A neighborhood Central Texas Italian spot is closing its stomping grounds after eight years in the restaurant business. Uncle Nicky’s in Austin announced on social media that it plans to shutter its original Hyde Park location this weekend.
The popular Italian restaurant said its final day of service at at 4222 Duval St. will be Sunday, April 26. However, Uncle Nicky’s confirmed its second South Lamar location will remain open.
“Hyde Park is where Uncle Nicky’s began — where we found our footing, built our community, and shaped what this place could be,” the restaurant wrote in an Instagram post. “This isn’t the end of Uncle Nicky’s — it’s a return. Just refocused, with our South Lamar location carrying that vision forward.”
The restaurant did not specifically say in the post what caused the Hyde Park closure, but did allude to this downsizing possibly being a part of Little Nicky’s vision to stay a small, tight-knit café.
“Somewhere along the way, things got a little… bigger than we meant them to,” the restaurant wrote. “And we keep coming back to the version we love most — a little tighter, a little simpler, a little more like the cafés we’ve been chasing all along.”
Founded by Chef Nic Yanes, Little Nicky’s first opened in Hyde Park in 2019 as Chef Nic Yanes’ reimagined version of the upscale Italian restaurant Juniper. The venture was a collaboration between Yanes, Travis Tober of East Austin bar Nickel City and the founders of Via313, Brandon and Zane Hunt, according to the Little Nicky’s website.
The café is a casual, cozy spot serving Northern Italian cuisine like pasta, sandwiches, salads with a full bar of cocktails and drinks. To celebrate its last weekend at Hyde Park, Little Nicky’s is offering specials such as $5 classic cocktails, $7 wines, $7 well cocktails and half-off all sandwiches this Friday, April 24 through Sunday, April 26.
“Join us for one last weekend together. Come by, stay a while, have ‘one more,'” the post concluded. “Hyde Park, you made this place what it is — we’re endlessly grateful to this neighborhood and the community that filled it. More to come soon.”
MySA reached out to Excelsior Hospitality, which manages Little Nicky’s, for comment.
Find it: 4222 Duval St., Austin, TX 78751
Dining and Cooking