AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two Austin restaurants earned their Michelin Stars in the restaurant guide’s latest round of selections, according to an announcement from the Michelin guide on Thursday.
A star is a mark of quality, granted based on reports from the guide’s anonymous “inspectors.”
“Put simply, we award MICHELIN Stars to restaurants offering outstanding cooking,” the guide’s website says. “An incredible meal could be a one-off experience. We’re after those restaurants that deliver the same standard every time.”
2025 | 3 new Texas restaurants receive MICHELIN Star; 1 in Austin earns a Green Star
Austin’s newly starred restaurants are the reservation-only Kappo Kappo and Fabrik.
Michelin Guide international director Gwendal Poullennec congratulated the honorees in the announcement and said that this was “another standout year for Texas.”
“Over the past three years our anonymous Inspectors have watched the culinary talent across Texas flourish and continue to push boundaries, which is evident in this year’s restaurant promotions,” she said in the release. “Congratulations to the entire restaurant selection. Your commitment to high quality and culinary excellence has been proven again and again.”
Fabrik
Fabrik, located at 3108 Windsor Road, serves a seasonal and plant-based eight-course meal to its patrons. Its name is the German word for a factory, which the restaurant says “pays homage to the effort of ongoing refinement applied to every level of the design and production of your dining experience.”
Executive chef Je Wallerstein and her husband, restaurant manager Silas Wallerstein, own and operate the restaurant.
“The handsome space suits them: High ceilings, wood beams, intimate tables angled towards the
open kitchen and an upbeat playlist that matches the mood,” wrote one inspector. “This is delicious, imaginative cooking where the likes of mushrooms, beets and corn are celebrated as main events with refinement, creativity and class.”
KXAN has reached out to Fabrik for the couple’s reaction to the honor.
Photos of Fabrik (below) courtesy Je Wallerstein via Michelin Guide.
Kappo Kappo
Kappo Kappo’s menu changes nightly, with twin chefs Gohei and Haru Kishi preparing a tasting menu that “follows the rhythm of the market,” its website says. It’s located in the Austin Proper Hotel at 600 W 2nd St.
“Kappo Kappo is built on the spirit of conviviality. It’s about dissolving the barrier between guest and chef and creating something warm, personal, and alive,” said Haru Kishi, in a quote on the website.
An inspector wrote that patrons shouldn’t assume Kappo Kappo “is a typical hushed omakase.”
“Instead, expect a lively ambience with guests chatting and the brothers sharing stories about
their lives and their French-Japanese dishes,” they wrote.
The twins sent a statement to KXAN about the honor, which they said “feels a little surreal.”
Earning a Michelin Star in our first year, and being the first hotel restaurant in Texas to get one, still feels a little surreal. Kappo Kappo is personal for us. It comes from our Japanese heritage, growing up in Paris, and everything we’ve picked up cooking around the world. We wanted to build something that felt true to who we are: a small, intimate room where guests get to know us through the food. Having the Michelin Guide recognize that less than a year in means a lot. This belongs to our whole team, and to the guests, farmers and purveyors who’ve backed us from the start. We’re going to keep growing Kappo Kappo without losing what got us here.
Photos of Kappo Kappo (below) courtesy Austin Proper Hotel via Michelin Guide.
Other local wins
Fabrik and Kappo Kappo join five other starred restaurants in Austin and 12 others in Texas, which includes Goldee’s Bar-B•Q in Fort Worth, another new arrival.
The guide also announced six Texas restaurants received a “Bib Gourmand … which recognizes eateries for great food at a great value.” While all of the new additions on the guide’s Texas list were located in Houston and Dallas, Austin has 14 restaurants on that list.
Another local win came to Stefan Davis, the general manager and sommelier of Barley Swine in Austin, who received the “Michelin Outstanding Service Award.” Barley Swine is also a current Michelin Star holder.
The Michelin Guide’s full lists can be found on its website.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
