Explore A Developing New Culinary Destination And Visit Bastrop, Texas, For A Lost Pines Christmas

BASTROP, Texas, Nov. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Bastrop, the heart of the Lost Pines Region of Texas, celebrates a new culinary district on Thursday, December 12, with the Lost Pines Christmas Swirl – a circuit of wine and food tastings at downtown shops and galleries that also kicks off Bastrop's Lost Pines Christmas weekend. A second special holiday event, A Christmas Madrigal Dinner, provides a Renaissance style experience with the pageantry of a royal court complete with wenches, jesters and a robust four-course dinner. The new culinary district boasts 18 restaurants, a cupcake bakery, a microbrewery, a candy maker, a winery scheduled to open before year's end, and the 1905 historic Lock Drugs with its traditional old-time soda fountain.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131115/DA17801)

Distinctive restaurants and chefs

"Texas Monthly Magazine ranks some of Bastrop's restaurants as among the best already," says Nancy Wood, Bastrop Main Street Program Director. "Maxine's Cafe made their list for "Best Breakfasts", "Best Desserts" and "Best Small Town Cafes in Texas"; and the Roadhouse made their "Best Burgers in Texas" list. As we work to nurture our culinary entrepreneurs and support existing food producers and retailers, we're looking forward to a growing reputation among culinary enthusiasts."

An impressive group of Bastrop chefs are responding to interest in good food with classic recipes and new twists. The Bastrop Brewhouse Executive Chef Mario Moreno, a 27-year culinary veteran, features classic favorites and modern cuisine with fresh ingredients sourced from local providers. His menu includes locally made pork-and-sage sausage – from a 17^th-century recipe – and a Bastrop grass-fed beef producer's steaks. The Brewhouse also produces "Alley B Pale" and "St. Camilla's Honey Brown" ales year-around, plus a rotating selection of another seven microbrews.  

Two relative newcomers are Viejo's Tacos y Tequila which features the trendy Mexican "street food" of specialty gourmet tacos, rustic appetizers, and hand-made cocktails from an extensive tequila bar; and PawPaw's Catfish House which provides down-home southern catfish, shrimp, hushpuppies, and Texas sweet tea.  

For fine dining there's Baxters on Main with daily fresh-baked empanada starters and entrees that include Firecracker Salmon and Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo. Hasler Brothers offers fine steaks and the surprising Asian flair of Chef Gerard Thompson.

At the nearby Hyatt Regency Lost Pines Resort and Spa, Executive Chef Norbert Roesch, who spent time while acquiring his Certified Master Chef credentials at European Michelin star restaurants, is committed to gourmet dishes with reduced additives and sustainable ingredients. The resort gets food from sources like Texas Olive Ranch, Dallas Mozzarella Company, Texas Quail Farms, and Round Rock Honey and grows many of its own herbs like tarragon, rosemary, and basil. Upcoming holiday culinary events at the popular family resort include the Hyatt Lost Pines Resort and Spa's Thanksgiving Day Brunch Buffet and Christmas Day Feast and Breakfast with Santa.  

Check out other Bastrop area restaurants at Visit Lost Pines or Visit Bastrop.

Local producers offer grass fed, organic and heritage food sources

A growing producer infrastructure in Bastrop and the surrounding county encourages area restaurants to buy local from sources like:

• An open air Saturday farmers market;
• The Bastrop Producer's Market;
• The Bastrop Cattle Company, a grass-fed, free range, Angus-cross beef producer;
• Eden's Cove, an organic Heritage Livestock farm that raises hogs and turkeys that are hormone, antibiotic, and chemical free;
• and Phoenix Farms, using sustainable farming to produce their vegetables, herbs, and fresh eggs in a caring and ethical way.

Bastrop is also home to The Bourbon Bar specializing in fine American bourbon whiskeys and Smithville's Bone Spirits distillery, makers of handcrafted spirits from farm to bottle including Smiths Premium Vodka, Fitch's Goat Moonshine, Moody June Gin, and Fitch's Goat Corn Whiskey, is just down the road. (After the distilling process the locally sourced grains are given back to local farmers to use as fertilizers, compost and livestock feed.)

For more information on Bastrop area food retailers, producers and other food sources, see Dining in Bastrop.

​About Bastrop, Texas

A unique blend of old and new, Bastrop, on the banks of the Colorado River, is the heart of the Lost Pines region of Texas.  Bastrop Main Street offers the convenience and friendly welcome of hometown shops and restaurants. Surrounded by more than 100 restored and historic homes, Bastrop was named a Distinctive Destination in 2010 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

For more information on visiting Bastrop, see visitlostpines.com and visitbastrop.com or contact Nancy Wood, Bastrop Main Street Program Director, [email protected] or 512-297-5382.

SOURCE The City of Bastrop, Texas