Austin names Tastemaker winners

Austin handed out its 2026 Tastemaker Awards on April 9 at Distribution Hall, and the biggest trophy went to Odd Duck. The same night, sisters Daniela Landaverde and Rosa Landaverde of La Santa Barbacha won Chef of the Year, while Parley took Bar of the Year and Moderna Bar & Pizzeria won Best New Restaurant. (austin.culturemap.com) These awards are a snapshot of what Austin diners are rewarding right now, because CultureMap split the process in two. A judging panel of local experts picked most nominees and winners, but Best New Restaurant was decided by readers through a bracket-style online tournament. (austin.culturemap.com) Odd Duck’s win says something specific about Austin’s taste in 2026: a long-running South Lamar restaurant beat a field that included Jeffrey’s, Fonda San Miguel, LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue, and la Barbecue. CultureMap described Odd Duck as one of the city’s most “well-rounded” rooms, with staples like cast iron cheddar cornbread and redfish ceviche still anchoring the menu. (austin.culturemap.com, austin.culturemap.com) Odd Duck is not a newcomer riding hype. Michelin lists it as a Bib Gourmand restaurant in Austin, which is the guide’s value-focused category for places that deliver strong cooking without luxury-level prices. (guide.michelin.com) The Chef of the Year award went to Daniela and Rosa Landaverde, who run La Santa Barbacha as a family barbacoa business rooted in the cooking they grew up with in central Mexico. On their own site, the sisters say they moved to Austin and opened the truck in 2021 after culinary school in Mexico. (austin.culturemap.com, lasantabarbacha.com) La Santa Barbacha has already crossed from local favorite into guidebook territory. Michelin also lists it as a Bib Gourmand, and CultureMap said the sisters had already built five years of praise from both the Michelin Guide and the James Beard Foundation before this week’s win. (guide.michelin.com, austin.culturemap.com) Parley’s win shows how fast Austin’s bar scene can move when experienced operators go casual instead of exclusive. The East Cesar Chavez bar comes from Terance Robson and Jack “Slim” Hogan, two Ireland-born bartenders with Here Nor There ties, and it pairs Guinness and lower-priced cocktails with food from Oseyo’s kitchen. (austin.culturemap.com, communityimpact.com, theinfatuation.com) Moderna Bar & Pizzeria won the one category that readers controlled directly, and that makes it a useful read on where diner excitement is landing. The restaurant opened on West Sixth Street in December 2025 under chef Leo Spizzirri, and CultureMap says its identity centers on thin, Neapolitan-inspired pies inside a broader Italian American menu. (austin.culturemap.com, austin.culturemap.com) The rest of the ballot fills in the shape of the city. CultureMap gave Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year to Allday Pizza and Rising Star Chef of the Year to Ale Kuri of Este, while the 2026 program also included categories for coffee shops, dessert programs, and even Best Sandwich. (austin.culturemap.com, austin.culturemap.com) Put together, the winners lean less toward white-tablecloth formality and more toward places people can actually fold into a weeknight: a South Lamar staple, a barbacoa truck, an Irish-leaning neighborhood bar, and a pizza restaurant that had been open less than four months. Austin’s restaurant map is still expanding, but this year’s trophies landed on places that already feel woven into how the city eats. (austin.culturemap.com, austin.culturemap.com, communityimpact.com)