Say Hello to Fine Dining at Tillie’s

Markfood, life, travel

Tillie's fine dining

The new fine dining restaurant Tillie’s recently invited me to a sneak peek of their restaurant and menu and I can confidently say it’s going to be worth the trip when they open October 1st.

There’s so much to talk about that I struggle knowing where to start. I’ll break it down into a two categories. Let’s start with the venue itself and then dive into the food.

The venue

Tillie’s is the newest edition to the Camp Lucy luxury resort in Dripping Springs, just west of Austin. Over the past few years Camp Lucy has evolved from a family getaway of local antique dealer Whit Hanks into an exclusive wedding venue. They bought their first chapel for the site in 2008 and they haven’t looked back since.  Since my wife and I have been married for over ten years, I honestly hadn’t heard that much about Camp Lucy. I haven’t heard many other people mention it either. Then again most of the people I’ve been hanging out with are already married so they, like us, weren’t looking for wedding venues.

Tillie's dining

But that’s about to change.

The next stage of development for Camp Lucy is to become a full-fledged luxury resort. They’re adding to their reputation as a wedding destination and transforming into a full-fledged luxury resort. They’ve expanded the number of venues on the property while adding a vineyard, swimming pool, and more lodging for guests.

You may have noticed earlier when I said they “bought” their first chapel. That’s where things get interesting. Many of the structures at Camp Lucy are actually old buildings that have been rescued from demolition. Tillie’s itself is a town hall from the Ninh Binh region of Vietnam that’s over 100 years old. It was scheduled to be torn down and literally turned into ash trays.

Fortunately for us, Whit and his wife Kim saved the building. It was taken down, marked, shipped, and rebuilt in Dripping Springs as the dining area for Tillie’s. Intricate carvings line the dark wood rafters. Heavy stone plinths support the wooden columns that reach into the ceiling. Statues that survived Communist rule in Vietnam rest in alcoves along the walls. Even though Tillie’s is new, you feel like you’re walking into a bit of history. It’s warm and welcoming and makes you feel like you’ve been transported somewhere new.

I could go on about the beautiful custom tiles or the array of details waiting to catch your eye around any corner, but it can’t capture the experience of appreciating these old buildings and exquisite craftsmanship for yourself.

So let’s talk about the food.

The food

Brandon MartinFrom my experience, you can tell the quality of a resort by the quality of the food. No matter how exclusive or luxurious a resort claims to be, the truth always comes out at dinner.

If my theory holds true, then Camp Lucy is destined to become something special. As much as I loved to look at the intricate carvings, custom tiles, and gorgeous views, the food at Tillie’s immediately captured my full attention.

Executive Chef Brandon Martin comes to Tillie’s from some of Austin’s best restaurants, including Barley Swine, Lenoir, and Foreign & Domestic. You can definitely taste some of those influences in the New American menu he’s developed. The team at Tillie’s specifically say they want to give traditional American food an international flair and elevate familiar dishes. By and large, they succeed in that. There’s a familiarity in the dishes he’s developed that’s accented by something unexpected and exciting. Even in a dish that doesn’t have the most unique spin, the execution is impeccable and the result is delicious.

Everything in our tasting was perfect, from plating to palate. They started us out with corn butter biscuits so if you’ve paid attention to my Instagram you know they had me hooked as soon it hit the table. There were a few other plates that stuck with me.

tostada

The arctic char crudo features harissa oil with what is essentially a labneh. The addition of pickled apricots, crispy shallots, and mint give it a needed brightness and helps turn it in to a perfectly balanced plate.  Maybe it’s my own bad luck but I’ve had so many dishes that go overboard with harissa oil that I’m usually a little nervous when I see it on the menu.  No problem here. The restraint is evident and convinced me that I just need to stop eating cheap Mediterranean food that likes to cover up flavors. Thanks for the lesson, chef. Now can I have some more, please?

The tostada is one dish that I particularly loved. The house-made tortillas, which are a must, are mouth-watering and I don’t normally say that about the shell of a tostada. The carnitas are tender and full of flavor. The sweet potato-chipotle puree adds a wonderful sweet and spicy note. The pickled apples brings in a perfect amount of sharpness to contrast the richness on the plate. I think I actually said to my wife I could taste Bryce Gilmore’s influence in this one, and that’s a huge compliment from me.

charred carrotsIn the same vein, I loved the charred carrots. I have a few friends that will look at me sideways if I talk about the wonders of a charred carrot. To these friends I say this; You’ve never had a really good charred carrot. There’s a green curry sauce that is spot on and the carrots are cooked to perfection. I am personally immensely impressed by that because I can never get a carrot cooked just right. It’s either too crisp to be practically raw or cooked to a flimsy oblivion. These carrots are so good that I could almost make a whole meal of them. I wouldn’t because I’ve also had the tostada. But I could make a whole meal of them.

I also really enjoyed the pork dumplings. While they’re not what you would call American cuisine, they definitely embrace the international cuisine that’s so important to Tillie’s. You won’t find this one on the dinner menu, though. You will find it on their brunch dim sum menu. Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm they will have a dim sum service. Pick up some of these during the service and thank me later. I’ll admit that I don’t often think of dim sum for a weekend brunch. In this case I will definitely make an exception. You should too. They’re that good.

So finally…

pork dumplingsTillie’s definitely needs to be on your radar for fine dining options in the Austin area. I could go on about all the things I learned and saw but I’d be here for days. I’m simply impressed with how much the team at Tillie’s and Camp Lucy care about what they’re doing. From the moment you step foot inside, you feel a genuine warmth in what they’ve done. The attention to detail and hospitality goes all the way to their food, which to me is the true heart of any good experience.

Tillie’s opens October 1st at Camp Lucy so make your reservations now. Make a weekend out of it for a staycation. I didn’t even talk about how beautiful the pool is or the view while you enjoy the water. Did I mention a swim-up bar and the adjacent brick oven? I should have mentioned that.

Just go.