ATXReview
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Odd Duck
Included In
On paper, Odd Duck is a seasonal, locally-driven small plates restaurant, which might sound terribly cliche and very 2008. But there’s a incredible, distinctly Texan twang happening at this South Lamar spot, brought together through the building blocks of wood smoke, fire, chiles, game, and Gulf Coast seafood. More than Texas, Odd Duck exemplifies a pretty classic Austin story: that of an innovative, scrappy food trailer going brick-and-mortar. The trailer might be long gone, but it’s been replaced with one of Austin’s truly great restaurants—a casual operation quietly turning out a constantly evolving menu of sophisticated and unforgettable food, staffed by people who genuinely seem to like working there.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
With a menu that changes at a rapid-fire pace, from day to day, week to week, meals here are never the same. But there’s a through line, and it’s Texas, with riffs on classic Texan dishes like tamales, green chili pork shoulder, or icebox cake. There’s a free-for-all international bent added to the mix—that’ll veer Mexican, Peruvian, Indian, Korean, Thai, Ethiopian, and beyond—but it feels intentional and never forced. You should also expect dishes like a quail stuffed with dirty rice, a not-boring grilled kale salad with local citrus, and then some larger, shareable options like a blackened redfish or a wagyu strip. Only a few dishes appear on the menu consistently—the ceviche, a cast iron cornbread, and an epic and comically large burger—and even those are subject to wild changes. But whatever you do: Always, always order the goat.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Odd Duck has the whole “as it comes” small plate timing down to a science, with a pacing that never feels rushed. The sister restaurant Barley Swine only offers a tasting menu, and while there are similarities between the two in the whole local/seasonal/wood-fired angle, Odd Duck just hits differently, with a choose your own small plates adventure, all served on mismatched vintage plates. The space itself is a square-ish glass box at the base of an apartment building done up with shiplap, decorated with random farm knickknacks and duck-themed trinkets, and glass jars full of pickled produce. It’s charming, if not especially stylish, and we’ve found that the best experience here is seated at the bar, with cocktails in hand while you figure out the ordering gameplan. The welcoming service staff, a lot of them longtime, all seem happy to be there, and they seem equally happy you’re there, too.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
So come solo, come for your significant other’s birthday, come for your cat’s birthday, come with a big, celebratory group and order a bunch of tiny plates, or come because you went to the farmers market and you saw some okra and wondered what Odd Duck might do with it. It’s the kind of place you go back to over and over again, and it never gets old. It pays to be a regular. We’re not the only ones who think this way—there’s a plaque at the bar celebrating a regular’s 200th visit. We hope they also got a free t-shirt out of it.
Food Rundown
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Cocktails
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Kale Salad
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Ceviche
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Quail
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Cornbread
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Burger
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Steak