Storied architectural landmark and urban destination Commodore Perry Estate, Auberge Resorts Collection is pleased to announce the opening of Lutie’s Garden Restaurant today in Austin, Texas. Lutie’s features ingredient-forward fare prepared with an elevated approach as influenced by husband-and-wife chef team Bradley Nicholson and Susana Querejazu’s experiences cooking in acclaimed restaurants around the world. The ever-changing, seasonal menus spotlight local farmers and ranchers and reflect the chefs’ celebration of ingredients through preparation rooted in understated simplicity. Named after the estate matriarch Nannie Lewette “Lutie” Perry, the namesake restaurant melds warm hospitality with the convivial spirit of the property’s Jazz Age legacy, transporting guests to a contemporary garden retreat overlooking lush estate grounds. Lutie’s is now open to hotel guests and private club members for dinner service to start, Wednesday through Sunday from 5-10 p.m. Beginning April 14, Lutie’s will be open to the public by advanced reservations only, available on OpenTable. Access to the estate grounds and amenities will be exclusive to hotel guests and club members only.
Marking a return to the city in which they began their careers, distinguished chef duo Executive Chef Bradley Nicholson and Executive Pastry Chef Susana Querejazu have distilled their extensive experiences — from cooking in beloved Austin establishments to acclaimed, Michelin-starred restaurants around the globe — into a culinary program that honors familiar regional flavors and a sense of place with modern, world-class techniques and preparation. Always pushing creative boundaries, Executive Chef Nicholson’s cuisine focuses on manipulating whole ingredients via methods such as fermentation and aging to achieve new and unexpected flavors.
“Deceptive simplicity in cuisine has become my foundation for creativity,” said Nicholson. “Lutie’s is the culmination of a personalized, handcrafted approach and allowing ingredients, sourced from local farms and purveyors, to be the guide.”
Intended as a multi-course experience, Lutie’s menu features dishes like Yonder Way pork with pickled cabbage and creamer peas; charcoal-grilled chicken with leeks and hominy; and royal red shrimp with daikon and celery. Highlights from the dessert menu include a kouign amann ice cream and seasonal soft-serve flavors like fresh strawberry finished with Texas olive oil.
The seasonal menus are complemented by a robust beverage program featuring craft cocktails; a curated collection of rare and vintage liquors, digestifs, and spirits; craft beers highlighting the best brewers in the state; an expansive wine list with a focus on natural wines, and coffee in partnership with local roaster Tiny House.
Executive Chef Bradley Nicholson began his culinary career in Austin, Texas, where he spent several years at acclaimed restaurant Barley Swine, before moving to San Francisco for tenures at Michelin-starred restaurants Birdsong and Benu. In 2015, Nicholson was recognized in Zagat’s 30 Under 30, and he was a recipient of the Ment’or BKB Grant program for 2016-17, giving him the opportunity to refine his expertise in Copenhagen alongside former Noma Chef Matt Orlando at world-renowned restaurant Amass.
Like Nicholson, Executive Pastry Chef Susana Querejazu shares an Austin origin with years of pastry experience at local restaurants like Enoteca Vespaio, Vespaio Ristorante, Uchi, and Uchiko, before taking on the role of executive pastry chef at Odd Duck and Barley Swine and, later, as pastry sous chef at Quince Restaurant and three-Michelin-starred Saison in San Francisco. In addition to her expertise in plated desserts, bread, baking, and viennoiserie, Querejazu served as assistant sommelier at The Riddler in San Francisco. In 2016, Querejazu was named an Eater Young Gun and was nominated for a Pastry Chef of the Year CultureMap Tastemaker Award. Chef Querejazu was also a recipient of the Ment’or BKB Grant program for 2016-17, where she staged at Le Meurice in the birthplace of patisserie, Paris, France.
In addition to developing dynamic menus for Lutie’s, Chefs Nicholson and Querejazu also oversee all food and beverage operations at the estate, including delivering one-of-a-kind catering experiences and events for weddings and social occasions.
Through the whimsical lens of powerhouse style maker Ken Fulk, who served as both designer and creative director of Commodore Perry Estate, Lutie’s interiors deliver a modern interpretation of an old-school country club. Brimming with natural light, the dining room features vibrant shades of green, gilded details, and delicate greenery hung from a latticework ceiling. Bespoke upholstered furnishings—freestanding banquettes in a custom floral fabric and scalloped bar stools—impart a decidedly refined and residential feel. A breezy covered terrace overlooks the property’s immaculate Italian gardens and fountains. Blending relaxed European charm and gracious Texas hospitality, Lutie’s conveys the effortless glamour and inviting familiarity of dining in the country home of a treasured friend.
“Lutie’s is delightfully old-fashioned and remarkably charming,” says Fulk. “It is utterly familiar yet like no place you’ve ever been. Designed as an unexpected urban refuge where you can linger over a delicious meal and enjoy a refreshing cocktail while taking in the bucolic setting.”
Designed by local architecture firm Clayton & Little as an addition to the historic estate and backdrop to the magnificent sunken gardens, Lutie’s hugs the existing stone walls that enclose the former estate. Intended to feel as though it has always been part of the property, the building will be covered in ivy so that it recedes into the landscape while the original stone wall peeks through along the interior’s perimeter.
Named after the estate matriarch, a driving design force behind the grounds, Lutie’s is situated at the Commodore Perry Estate, a destination hotel and private club in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Austin. Built in the Jazz Age in 1928, the estate was originally the country home of Commodore Edgar and Lutie Perry, and often the setting for lavish social gatherings and soirées between the couple’s stints of travel through Europe.
For more information about Lutie’s Garden Restaurant, please visit luties.com, and follow on Facebook or Instagram.
