A wave of relaxation washed over me as I walked onto the patio of Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar at five o'clock on a Friday afternoon. The rolling green hills of Barton Creek were spread out before me, a beautiful backdrop for an exceptional dinner.
The Blind Salamander, one of several restaurants at the Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa, first came to my attention at the Austin Food + Wine Festival. They served a smoked salmon dip in a seaweed cone with capers and tobiko (fish roe). It was one of my favorite bites of 2022, and I'd been curious about the restaurant ever since.
A few years later, when an invitation to experience Blind Salamander's seasonal, seafood-focused menu landed in my inbox, I eagerly accepted.
The Hill Country restaurant is about 10 miles west of downtown Austin and about double that distance from where I live in North Austin. It's far enough away to feel like destination dining, yet conveniently within city limits.
Executive chef Francisco Baca grew up in El Paso, on the West Texas border with Mexico, and was influenced by his mother and grandmother's cooking, Tex-Mex, and Mexican cuisine.
He moved to New York City for his culinary training and later worked in San Francisco before returning to Texas and leading the kitchen at Blind Salamander. In 2023, he won the Heritage Fire Tour competition in Austin.
The restaurant is named after the Texas blind salamander (Eurycea rathbun), a rare and endangered amphibian found in the "water-filled caves of the Edwards Aquifer near San Marcos," according to Texas Parks & Wildlife. Now that you have a little background, let's check out the food and dining atmosphere.
Table of Contents
My Experience
Cocktails
Once the hostess seated my friend Sara and me on the patio, we were greeted by our friendly and knowledgeable server, Caroline. We quickly learned it was her last night on the job after working at the Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar for the previous five years. We would be in good hands the rest of the evening.
Following introductions, I turned my attention to the drink menu. The Omni Flavor Origins concept organizes cocktails according to their taste profiles, making it easier for guests to choose a drink they'll enjoy.
The three categories are fruit, botanical, and Earth, and they move from light and refreshing (Pink Berry Collins) to alcohol-forward and adventurous (Omni's Opulent Martini).
Choosing from the botanical section, I ordered the Strawberry Peppercorn Gin and Tonic with Hendrick's Gin, cucumber, lime, strawberry-infused syrup, and Q Indian Tonic Water. My friend ordered a glass of rosé. As we waited for our drinks, we began to look over the dinner menu.
Appetizers and Salads
The first section features seafood, including oysters on the half shell, a jumbo shrimp cocktail, and a yellowtail crudo with cucumber aguachile. Caroline said the ahi tartare was a customer favorite, and upon its arrival at the table, I understood why.
Four portions of fresh tuna with soy-yuzu vinaigrette were dolloped on a crispy, paper-thin Feuille de brick and garnished with avocado, edamame, and microgreens. I liked how the ingredients were organized and the use of negative space.
We gently cracked the fried dough with a fork and transferred pieces to our plates. The thin segments of dough were strong enough to hold the weight of the tuna, allowing us to eat with our hands.
In addition to the presentation and fresh ingredients, I enjoyed the various textures: the crunchy dough, meaty raw tuna, and silky smooth avocado and edamame. We were off to a promising start.
The second section of the menu is labeled "Starters." It features French onion soup with Gruyere, a burrata with seasonal fruits, a tomato onion dip with toasted bread, and a foie gras mousse with pistachio butter, pickled and wild berries, and sourdough. My eyes lit up at that last option, and it was one of my favorite dishes that night.
It was increasingly apparent that the kitchen was paying serious attention to how the food was presented. When it arrived at the table, the foie gras mousse looked like a work of modern art. I liked the complementary colors and how chaotic it appeared.
I didn't hesitate to smear the mousse onto the grilled sourdough bread. Once again, the contrast of textures between the velvety mousse and crunchy bread was thoroughly enjoyable. I would return for this dish alone.
The kitchen also sent the tomato bagna cauda and toasted bread for dipping. Bagna cauda is a warm Northern Italian sauce I hadn't previously encountered. It's made with olive oil, butter, garlic, and anchovies.
I found it a little too salty for my taste, though I already had my hands full devouring the foie gras (lest none of it go to waste).
I chose the squash salad with curry yogurt, pomegranates, toasted grains, and ancho vadouvan vinaigrette. This was the most adventurous dish of the night, as the curry yogurt and vadouvan evoked traditional Indian spices and flavors. Vadouvan is a French interpretation of India's masala curry.
Entrees and Sides
There were eight entrees, four of which were meats, three from the sea, and a cavatelli pasta dish with mushrooms for the vegetarians. Carnivores can choose from filet mignon, lamb chops, beef cheek roast, and a pastrami-spiced duck.
Seafood lovers will be drawn to the scallops, blackened redfish, and ora king salmon with corn chowder. I ordered the scallops with potatoes, shrimp beurre blanc sauce, roe, and turnips, and a side of crab mac 'n cheese, a signature dish.
Four large, seared scallops arrived on a large, black circular plate. The two potatoes were topped with the roe, and the shrimp sauce helped tie it together. Sara and I helped ourselves to one each of the giant scallops, which were perfectly cooked.
There may have been some "ohs" and "ahs," murmured as we enjoyed the entree. I plunged the serving spoon into the baked crab mac 'n cheese and pulled out a steaming hot serving of cheesy pasta. The pasta was al dente, and copious amounts of cheese were used.
The other seafood entree we tried was halibut with couscous, a special on the summer 2024 menu. This white fish may look like nothing out of the ordinary, but it tasted downright delicious. A light golden crust gives way to the most tender fish meat. I was taken aback by how much I enjoyed it.
While our server wasn't sure how well it'd work as leftovers, I took it home and can confirm the taste and texture were still wonderful the following day.
We've covered seafood so far. However, the Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar has a lot to offer meat eaters as well. I speak from experience, having feasted on the mouthwatering beef cheek roast with root vegetables, cippolini onions, and bordelaise sauce.
The sizeable hunk of meat was presented under a generous amount of thick, rich sauce (you have to love the French). The vegetables were artfully arranged around the plate, adding color.
The tender meat barely needed a knife to help pull it apart. The sauce's richness reminded me of another beef cheek dish I'd enjoyed at Brasserie Mon Chou Chou at the Pearl in San Antonio.
As if all this wasn't enough, the kitchen served another unexpected dish: twice-cooked potatoes with oyster aioli, bonito flakes, and eel sauce. The fried potato cubes, which offered a few bites each, were so much fun to admire and eat.
We skipped the vegetable-oriented sides of charred broccolini with herb yogurt and roasted cauliflower with corn puree.
Throughout our meal, diners filled the tables around us on the patio. Country music played over the speakers, a genre I've only begun to explore in the last year.
Despite my status as a country music newbie, I did hear one song I know and like: Clay Walker's "If I Could Make a Living." At 7 p.m., the overcast sky still afforded us quite a bit of light as the desserts began to arrive.
Desserts
To round out our dinner at Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar, we chose two of the three desserts. First, the pastry chef's intriguing approach to tiramisu, the classic Italian dessert. It came in a chocolate-coated cube with cacao nib crumb, Kahlua chocolate sauce, and a quenelle of vanilla chantilly cream.
Once again, I was pleased with the presentation and cracked into the thinly coated cube with my fork. It gave way quickly and revealed a mousse-like filling with a coffee-soaked cake center.
The second dessert I ordered was the tropical baked Alaska bombe, which had layers of passion fruit ice cream, guava curd, and torched meringue on top of a coffee crumb crust. Pineapple gel spread on the plate added to the fruity flavors.
This dish was a joy to eat, especially after trying the original Baked Alaska that inspired it at Delmonico's in NYC a month earlier.
Reflecting on my first dinner at Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar, I realized that the experience surpassed every expectation. The patio views of the Fazio Foothills Golf Course and the Texas Hill Country were more peaceful than I imagined, and the dishes more sophisticated.
Whether it was the artfully plated foie gras mousse, the perfectly seared scallops, or the innovative desserts, each course was a testament to the skills of chef Baca and his team. Caroline's excellent and friendly service on her last work day was greatly appreciated.
Plan Your Visit
Address: Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa, 8212 Barton Club Dr, Austin, TX
Dress Code: Resort casual
Reservations: Available via Open Table.
Website: omnihotels.com
Hours: Wed, Thu, and Sun 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Fri/Sat 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Parking: For restaurant guests, complimentary valet service is available at the main entrance. Self-parking is also available.
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Thank you to the Blind Salamander Kitchen & Bar and Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa for hosting me and a guest. All opinions are my own.
