 1860s. Make a reservation or just chance it by walking into the always-busy dining room and order some escargot and french onion soup.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
If we needed to explain “cottagecore” to someone who didn’t spend half their time online, we’d show them a photo of Blue Dahlia’s patio in Westlake. It’s quaint in a way that feels like it grew up in a village near a babbling brook in the French countryside, with food that leans more rustic than polished. Show up for lunch and grab a seat on the patio full of blue mosaic tables and hanging plants, order a prosciutto and mozzarella tartine to share, then round out the meal with hearty coq au vin blanc and a warm baguette.
photo credit: Maggie Svoboda
Epicerie’s daily quiche, whatever it is, will summon you. Not since Auntie Anne’s in the mall have we been so aggressively beckoned to a display case. And it’s just one of the great brunch dishes at this spot that’s a little bit French, a little bit Louisiana, and a shining star in the pastry department. If you want more of a French experience, come for dinner when you can get beef tartare and french onion soup accompanied by what they call an “oops, all France” wine list. But we’d much sooner endorse ordering almond croissants, a glass of Sauternes, and some hot beignets for dinner.
It’s easy to drive right past Hopfields and not even know it. The French-ish restaurant is in a strip mall between a car wash and an orthopedic clinic, just a few blocks from UT. It looks small on the outside, but the place mysteriously keeps going and going. They serve solid steak frites, ratatouille, and french onion soup, but it’s the space that makes Hopfield’s worth revisiting. Bring a date and sit at a small table in one of the many side rooms branching off of the main hallway, or snag a spot at the bar and schmooze with the bartender about the dozens of beers on draft.
