O’Donnell’s Café and Pub brings long line of experience to square establishment

By Kyle Mooty

LPR Editor

Denis O’Donnell said his soon-to-open O’Donnell’s Café and Pub on the Lockhart square (119 E. San Antonio Street) will not only have remodeled the building that was the former home of the Lockhart Bistro, but it will become the jewel of downtown.

“We are in the process of remodeling now,” said O’Donnell, who is hoping for a late November or early December opening. “It’s the finest building on the square. She’s going to be gorgeous. We will have chandeliers and tall mirrors behind the bar. The kitchen will be in the middle, and there will be a stage with live music in the back. We will have 20 beers on tap.”

O’Donnell’s Café and Pub will be on the northeast corner of the Lockhart square. The Lockhart Bistro suffered a major fire in July 2022 and has since moved to Gonzales.

O’Donnell plans to have some of the best live music Lockhart can offer as well as other differences from other similar places.

“There will be no fried items,” O’Donnell said. “It will be a healthier choice. We’re trying to fill a lane that is not yet here in Lockhart.”

O’Donnell comes from a long line of restaurant and bar owners. In fact, his soon-to-be Lockhart establishment will be the fourth business he has owned.

O’Donnell’s grandfather owned an Irish pub in Queens, New York. His family also had a nightclub. He credits his mother as helping him out the most.

The family moved to Houston in the early 70’s to try and take advantage of the construction boom there with a food truck. Eventually, they tried capitalizing with a restaurant in the Hobby area with a family-style restaurant. O’Donnell said his family were successful until “they got behind the 8-ball” in the area.

Denis came to Austin in 1997 as a musician when he was 18. As he had been doing since he was 14, he began working at restaurants again. Later, he began bartending.

O’Donnell moved to Gainesville, Texas for a brief spell as his mother was planning to open a restaurant there. He moved back to Austin and managed Jason’s Deli. He would marry and become general manager of Kerbey Lane Café for about four years. There, he oversaw two restaurants with about 130 employees.

“We were a shoot-at-the-hip restaurant, but I learned to take care of people with service while making it profitable,” O’Donnell said.

After the hurried scene in Austin, O’Donnell wanted life to “slow down” a bit for his wife and daughter, who is now 14. So, they moved to Lockhart.

Coming from a strong Italian background, O’Donnell plans to have several family recipes at the Lockhart business.

“We have family recipes with rosemary soup, lentil soup, corned beef Rubens,” O’Donnell said. “We will have soup, salad, and sandwiches. We will have items such as baked flounder with cream and butter, bone-in pork chop, and more.”

Some of the “more” includes mussels, shrimp scampi, etc.

“We’re not chefs, we’re cooks,” proclaimed O’Donnell. “The brunch menu will be in the $9 to $12 range, and the other items from $17 to $21. We’re right in there with Whataburger as far as price goes.

“It will be all fresh. We slice our meats in the house.”

O’Donnell’s cousin, Michaela, will be the general manager at O’Donnell’s Café and Pub. She once managed a restaurant in Long Island, New York.

O’Donnell’s wife, Ashley, will wait tables. Their daughter, Lula, will be at the host stand.

“The city has been so cool to work with,” O’Donnell said. “We’re going to have some of the best music in Lockhart. The things they have done with music here helps everybody. The next five years of growth here will be extra special.”

Brunch at O’Donnell’s will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with items such as tomato pie, Eggs Benedict, French toast and more. The other items will also be available all day with the kitchen closing about 9:30 p.m. Depending on music, O’Donnell’s could stay open till midnight.

O’Donnell once managed the famous Hole in the Wall in Austin, and has owned establishments such as The White Horse and Sagebrush. He said The White Horse was one of the most successful honkytonks in Texas. He was 50 percent partner in Sagebrush.

Still having a love for music, O’Donnell’s live act can be caught on the last Wednesday of each month at Old Pal in Lockhart, although he said with the opening of O’Donnell’s Café and Pub, he may need to take a break for a bit.