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Fabi + Rosi
2010 Honorable mention: Reader's Chef - Wolfagang Murber
2010 Honorable mention: Reader's New Restaurant - Fabi+Rosi
World Society for the Protection of Animals
Awarded Restaurant- FABI+ROSI (humanely sourced products)
August 2011:: by Karen Spezia
Fabi + Rosi is full of surprises. For starters, it’s hidden in a tranquil bungalow off a bustling thoroughfare. The next surprise is its chic interior, an unexpected contrast to its 1903 Craftsman that houses it. Sleek white leather, polished wood and crystal chandeliers make Fabi + Rosi look modern, sophisticated…and expensive. Which is the next surprise: it’s not. Most entrees on its upscale, eclectic menu are priced below $20.
If you’re looking to impress without breaking the bank, Fabi + Rosi is your place. This European restaurant delivers stylish ambiance, quality service and inventive food at a modest price. German-born chef Wolfgang Murber and his Austinite wife, Cassie Williamson, opened it in 2009. Located in a cottage off Lake Austin Boulevard formerly occupied by Zoot, Fabi + Rosi continues to draw a loyal neighborhood crowd. The menu reflects Murber’s European roots, where classic continental dishes are given an Austin twist. Local, sustainable ingredients are found on almost every plate: house made bratwurst is served with local Fireman’s #4 mustard; caprese salad is drizzled with Texas olive oil; schnitzel is made with Richardson Farms pork.
Romantic Dining
by Claudia Alarcón
February 2011
SUSTENANCE
Fabi + Rosi Cute, elegant and casual, this lovely European hideaway is the brainchild of husband-and-wife team Chef Wolfgang Murber and Cassie Williamson. The young couple has put their heart and soul into making this quaint cottage not only a romantic retreat, but also a stellar destination that pleases all the senses. Prices are very reasonable, service is professional, friendly and unobtrusive, and the menu is truly inspired, based on local products that change seasonally. The cozy interiors in black, white and shimmering crystal – all designed by Cassie – make a lovely backdrop for a perfect evening that will be enhanced by her husband’s sublime food. What is more romantic than that?
Fearless Critic restaurant review: 8.9 9.0
Fabi and Rosi Modern European flavor from an expert kitchen in an adorable house ModernUpmarket
Features Date-friendly, outdoor dining, veg-friendly
Fabi and Rosi quietly opened up in 2009 in the beautiful, converted old house off Lake Austin Boulevard that Zoot vacated. And a wise move it was. We’ve always thought that this space strikes the right balance of understated and romantic; the interior is cozy, and there’s outdoor dining under little white lights on the lawn. The feeling is calmer and more intimate than it is at other stylish restaurants, and the black-and-white wallpaper is both bold and elegant—in other words, modern European.
Snails, crepes, schnitzel and paella on the same menu?
A taste of Europe, service and all
By Mike Sutter
The first time I heard about Fabi and Rosi, the `European kitchen' that took over the former West Austin site of Zoot, it sounded like Epcot , interconnected small worlds engineered to please everyone and no one in particular. Snails, crêpes, schnitzel and paella, all on the same menu? No way that's going to work.
But it manages to work, mostly, thanks to German-born chef Wolfgang Murber and his wife, Cassie Williamson, an Austinite who met Murber when he was cooking on a private yacht in Spain. They opened Fabi and Rosi (pronounced `fab-ee and roe-zee,' after the couple's nephew and niece) in mid-May.
The border-hopping menu matches the eccentric-aunt decor. Imagine a world where tiny glass chandeliers share illumination chores with track lights and hanging glass candle ornaments. Where angular plastic blinds in smoke gray cover windows with heavy wooden frames. Where vintage-shop collections of mirrors hang on one wall and a stuffed white stag's head hangs on another. How else to accentuate a place with such a wide-ranging culinary mission?
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When the renowned Austin restaurant Zoot moved to Bee Cave Road from its little house on Hearn Street at the end of last year, people wondered what would happen to the original location. The answer is Fabi and Rosi European Kitchen, owned by Austin native Cassie Williamson and her husband, German-born chef Wolfgang Murber, who opened the restaurant Friday . The couple met two years when Murber was a chef on a private yacht in Spain after studying in Germany and cooking in Italy, Williamson said. Murber moved to Williamson's home in the Clarksville neighborhood, and the couple began searching for a cozy old house where he could put his multinational experience to work. They saw Zoot's old home lying vacant and worked out an agreement with the landlord. The menu at Fabi and Rosi (pronounced "fab-ee and roe-zee," and named for Fabio and Rosalie, the couple's nephew and niece) is an ambitious one-stop tour of European cooking: escargot, charcuterie, short-rib Bolognese, paella, schnitzel and more, with main-course prices from $12 to $22.
New and Noteworthy | Fabi + Rosi European Kitchen, Austin and
Tintos Spanish Restaurant & Wine Bar, Houston.
by Patricia Sharpe
All traces of Zoot have disappeared under the natty black and white florals and stripes of Fabi + Rosi. Votive candles appear to float in midair over the banquettes, making the remodeled West Austin cottage an airy showroom for chef/co-owner Wolfgang Murber’s European menu. Best starters on our recent visit were a classic, semisweet chicken liver pâté and a salad of wild arugula and fabulous “Overnight Tomatoes” (herb-marinated and treated to a long, flavor-intensifying stay in the oven). Though a special of pan-seared snapper, sided by a good, slightly tart slaw of fennel and lemon, was great, it was the rare medallions of leg of lamb in a port demi that got the table’s top vote, though we nixed the accompanying dryish, heavy potato soufflé. Even so, pluses so far outweighed minuses and prices were so reasonable that we’re eager to return...
Texas Monthly Back Talk
Peter Keim says: My wife and I have been to Fabi + Rosi several times. Each time, we have thoroughly enjoyed the evening. Great food, friendly staff and a beautiful quiet space.
SEASONAL PLATE--EdibleAustin
Photography by Jody Horton
Fabi + Rosi Chef Wolfgang Murber's Chèvre Tart with Wateroak Farms (Bryan) goat cheese and Soncrest Egg Co. free-range eggs (Gonzales). Topped with candied Meyer lemon slivers from G&S Orchard (McAllen).
Restaurant Reviews
by Rachel Feit
Fabi + Rosi is a restaurant that glitters. From the truly inspired interior decor to a menu that shines with beacons of European gastronomy, the restaurant oozes style and taste. The modest Craftsman bungalow belies a dining room sparkling with pretty teardrop chandeliers, delicate hanging tea lights, and antique mirrors that playfully throw light throughout the room. The furnishings, done entirely in black and white, are a tasteful bricolage of antique and modern.
Here diners are treated to European classics such as escargots in garlic butter, moules marinière, steak frites, and paella, all at shamefully reasonable prices. Juxtaposed against the elegant decor, the menu's affordability bespeaks an Old World egalitarianism, as if whispering, in a throaty European accent, "Elegant dining is not a luxury; it is a birthright."
Cheap Chic at Fabi + Rosi
by Misty Adair
Cassie Williamson, owner of the Austin restaurant Fabi + Rosi, admits to being colorphobic. Yet with her keen eye for simplicity and determination for affordable design, Cassie has created a chic, cozy environment with a shoestring budget and a monochromatic flair.
Fabulous and Ritzy | Fabi + Rosi is good from appetizer to dessert especially if you finish with this beinen stich (bee sting) cake with almond and honey brittle.
