Poeta, the Italian spot from Intero alums Krystal Craig and Ian Thurwachter, is packing up its pasta and heading back into hotel life in East Austin with a January relaunch. The team plans a New Year’s Day brunch to kick off a soft opening, will roll into limited full-service days January 5 through 7, and expects to be at full capacity on Thursday, January 8. This time around, the restaurant will juggle two approaches at once, offering both a seasonal chef’s tasting menu and an à la carte lineup of guest favorites. The new home is on East Sixth Street, right in the thick of the East Austin hotel corridor.
As reported by CultureMap Austin, Poeta will start taking reservations for a soft opening the first week of January 2026 and will operate out of the East Austin Hotel. The hotel lists its location on its site at East Austin Hotel, and CultureMap notes that the upstairs lounge and bar will be folded into Poeta’s footprint. That report also reiterates that the soft opening begins with New Year’s Day brunch and that Poeta is set to be fully open on January 8.
Poeta's Two-Menu Plan
In a statement on Poeta's website, the restaurant explains that it wanted to bring back the tasting menus it honed during a recent residency while also reviving the à la carte dishes regulars had been missing. The Poeta team credits executive chefs Ian Thurwachter and Krystal Craig, along with chef de cuisine Kevin Donovan, with shaping both menus and the many in-house components. The statement emphasizes handmade details and a return to full-service neighborhood-style hospitality.
What to Expect on the Plate and at the Bar
Guests can look for what the team describes as “Italian treatments of Texas ingredients,” with plenty of in-house work behind the scenes. CultureMap Austin notes that Poeta is planning daily hand-rolled pastas, house sauces, and desserts. Upstairs, the lounge will feature specialty cocktails and a full bar, and CultureMap reports that some à la carte dishes will be available right at the bartop. Interior designer Ayse Iyriboz is said to be putting the final touches on the space, and the move comes with roughly 90 dedicated parking spaces for guests.
Where Poeta Came From
Poeta first debuted at The Frances Modern Inn in late 2023, according to Eater Austin. That location wrapped up service in March 2025, as reported by Community Impact, after which Poeta shifted into a tasting-menu residency. Poeta’s own site notes that the Swoop House residency helped the team refine its tasting menus and that returning to a hotel setting will give them room to offer both tasting and à la carte formats again.
For now, the soft-opening schedule gives Austinites an early shot at both the more formal tasting experience and the familiar à la carte plates in a central, walkable spot. The move shows how Austin restaurants are threading the needle between ticketed tasting projects and everyday neighborhood service as they grow. A reservation link is expected to follow, and Poeta says it will share that information once it is live.
