The Driskill Grill, located in the AAA four diamond-rated Driskill Hotel, tops the Gayot list of Austin's top 10 most romantic restaurants. It is Austin's only restaurant to receive the Wine Spectator Best Award of Excellence (awarded in 2009), and has a Zagat Guide designation of Extraordinary to Perfection in menu, service and decor. The menu has a blend of Mediterranean, Asian and Texas-inspired offerings available a la carte or in chef-prepared "farm to table" tasting menus ranging from three to 12 dishes that can be paired with sommelier-selected wines. Desserts are made in-house by Italian-born pastry chef Tony Sansalone, who was named the city's premier pastry chef in 2004 by the Austin American-Statesman. The dining room decor features white cloth-covered tables dressed with fine China and fresh floral centerpieces, with forest-green high-back chairs.
Driskill Grill
604 Brazos St.
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 391-7162
driskillgrill.com
Green Pastures, a registered historic landmark built in 1894, opened for public dining in 1969. A family of peacocks strolls the property's 23 landscaped acres dotted with live oaks and surrounded by a wooded area. Among its awards, it's rated as one of the 100 best restaurants in the world by the James Beard Foundation and was named most romantic by Citysearch and Gayot. According to Austin American-Statesman writer Dale Rice, "It's hard to imagine a more romantic place for dinner." The menu features fine steak and seafood selections, French and Southern-influenced specialties, vegetarian entrees and a designated kids' menu, all served on antique China. The Victorian mansion is converted into several dining rooms with antique decor and picture windows that overlook the wrap-around porch.
Green Pastures
811 West Live Oak
Austin, TX 78704
(512) 444-4747
greenpasturesrestaurant.com
Sagra Enoteca & Trattoria was voted Austin's most romantic restaurant in the 2009 Citysearch Best of Austin awards. The name comes from community festivals in Italy called sagras, where a local dish or ingredient is featured. Fittingly so, as the Italian bistro-inspired menu is built with mostly locally-grown or -produced organic ingredients. Wine and garlic mussels are all-you-can-eat on Tuesdays and come with garlic bread for dipping. A menu highlight is the oven-baked handmade pizza topped with a fried egg sunnyside up, house-made buffalo mozzarella and fresh spinach. The restaurant is located inside a renovated vintage cottage and the low-lighted, rustic Italian farmhouse decor is illuminated by its centerpiece--a traditional wood-burning oven.
Sagra Enoteca & Trattoria
1610 San Antonio St.
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 535-5988
sagrarestaurant.net
