Restaurants Re-Opening: Go to Nik's!

Since it was my birthday the other day, I decided to go out to eat with family at a local restaurant. This was the first time I had been to a restaurant since the Covid-19 pandemic, so I was eager to go out to eat and have a delicious and fulfilling meal. The place I went to was Nik’s Italian Kitchen and Bar, located in Austin, Texas. I had never been to the place but there were some good reviews about it online, and I was in the mood for some Italian food because it had been a while since I had a good Italian food meal.

The restaurant was not hard to find, just off 620 road in Austin. The restaurant is located near a shopping center, in a more residential area type shopping center rather than a downtown type location. The restaurant is not very big but has a dining section and a section for the bar. When entering the front door of the restaurant, it is visible that the dining section is to the left and the bar section is to the right, but it is all one room. The restaurant was dimly lit for the most part, with a little more lighting in the dining section than over by the bar. We got served quickly at a table in the dining area. The restaurant seemed a little short staffed, but it was not a big deal because the restaurant was not near full capacity, probably not even at half capacity. It also helped that along with the staff being quick all night, they made us feel welcome and taken care of. There were no problems with the orders the entire night.

I imagine the place was popping, especially on the weekends before the pandemic, but for now they are starting to see more business, but it is a slow process as people are gradually starting to eat out at restaurants again.

The menu featured a widespread of Italian cuisines, such as lasagna, linguini, chicken breast, alfredo, and other traditional pasta dishes, along with a few off the grill dishes, but what stood out on their menu and considered their signature dish is there “Texas sized” chicken parmesan. The chicken parmesan could be prepared three ways: traditional marinara, vodka sauce, and jalapeno lime. I decided to go with the vodka sauce chicken parmesan, and let me tell you, this thing really was the size of Texas. It was most certainly the largest chicken parmesan I had ever seen! There was some pasta beneath the chicken in an orange-y sauce that I am not sure what it was, but it was not marinara.

The chicken parmesan was delicious, and I really liked the vodka sauce that was on it as the flavors went together nicely. One of my family members got the marinara chicken parmesan, which I tried a small bite of. Don’t get me wrong, it was tasty, but I was glad I chose the vodka sauce. Another family member got chicken alfredo, which they said they enjoyed. If I return to Nik’s, I would like to say I would switch my order up to try something new, but in reality, I probably wouldn’t be able to resist another chicken parm.

Overall, I enjoyed dining at Nik’s. The service was good, and the food was terrific as well. The lighting was dim, which some might like it brighter, but I didn’t mind it and didn’t even notice it after about a minute of being there. I would recommend someone to go to Nik’s, and would certainly recommend ordering the chicken parmesan with vodka sauce. It’s a lot of food but you’ll enjoy it!