Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending right this minute?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to uncover which eateries have been seeing especially high review volumes this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at Austin businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are worth exploring this summer.
The Westwood Gastropub
This gastropub and New American and breakfast and brunch spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp.
Citywide, New American spots saw a median 2.4 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, but The Westwood Gastropub saw a 27.8 percent increase, with a slight upward trend from a 3.5-star rating a month ago to four stars today.
Located at 5308 Balcones Drive, The Westwood Gastropub offers burgers, tacos and more.
Comedor
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about downtown Austin's Comedor, the Mexican spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "Mexican" on Yelp saw a median 2.3 percent increase in new reviews over the past month, Comedor bagged a 23.3 percent increase in new reviews within that timeframe, maintaining a sound 4.5-star rating.
Open at 501 Colorado St., Comedor offers pork chops, halibut and more on the menu.
Toulouse Cafe and Bar
Toulouse Cafe and Bar is also making waves. Open at 3120 Palm Way, Suite #150, the wine bar and French spot, which offers sandwiches and more, has seen a 5.3 percent bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 2.4 percent for all businesses tagged "Sandwiches" on Yelp. Moreover, on a month-to-month basis, Toulouse Cafe and Bar's review count increased by more than 250 percent.
Toulouse Cafe and Bar offers shrimp and grits and more on the menu. It also offers delivery service. Over the past month, it's maintained a strong four-star rating among Yelpers.
TLC Austin
Zilker's TLC Austin is the city's buzziest seafood spot by the numbers.
The popular traditional American and seafood spot, open at 1100 S. Lamar Blvd., Suite #1150, increased its new review count by 7.3 percent over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 2.1 percent for the Yelp category "Seafood."
TLC Austin offers chicken fried steak and more on the menu.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
