Shawn Cirkiel, Executive Chef & Owner, parkside & the backspace

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  “Treating food right is the most important thing to me,” says Chef Shawn Cirkiel, who has trained in restaurants as noteworthy as Café Boulud, Domaine Chandon and Austin’s very own Uchi. One of Austin’s most recognized chefs, Cirkiel has been invited and cooked twice at the prestigious James Beard House in New York City.

  In 2002, Cirkiel, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, took the helm of Austin’s beloved Jean Luc’s Bistro, a five-star French restaurant, and gained a cadre of followers as Austin’s youngest five-star chef. Already a respected and popular restaurant, Jean Luc’s Bistro gave Cirkiel the opportunity to showcase his culinary talent and he quickly won fans with his creativity and commitment to fresh and local  ingredients.

  Cirkiel’s fan base has grown even more with the opening of Parkside, a gastro pub in Austin’s lively downtown area. Located directly on Sixth Street, Parkside offers a casual venue for his unpretentious, but bold take on New American Cuisine. The restaurant was named by Texas Monthly magazine as one of the “Top 10 Best New Texas of 2008.”

  Food genes might explain Cirkiel’s obsession with fresh food.  His parents owned a vegetarian eatery throughout his childhood and taught him the importance of quality ingredients. His family also lived on a farm and enjoyed fresh milk, eggs and vegetables, setting the stage for Cirkiel’s passion for fresh foods. Additionally, great grandparents on both sides of the family were involved in food as bakers and farmers. His farming great grandparents had a farm in Arkansas and cooked all of their meals in a wood-burning stove. “There is nothing better than biscuits from a wood burning stove,” he says. Foraging was important, too.  He fondly remembers the times he ate so many fresh blueberries that his hands were stained for days.

  Now, the chef finds the best foragers and farmers to supply the quality components for his Parkside menu. Cirkiel’s offerings include a sumptuous raw bar—which often carries as many as 16 varieties of oysters. While the menu changes seasonally—even daily–diners can enjoy both dramatic dishes like juicy salmon crowned with almonds and pears or comfort basics such as fried egg sandwiches.  Innovative dishes that exemplify his flair and innovative touch in the kitchen include beet and peach tartar, crab fritters with ravigote and Texas goat cheesecake with basil ice cream.

  Bon Appetit magazine crowned Parkside one of the “Hot 10 New American Taverns” as a top destination for pub cuisine and his towering hamburger was voted one of the best in Texas by Texas Monthly (2009). Cirkiel has been acknowledged in nearly every regional magazine and newspaper in Texas—as well as in the Los Angeles Times, American Way, Spirit, Cooks Illustrated –among others.