It’s a little unfair for YOF Club to stroll into a French restaurant and expect a rockin’ and rollin’ Old Fashioned. But given the Frenchiness of one of us and The Bride and I’s general admiration of Justine’s Brassiere, we gave it a try. Ultimately, this was more about Justine’s than old-timey libations, but we proudly libated as well.
Ye Olde Fashioned does not appear on Justine’s drinks menu, but Justine’s has a full bar and, when we asked about getting Old Fashioneds, the waitstaff frowned and nodded and said “Yes, we can do that,” the frown all French and the nod all American can-do.
The bevs came in glass tumblers; clear, chipped ice; and Luxardo cherries and orange peels. Since they have Angostura bitters in other drinks, I suspect that is the bitt we bit. For the whiskey, I’m 90% sure they used Armorik, a French single malt.
All in all, it was a decent Old Fashioned. No cube or ball of ice, but, again, they generally don’t mix YOFs. The drinks were more whiskey forward than our preference, so consensus placed it above Bartlett’s but below Gabriels.
So, after Club Convening IV, our rankings are:
- Fierce Old Fashioned from Fierce Whiskers (Fierce Whiskers Texas Straight Rye Whiskey [2nd gen], Angostura bitters, raw sugar, orange peel, and Luxardo cherry; $12)
- Pecan Old Fashioned from Gabriel’s (Makers Mark Bourbon, orange oil, brown sugar simple syrup, black walnut bitters, and Luxardo cherry; $14)
- Off-menu Old Fashioned from Justine’s Brassierre (Armorik whiskey, Angostura bitters, sugar, orange peel, and Luxardo cherry; $15)
- Bartlett’s Rye Old Fashioned from Bartlett’s (Knob Creek rye whiskey or Angel’s Envy Rye, Angostura butters, orange, and Luxardo cherry; $14 and $19, respectively)
Food-wise, we were quite pleased with the Royale with Cheese (hand ground angus beef, gruyère, housemade mayonnaise, butter lettuce, tomato on ciabatta with frites; $16) as well as the Moules Frites (mussels du jour with pomme frites; $16; ask for crusty bread for dipping!). Every time I walk in, I pump myself to get something other than the Royale with Cheese, but I can never bring myself to order anything different since this is one of the best burgers in town. Plus, I had just rewatched Pulp Fiction, so it felt right. The Salade d’Endives Poire Roquefort (endive, pear, roquefort, roasted blonde beets, walnuts, butter lettuce, and vinaigrette; $12) was gorgeous and good to eat as an appetizer. Due to our fit and trim physiques, we sniffed haughtily at the desert menu.
Hot tip: showing up early on a Sunday is a good way to get in without the wait!
austin wanderlist 