Home Slice Pizza Poised To Open In North Austin

NORTH AUSTIN, TX — Home Slice Pizza is scheduled to open its second restaurant, to be located in North Austin, by month's end, company officials said Wednesday.

The new restaurant — the second for the popular pizza provider near the corner of North Loop and Duval Street at 501 E. 53rd St. — is scheduled for an opening on Wednesday, May 30, officials said in a press advisory. Take-out orders can be placed by phone at (512) 707-PIES (7437). For die-hard fans happy to camp out: The May 30 opening will be at precisely 11 a.m.

As fans of the South Austin location at 1415 S. Congress Ave. already know, the pie purveyor offers "authentic New York-style pizza by the slice or pie," as they indicate in their marketing materials. Anchovy lovers, rejoice: Patch can personally attest they always have them on hand, such is their authenticity.

The new North Loop location combines several beloved features of the original Home Slice and its More Home Slice annex, including full-service dine-in, patio seating, and indoor and outdoor bar seating, all under the same roof, restaurant officials conveyed in their advisory. The new location also includes a dedicated take-out window and counter service for picking up pies on the go—similar to the More Home Slice space at the original South Congress location, officials added.

The new Home Slice was designed in partnership with the Austin-based Michael Hsu Office of Architecture, Home Slice founders Jen Scoville Strickland, Joseph Strickland, and Terri Hannifin-Buis, along with partners and longtime employees Nano Whitman, Jeff Mettler, and Adam Cooper, officials said.

"The new 4,000-square-foot dining space draws inspiration from the coziest classic Italian restaurants, the glitziest Long Island banquet halls, and the infamous pre-Giuliani years of New York City that bred the art, music, and street cred culture that the partners find so inspirational," Home Slice officials wrote.

"The new restaurant space is just as inviting as the South Congress location, and the attention to detail that patrons have come to know and love is present in spades, visible even before entering," officials added. "The aged brick exterior of the original building was kept intact and enhanced with retro awnings, while painted light fixtures and neon-lighted sequined signage built by Evan Voyles announce the 70s/80s vibe. The fun continues inside with the faux-fancy host area: flocked red velvety wallpaper, Roman columns, and a chandelier fashioned from grape swag light fixtures share space with an illuminated ceiling dome where NYC’s red-bereted Guardian Angels, painted by Abraham Mong, oversee everyone’s safety."

Moreover, the restaurant’s dark walnut bar and black tin ceiling make for an inviting space for a drink or dinner, while antique brass peacock screens on shelves above shine atmospheric light below. The dining area is all red upholstered booths and banquettes, cozy seating, amid dimly lit red-checkered tables, officials added. There's more: "Timeless oak paneling and vintage gilt mirrors along the west wall combined with a 'left-behind' crystal chandelier suggest an earlier incarnation of fine dining in the space, while a large mural of an Italian countryside defaced with street art painted by Rory Skagen keeps things offbeat and entertaining," officials described. "Local artists Niz, Cody Waker, Gary Green, Tony Romano, Laurie Mann, and Daniel Burns, among others, also contributed to the interior."

The outside space at the new Home Slice is also inviting: "The outdoor patio brings customers metaphorically into the street underneath NYC sidewalk scaffolding and features comfortable banquet seating, a full-service bar with tiling reminiscent of a 70’s t-shirt, and, adjacent to the bar, an unusual landscape designed to tickle all ages."

Expanded offerings at the North Loop location include a full bar with a cocktail program "...founded on the same authenticity, lack of pretension, and focus on genuinely friendly service that guides the company’s approach to pizza," restaurant officials said. "The carefully curated spirit list was built to support the creation of classic drinks from various eras and also features some specially chosen vermouths and amaros. Drinks like the “Soul Fashioned,” “Negroni Danza,” and “It’s Aperol Good,” among others, are rooted in old-school New York and Italy but shout out to Home Slice’s playfully irreverent style."

The new site also will offer an expanded beer menu to include a rotating local tap in addition to offering Peroni — Italy’s best-selling lager — on draft, according to the press advisory. :As for vino, Home Slice will continue to pour only carefully chosen, affordable Italian boutique wines by the glass, bottle, and carafe," restaurant officials added.

The North Loop location will also offer the specialty Sicilian square pie six-days-a-week, each night until it runs out, officials vowed. And: "Exclusive to the new North Loop location, Home Slice is also expanding its menu to include Buffalo wings, another East Coast comfort food that, like pizza, invites passionate debate among fans," officials added.

In these polarizing, divisive time, that's a worthwhile — and delicious — debate worth having. Capisce?

>>> Image courtesy of Home Slice