Best Bites at The Kimberly: Chef John Carver’s New Fine Dining Restaurant in Downtown Austin
Chef John Carver brings elegance and consistency to West 6th with The Kimberly, a luxurious restaurant inspired by his wife and built on decades of culinary expertise
From towers of potato mousseline topped with freshly shaved white truffles to 30-day dry-aged steaks and an extensive wine cellar stocked with curated bottles for every palate, The Kimberly exudes pure luxury.
For his third act, Chef John Carver wanted to give Austin a taste of true fine dining — white tablecloths and all. His latest restaurant, named after his wife, invites diners in for an upscale experience, where visitors can nestle into leather booths and velvet bar stools, while being waited on hand and foot from start to finish.
Your glass (wine or water) never sits empty. Your table gets a fresh sweep between courses. Your napkin sits refolded if you step away for a moment. Your silverware is quickly replaced between appetizers and entrees. At The Kimberly in downtown Austin, guests can leave their worries at the door.
“I wanted to create a place where guests can have the most confidence that they’re going to get taken care of, and in order to build that confidence, you have to deliver consistency and quality that makes sense for the value they are paying for,” Carver says.
Decadent dishes
Carver, along with his longtime partners Guy Villavaso and Larry Foles, are behind some of the most popular high-end restaurants in town. He opened Red Ash Italia in 2017 and his namesake steakhouse, J. Carver’s Oyster Bar & Chophouse, in 2021.
So it’s no surprise that when The Kimberly debuted in July this year in the Indeed Tower on West 6th, guests came hungry for more of that chef-driven flair and prepared for another show- stopper, and Carver did not disappoint.
The Kimberly’s menu has intertwined his famous handmade pastas and indulgent wood-fired USDA Prime steaks from his other concepts, while adding a new sprinkle of fine-dining classics, like an extravagant beef wellington wrapped in applewood smoked bacon and a golden puff pastry and topped with shaved truffles.
Carver’s most proud of the 10-day dry-aged duck breast and confit of leg and thigh, which has “people running out in the street and stopping cars to tell them about it,” he jokes. The dry-aged locker enhances the meat’s flavor, while maintaining tenderness in every bite.
He’s added modern touches and global influences with appetizers, like crispy “Salt & Pepper” lobster tails that are lightly fried and sit in a soy broth with Chinese honey mustard sauce. But he doesn’t stray away from fine-dining mainstays, rather he’s perfected them. The beef tenderloin steak tartare has a crystalized egg yolk. The crisp squash blossoms are complemented by a chilled watermelon gazpacho. Fresh seafood, like the Dover sole, North Atlantic scallops and Glory Bay salmon, is flown in daily.
For dessert, diners order with their eyes as breathtaking plates fly by their tables, simply pointing to the burnt marshmallow and chocolate-hazelnut truffle or the coconut and vanilla crème cake with toasted Italian meringue.
An ode to Carver’s better half
While his other Austin mainstay, J. Carver’s, provides a more masculine atmosphere with dim lighting and a steak-heavy menu, The Kimberly is its younger, sophisticated sister. The contemporary menu coupled with the open-air kitchen and warm lighting show Carver’s tapping into his softer side.
Interior designer Janet Henrich of Scottsdale, Ariz., who designed his other two concepts, added a depth of texture with velvet seating, polished wood surfaces and metallic finishes to create a blend of modern elegance.
The 6,400-square-foot space comes to life with the buzz of conversation among business meetings, an anniversary celebration or a couple of friends unwinding at the bar after a long day — every occasion is welcome. Carver’s wife, who also worked in the hospitality industry for years, feels right at home, often walking around with a glass of champagne, like a host at her own dinner party.
Every detail has been meticulously thought out by the chef/owner, who still finds himself directing the expo line and running food out to introduce himself to newcomers and regulars alike.
“I’m totally hands-on at all three of my restaurants, and I think people enjoy that,” Carver says. “I don’t do it to entertain them. I do it because I want to. I’m in the restaurant business, and this is what I like to do.”