More to Do on East Riverside: Mour Cafe + Pantry
East Riverside in Austin, Texas is saturated with construction projects, as more businesses and housing reinvents the area. Mour Café + Pantry popped up in 2016, just as new development began to change the dynamic of East Riverside Drive. Mour Café serves brunch, lunch, and dinner items, in a bright and contemporary space.
Mour Café is a farm-to-table restaurant that sources the majority of its ingredients from local farms. For example, they source their meat from Rosewood Ranch, which is featured across the menu – from the pork belly in the fried rice to the bavette steak. Additionally, the owners just opened a brand-new spot, a sister taqueria up near Pflugerville called Amorcito Corazon.
Mour Café really is a unique spot. The entrance to the restaurant is a quant grocery store where you can also purchase lattes and teas. There is a massive wall of wine that separates the shop from the restaurant. My favorite spot is on the patio. It is enclosed with walls of vines adorned with flowers, with comfortable stained wood seating. The staff is very friendly, and I had the opportunity to try a multitude of dishes on their lunch menu, all of which were delicious.
The watermelon frosé is perfectly balanced and I could really taste the fresh watermelon in the drink. It has a chili salt rim and is super refreshing on the warm winter day I visited. The poke bowl is picturesque, it’s a heaping portion of bright ahi tuna, with tricolored quinoa, mango, greens, avocado, and fresh veggies. The grilled chicken sandwich has sundried tomato pesto, applewood bacon, mozzarella, and honey mustard – it honestly tastes like pizza. Be sure to order a side of the horseradish sauce to dip your fries in, it’s a creamy sauce with fresh dill and a kick!
My favorite dish is the Tlayuda. It is a giant tostada the size of a pizza, that actually came out on a pizza pan. It was topped with chorizo, asiento, black beans, cabbage, radishes, tomato, avocado and queso Oaxaca. It came with a spicy green sauce, which I personally want a bottle of.
I will definitely be returning to Mour Café for their happy hour, and because I really want to try their Texas Wagyu Steak from the dinner menu. It’s a different kind of lunch spot, every item on the menu I tried was hearty and delicious, without trying too hard, without the extra frills or intricate garnishes. I highly recommend checking out Mour Café + Pantry, whether you dine-in or take it to go, they’re sure to impress.
