Wink

Small intimate place, quaint, good atmosphere, unique menu. Very pricey. Dishes are very small… expect to pay full meal prices at typical trendy restaurants, but for appetizer sized plates.

I guess when you’re going to a New American up-​scale restaurant it can be a hit or miss. I went here for my birthday with family and it was a miss for me. We saw a few items on menus on the website that we thought we would be able to order from and were looking forward to, but the menu the Friday night of my birthday there was nothing that really jumped out. Service was pretty good, but not as great as other places of the same value. I may have been previously spoiled by other restaurants. The food was high quality and interesting, but not so amazing that it left an impression. The ahi tuna was pretty good and we got a hanger steak that was pretty good. We had a pretty good red wine. Other than that, didn’t get anything out of this experience for the price. It’s possible their happy hour is good, but their dinner menu was a bust.

We love wink! We have celebrated a few special occasions here, most recently a big birthday for my mom. My parents are very particular and have various (but different eating restrictions).
We had no issues with substitutions. My husband loved the wine pairing. (I was the designated driver and watched him indulge with envy). Every course was beautifully presented and hearty enough to get a real taste unlike other places. We did the 5 course prix fixe which left us comfortably full and very happy. They have a great wine list. Very impressed by wine by glass selection too.
Just make reservations. They are busy and the restaurant is fairly intimate although the last time we were there they had a very large party there seated at 2 tables.
So…back to my particular parents… my dad wants to go for his birthday which is the biggest compliment he could ever give. He thanked me many times for making my mom’s birthday special which is unusual.

Went here for my 25^th birthday… got ~excellent~ service and had a really, truly special meal out. We opted for the tasting menu with wine pairings. I loved absolutely all of it, but my favorites were the duck (best duck I have ever had… just cooked perfectly) and the following hanger steak had a marrow butter that just exploded my taste buds. I loved the cheese plate that followed; usually cheese plates have one or two selections that are pretty run of the mill, but this one was ⁴⁄₄ out of the park.
Was very impressed with the service, food, wine and ambiance — will definitely be back with friends/​family.

Food: not noteworthy.
Service: Remarkably rude.
It was so awkward.
Vegetarian?
Don’t get your hopes up too much.
You have two options:
Tasting menu or
Eat meat from normal menu.
I expected more.

Food? Okay. Service? Awful. I don’t post Unilocal reviews but I wanted to provide feedback to the owner (who was delightful) so that he can address this issue. Our waitress treated us with a rude attitude all night (Answered our questions like we were nuisances, rushed our meal, etc). At the end of the night we asked for separate checks and she gave me a look and said «well you better take care of me then because wow, this is… Just… wow *trails off*» she wasn’t joking. Her entire attitude really affected our experience of Wink and I won’t be going back.

Took my mom here for her birthday. Didn’t make reservations however, but no problem. Although they didn’t have any reservations left in the restaurant, they did tell me that if we ate in the wine bar, we’d still have the full menu offerings. It was early enough for us to get seated right away. The wait staff was fully versed in wine and beer and helped us figure out the perfect ones for our taste. Down to earth wait staff… not pretentious. Everthing from the apps to the desserts were spectacular. Very memorable experience! Mom was delighted!!:-)

Everything about this place is amazing. Dining at Wink is more than a meal; it’s an experience, you guys. We ate here for my birthday last month, and the whole ordeal was impeccable. The bartender, Miguel, was friendly and helpful the entire time as we waited for our table, and every staff member we encountered during our visit was knowledgeable and warm as well. I have already been back once since, and will be again as often as possible.

Whether in the Wine Bar or Restaurant, we always enjoy Wink. Service is wonderful with emphasis on the ability to inform you about wine and beer in the cute, less fancy pants Wine Bar. I prefer it. During HH, you can typically walk in and find a table or sit at the bar. Grab some delicious small bites at half price during Happy Hour. Have the fabulous Duck dish. Gab with your friends. Enjoy the dim lighting. Ask the server what his tats mean. Learn about «Vivino» a wine app you will crush on. Leave really, really happy.

I would not recommend Wink for vegetarians or vegans.
We (a vegan couple) came here for my birthday after hearing several times that Wink is good for vegans. They also claim on their website to welcome vegans and other special diets.
It’s true, they will make food to accommodate your special diet. Just… don’t expect much.
They have a «5-​course vegetarian tasting menu.» But don’t be fooled into thinking that this is a complete meal.
The first course was a simple green salad. The next three courses were three variations on the same formula: three different vegetables + a sauce + microgreens. They all tasted quite nice and fresh, but there was nothing particularly remarkable about them.
The final course was kind of a joke. Their vegan dessert is what they call a «fruit soup.» It’s a few pieces of assorted fruit bathed in sparkling fruit juice.
We were only served vegetables, fruits, and sauces. There were no proteins, grains, nuts, seeds, or any other ingredients that would make a meatless meal substantial. This restaurant seems to be under the impression that vegan means «only eats fruits and vegetables.»
We left hungry and with our wallet almost $ 200 lighter.
Yes, they charge $ 68 per person for the vegetarian 5-​course tasting menu, which is nothing more than a side salad and a few paltry vegetable side dishes. This is the same price that they charge for their meaty 5-​course tasting menu.
We don’t mind dropping $ 200 on a meal occasionally – if the meal is exceptional. But this meal was insubstantial and uncreative.
We also had to wait at least half an hour for a table to be available, despite having a reservation. Our server was not warm or personable. The host was nice, though.
If you’re a vegetarian or vegan and you get dragged here by your omnivorous friends or family members, plan on stopping by Arlo’s or BBQ Revolution on your way home.
If you’re part of the management at Wink, please consider doing one of the following: learning how to create a filling vegetarian meal, dropping the price of your vegetarian tasting menu substantially, or ceasing to present Wink as a vegetarian-​friendly restaurant. Thank you.

I have been here twice, ordered from the menu first time and tasting menu the second time. Based on trying both, I would recommend ordering from the regular menu simply because for the price of the tasting menu ($ 70), you can get a regular entrée and 2 small plates (appetizers). The portions for the tasting menu were small in my opinion and even though it is a 5 course menu, the last one was a tiny cheese board with 2 bites for both of us. I understand that it is a tasting menu, but only 2 bites each wasn’t satisfying. I was disappointed with the one scallop for one of tastings. I’ve had other tasting menus where portions were at least appetizer-​size and quite filling.
The 4 star review is for the food. Must try the sweetbreads and duck! That sauce with the sweetbreads, mmm… The Hamachi is good as well for an appetizer, refreshing! The hanger steak here is probably one of the better steaks I’ve tried.
Service wise, the host was welcoming. Our server, however, made me feel uncomfortable with her expressionless face. I believe we got the same server both visits and she acted the same. There wasn’t a smile on her face.
When you arrive, the restaurant is to your right, their wine bar is to the left. The dining area is small, so it can get loud in there. There are only a few parking spaces in front of the restaurant, there is a parking structure across the street where you can park.

The best restaurant in Austin, great service amazing food, I haven’t eaten food this good since I was in the Wine Country. I can’t wait to go back
You have to go to this restaurant…

Favorite restaurant in Austin, hands down. We have eaten at the restaurant multiple times. The intimate atmosphere, welcoming waitstaff and delicious food are always a delight. They have a great wine selection. They also have a menu that changes seasonally, which is great. My only complaint is that their portions are small, so if you are dining with someone with a large appetite, they may be disappointed.
The wine bar is also fantastic! We went there for the first time recently. It was a Saturday night and we got happy hour prices on the wine & food. For the quality and price, it was such an amazing deal. The atmosphere is intimate and warm. It’s a great spot to go for a date!

The food was good — I got the lamb chops. They were well seasoned and cooked just right by request for my medium + taste. The portion sizes were not huge but that is to be expected for fine dining. My only complaint from a culinary perspective was that they didn’t have a stead knife. My hand legitimately hurt while cutting — and I don’t think I’m weak. The palate cleanser was good and their warm bread with butter was delicious. A large portion of people were vegetarians and they had a separate vegetarian menu which is always nice. One guy was allergic to nuts and vegetarian and was worried there wouldn’t be many options for him but the staff presented him with a number of options.
The ambience was good. White table cloths, they placed my napkin on my lap for me, etc. it was a friends birthday so we had a relatively large party and they printed customized menus wishing the birthday boy well.
The wait staff was kind but flustered, busier than she should have been for a restaurant that charges the way this place does. If I’m paying as much as I did here, I expect stellar service — because in my perspective I’m paying for the restaurant to employee enough staff to not have me wait too long between help.
Finding this place is a bit difficult — look back behind whole earth, it’s in the same complex just sitting back away from the street, tucked away in a corner.

Had the tasting menu. Was pretty good, although steak was something left to be desired. The cheese plate was the worlds smallest cheese plate… Even for a tasting menu.
The hamachi, scallops and duck were well executed.
For people with bigger appetites, this meal may not leave you full. I could have eaten more.

Winks dining room was full and loud on a Tuesday night around 9pm. It glowed up high in a bright orange among translucent cotton drapery, and a dense shade down below communal tables housing a happy older 50 plus professional crowd.
We knew Wink was a hotspot, but didn’t predict not one table would be available that late. «There’s room at the wine annex.» The
kind hostess hand motioned to a door down the way in the same building.
The wine annex was empty, freezing cold,
with a marble top bar, which slowly filled with just a few jovial patrons who seemed savvily versed in culinary indulgences as noted by their fine cotton shirts and larger bellies.
Wine was surprisingly affordable by the glass, but the $ 9 bite bar menu flopped with
an order of brie burger sliders that reminded me of a reheated frozen White Castle and looked, according to my friend, better than how they tasted.
I had expected more from Wink, which seemed more comfortable than current on my visit.
I blinked.
Blink Blink

This place is definitely for those special occasions and I saw many of those during this meal. Couple tables were meeting parents for the first time, couple date nights, so you get the vibe of the restaurant. It’s definitely a more intimate restaurant — there is limited seating in the dining room but it’s just the right size to offer that candle lit experience without being squished right up to the next table.
The service here was surprisingly good — people are just friendly and genuinely so, which makes a big difference. It was high end without being snobby. The owner/​manager introduced himself personally when we got there and he remembered our names as we left; as a person who has trouble remembering names, I thought that was a spectacular touch.
The appetizers were really good, and the entrees were okay. Although the entrees were pretty big portion-​wise considering the type of restaurant and the price. We ordered the NY strip tartar and the foie gras over shortbread appetizers. They were both fantastic. I’ve never really enjoyed tartar as much because you don’t get the meaty taste as much as if you were chewing on a piece of steak, but it was delicate, it was tender, and the additional adds of the corn salad and little toastettes were good. The foie gras over shortbread was melt-​in-​your-​mouth delicious. The foie gras was perfectly seared and was a pretty big piece, perfectly seasoned too, laid over a cut of shortbread. Admittedly the dish altogether was a bit sweet, but if you just ate the foie gras with the mango sauce, it would’ve been the perfect balance of salty and sweet.
The entrees were okay, great value for its price. Pretty big portions, dense, filling. I ordered the duck breast over farro and oyster mushrooms. The duck was good but not great, but I don’t think I’m a fan of farro. I ate a couple pieces of duck and felt full. Didn’t have room for dessert even though they had the best looking trio of mini desserts ever.
Note: This place is a little hard to find, it’s behind another building in a strip mall and isn’t the most well lit place.

The quality of the food is definitely not at question here. They use top notch ingredients and the taste was not an issue. I think our real issue was the value of the meal in a city that is packed with awesome dining options for much better value.
Both of our meals were on the small side and when that is accompanied by a $ 30+ price tag per entrée I think I need to be blown away by the ambiance, blown away by the taste and left feeling that the experience was worth the cost. Unfortunately, we both left feeling that there are too many good options in Austin, at considerably better value, to return to Wink.

Have you ever walked into a restaurant, and the owner/​manager greets you by name, stores the phonetic sound of your name and treats all his guests with respect? Wink is one of those places. (I’ve not been to such a fancy pants place in a long long time)
I knew it wasn’t easy to get a table at wink, so I made my anniversary reservation a
Month in advance. The restaurant called me the morning of to confirm, and that itself was impressive.
Finding the restaurant can be a challenge — it is located behind whole earth market and next to tip top cleaners (which I found hilarious, btw). Parking is available both outside the restaurant and in a private lot across the street.
After being greeted and seated, we were given our personalized menus — I mean, whaaaat! The wine list is something to be reckoned with. Old world wines, reds, rose, white, and on and on it goes.
The menus change every week. We went with the vegetarian tasting menu– each dish can be customized the way you want — as in, you can pick the size of the dish according to the course that you want it to be. We went with the garden salad appetizer, tabbouleh Greek yogurt, and the zucchini lentil bok choy entrees.
One thing I have to admit is that the food is presented so beautifully, I didn’t have the heart to eat it. The bread is freshly baked and served with butter. Portions are limited as with any fine dining restaurant — I guess you savor each bite that way.
The food was very good. But I can’t say that I was blown away by one particular aspect. At $ 22 an entrée, I did expect a tiny bit more in the palate area. 3.5÷5 stars.
The service is impeccable. I have no other word for it. ⁶⁄₅ stars
Overall, it’s a nice place to visit on a special occasion. I can’t say that I’m extremely comfortable dining at such places on a regular basis — (don’t get me wrong -‘I’m not ‘fancy’ that way, and no judgement to those who do fine dine on a regular basis.) but it’s definitely worth coming here on that rare occasion.

**HH Wine Bar Review**
This makes my list of ‘never disappoints’ happy hour. In the wine bar across the breezeway from the restaurant from 5 – 7 M-​F they have a host of amazing food that is half off. We’re talking Brie Sliders, House Cured Salmon, Mussels, Cheese plates, Truffle mac n cheese which I dare to say is more like Cheese N Mac as it was overflowing with pounds of gooey melty cheese. I’ll tell you that I don’t like salmon but their house cured salmon was my favorite bite of the nite. It’s served with a crème fraîche, capers and pickled unions. On the pumpernickel points it was absolutely divine. And $ 7! Shut the front door! As for the Brie Burgers, I thought it was special that they let you upgrade foie gras on just one instead of all three. So for $ 1.50 you got to kick one your sliders up a notch to see if that’s your thing. Sucha deal!
The service was fantastic with that show up just at the right moment never hover vibe. They also had excellent wine recommendations because as much as I love wine, I still don’t know much about it. I always defer to the experts. I do wish they had a short list of happy hour priced glasses as my our drinks bill ended up being more than our food bill.
Full menu from next door is available. We ended up trying the trio of desserts and their crème brûlée was on point and my seat mate gobbled up the lemon meringue.
We left full and happy and impressed and wanting to return again. Can’t ask for more than that!

The place continues to set the gold and platinum standard for all things good restauant. From the food to the service to the awesome manager… I don’t understand how other people have had bad experiences here… I’ve always been treated as if I’m way more important than what I actually am…
I’m a real jerk when it comes to restaurants… and really want things in a very particular and awesome way… especially when I’m dropping good money on a good meal… this place has just never let me down.
From one of the best happy hours in town to some of the best food in town, Wink sets a seriously high bar for restaurants.
There’s a serious reason that I’m the Duke of this place.

Top notch date night spot. Awesome service, great drink selection, phenomenal meal. Can’t wait to go back!