Thank you, 68 Degrees Kitchen, for inviting the Austin Food Bloggers Alliance to try your food! While I did receive some complimentary treats, all opinions are my own. Now, let’s get to it!
Founded through a partnership of the Andiamo and La Traviata owners, 68 Degrees Kitchen describes themselves as, “an ingredient-driven scratch kitchen: an Italian classic specializing in made-in-house food with local ingredients.” Surrounded by Tarrytown gems like Deep Eddy, Pool Burger, and the original Magnolia Cafe, 68 Degrees Kitchen has a pretty optimal location. As for parking, I parked in the Deep Eddy parking lot… It was 6pm on a Tuesday night and not in the peak of summer. I would not recommend parking in that lot, but hey, what are you going to do?
I tried two appetizers: their flash-fried calamari and their crispy polenta. I’m honestly not a big calamari fan… too fishy for me. I did like the light fried batter on the outside, though! The crispy polenta, on the other hand, was delicious! I’d never had polenta before (it’s a dough made from cornmeal, in case you were wondering) but I loved it! It had an excellent rosemary flavor as well.
68 Degrees Kitchen has a pretty extensive wine list. For happy hour, they offer $2 off wine and $1 off beer. I tried two different wines – a red (“Villa Della Rosa”) and a rosé (“Planeta”). I’m a fan of red wine and “Villa Della Rosa” is very drinkable.
I tried two of their salads – the Caesar salad with large romaine lettuce leaves and the beets and burrata salad. This was also my first time having burrata (a kind of mozzarella cheese)! They make the burrata themselves, which is pretty impressive. It’s a very labor-intensive process. The Caesar salad was delicious, but not really shareable as it comes on full-sized romaine lettuce leaves.
68 Degrees Kitchen has many different pasta options! Pictured below are their chicken parmesan, bolognese, and a vegetarian fettuccine with portabella and crimini mushrooms. They also offer several grilled fish options. The fettuccine with mushrooms was my favorite overall.
We sampled three different desserts – their nightly granita parfait, profiteroles (little puff pastries with vanilla ice cream), and tiramisu. What’s awesome, is they use Amy’s vanilla ice cream in their desserts! While the granita parfait is pretty to look at, and the profiteroles are so small and cute, my favorite dessert was the tiramisu.
This is definitely one of the pricier restaurants I’ve blogged about. With $15-20 dollar entrees, 68 Degrees Kitchen would be perfect for a fancy date night. While the atmosphere isn’t overly fancy (and they have a beautiful patio!), the cost of a meal would make 68 Degrees Kitchen most appropriate for a special occasion.
What to order: Crispy polenta with a glass of red wine to start (or if you’re a beets fan, the beets and burrata salad), the fettuccine with mushrooms entree, and tiramisu to share.
