If you haven’t read the idea behind the original industry, start there. The mission and theme are the same, but this time I had chance to open Industry where I live in east Austin. We changed nothing from the original but made it a little bigger. Our kitchen space is world class, and with our bar space we were able to add a third well and espresso bar. We open for breakfast daily at 9am. We are also open until 2am some nights. These two additions to our model were the final culmination of my dream of being a third space. We’re open all the time servicing all day parts and diets. 

But opening in Austin was challenging. Our construction costs increased 4x, our rent is backbreaking, and we opened to an indifferent consumer that was not price sensitive or aware of our brand. People thought were a chain and our inexpensive menu came off as “cheap.” So, staying in business has been challenging as well. Breakfast, lunch and happy hour were vanishing dayparts, because once we opened we discovered that every office building in our area was empty. Work remote culture dramatically changed consumer behavior, and the affluence of our hip consumer juxtaposed with our location in essentially a shopping center made Industry a tough sell. These macro factors forced major changes that have now made Industry a truly great restaurant.

We hired our first real chef in 6 years and went from 80% from scratch to almost 100% from scratch, we eliminated any ingredient or dish that wasn’t “Texas,” we invested heavily in marketing, programming, and community outreach, and adjusted our dining room and patio with more lounge seating. We also increased our prices significantly yet still remain cheaper than anyone in our competitive set.  All these changes changed our reputation and momentum and snowballed into our Debut on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives with Guy Fieri on July 25^th, 2025!

A major liability when we opened was our “real wage guarantee,” adding 20% to all checks so customers didn’t have to worry about tipping. Well, when we opened in 2022 the hiring climate was so sparse that the staff we were able to hire were well below our standards. Customers balked about being charged 20% without being given a glass of water or having someone smile at you. Fair. When we improved the restaurant, we improved our staff. The complaints about our service charge disappeared. I’m passionate about how tipping culture has become so broken in that it prompts customers to tip as much as 30% in advance of receiving any food or service, and was trying to eliminate that guilt ridden interaction. People get it now. People get Industry.

New East Austin Location For Restaurant, Industry | KXAN

Small plates: More eats, drinks heading to East Austin | Austin Business Journal

Texas-inspired restaurant Industry opening second location in East Austin this fall | Community Impact Austin

Hospitality industry vets bring ‘low-key healthy’ restaurant to East Austin | Culture Map Austin

INDUSTRY SET TO OPEN NEW RESTAURANT IN EAST AUSTIN | Austin Food Mag