Fete Accompli

I finally made it to the Farmer’s Market downtown with the pretense of specifically finding their booth and I am glad I made it. It was a wonder of chocolate and reasonably priced. I bought a huge truffle for my daughter and was lamenting that I was sad that the brownies looked like they were melting in the sun because I wanted to try one. The gal was so nice that she gave me a brownie for free just so I would come back. And it was delicious!

I swung by today for the first time and got bad news: Fête Accompli has closed their retail business. For now, they are only fulfilling catering orders. They may open up a ghost of their former retail pursuits in the form of email ordering 24 – 48 hours in advance of delivery/​pick-​up, but that remains to be seen. Email
if you want to be notified of whether they do so.

Fête Accompli started out as a catering company, and now has expanded to lunch service, although with very limited seating (2 tables I think), but is great for take out. They have also expanded to the Sustainable Food Center’s Farmer’s Market downtown, with refreshing drinks. Last Saturday, I had a basil drink that was to die for. At the store, you can order from the case of locally sourced ingredients, vegetable dishes, salads, or you can order a sandwich to go or eat out front. The chicken salad has basil and nuts and is amazing. The egg salad is also amazing, and uses local eggs. There is a cooler full of meals to go, casseroles, soups and the like. They also sell Texas Olive Ranch products. They are conveniently located on 12^th Street, and I’ll keep stopping by on my way home from downtown for delicious fare.

mmmm… brownies. Utterly Delicious. They are more fudge-​like than cake-​like which I prefer since I am not a big fan of cake.
I also had the soup of the day which was Mushroom and Barley. Absolutely yummy.
Definitely take-​out with only a few outdoor tables which often proves difficult for me since I can rarely wait until I get home to dive into the treasures I just acquired.

I tried the vegetable sandwich today and it was delicious. I’m a sandwich person so I’m super picky but this was fantastic. Tomato garlic focaccia bread, shredded carrots, red onions, cucumber, lettuce, and a great dill sauce. I highly recommend this sandwich. Next up will be the no egg salad. I’m so glad I work down the street from this place.
Give the strawberry lemonade a try as well!

I love lists. I like choosing a list, then going down it. For example. I’m hungry for a tasty and light lunch, let me go through my [mental] Tasty and Light Lunch List… Let’s see… Panera? Too manufactured… La Madeleine? The central location closed… Hog Island? Too boring… Ah! I know! Fête Accompli! That’s what I like to do. And before Fête Accompli was added to the list, it usually ended with me picking another list (e.g., the Highly Convenient and Equally Fattening Lunch List… yikes.)
I stepped in not long ago after searching Unilocal for additional Tasty and Light Lunch List candidates and found that this cute place that I used to pass every day on the way from work was not just a caterer. Well, they’re mostly a caterer, but they’ve also got lunch specials with salads and sandwiches and other goodies that I can’t wait to try more of. I started with chicken salad on rosemary focaccia (i like starting simply – usually gives me a good way to compare to other eateries) and it was very good. Just what I was looking for. The chicken was juicy and not overly saucy, and walnuts added a great texture change. They’ll dress it how you want, but the standard seemed to be greens, tomato, onion, mayo, so I went with that. The best part was the bread though. Great rosemary flavor and it was studded on the outside with big ol’ flakes of sea salt, adding this great salty bite and totally enhancing the flavor of everything else on the sandwich. Why doesn’t everyone do this? And don’t think I’m some sort of salt freak… the only thing I really ever put salt on is tortilla chips and french fries. But you’ve gotta try it, it makes such a big difference.
I can’t wait to go back and try some of their other fresh-​made salads (pimiento cheese is on the list). They’ve also got other fun things like deviled eggs (for $.75/​each – take THAT, Lambert’s!), a large selection of unusual bottled bevs and other good stuff. Check it out for a quick but tasty bite!

The last time I passed Fête Accompli it seemed to be just catering but they are serving an amazing lunch onsite. Best for takeout but they have limited, uncovered, seating outdoors. This is the ultimate place to pack your picnic basket for a gourmet lunch in the park.

Mmmm… I am such a fan of the delicious salads at Fête! The lunch special includes your choice of 4 salads, along with a giant homemade cookie. The salads change weekly, but some of my favorites have been in the rotation frequently. Among faves are the pimento cheese salad (great on a sandwich or on pita chips), butternut squash with gorgonzola cheese, roasted brussel sprouts and different varieties of cous cous.
Negatives (but still okay) were that the hummus was too dry for me, and the roasted beets a little underdone the two times I ordered. Also a negative is the $ 10 price tag (with tip, no drink), but unfortunately that seems the norm everywhere these days.

First of all, I used to work there. The fact that I have gone back and will should tell you something. The ingredients used are deliciously fresh, and the chicken salad is just freakin good. I just signed up for Unilocal and thought i’d leave a review.

This place is the perfect solution when you have house guests or people coming over. I pre-​ordered a strata and a breakfast casserole. I picked it up and only had to heat it to serve. The food was incredibly fresh and impressive. My guests were appreciative and I didn’t have to spend time cooking or cleaning. I also have used this place to cater lunch meetings. It is guaranteed to impress. If you have neither guests nor meetings, just go eat there for a grab and go. Everything is made with the best of ingredients so you know you are eating healthy no matter what you order. I especially love the kale salad and the couscous.

I almost feel bad rating Fête Accompli four stars instead of five, but the $ 35 tab for a family of four, two of which are small children, was a bit burdensome.
However, the food is simply outstanding. I had the lunch special, which was a half sandwich (I have a soft spot for pimento cheese) with their wild rice soup and the thai peanut noodles. The noodles were pretty meh, but the other two were total awesome-​sauce. The bread (kind of a tomato/​cheese combo) worked really well.
My wife got the special, opting for the veggie sandwich, same soup, and she got the roasted beets with a lemon/​garlic sauce. The beets were outstanding. The kids shared a turkey sandwich, which had a curry twist to it. Again, an excellent sandwich.
I normally can’t stand places like this, eschewing them at every possible opportunity. I find over-​priced sandwiches with overly gourmet sides to be over-​kill. Fête Accompli, however, pulls it off beautifully, and I’ll be back.

I love it, I love it! Working at an office nearby, it’s fantastic to have a healthy option for lunch instead of Whole Foods. There is always a parking spot so I can zip in and out, the staff is incredibly friendy and you can get an assortment of side dishes for a decent price. The Chicken and Dumplings soup is incredible as are their bite-​size cheesecake desserts. Sometimes there are very few cold prepped salads but I never leave disappointed. So happy it is gaining popularity!

A friend and I stopped at 11 on a Wednesday morning, so it was fairly quiet since they’d just opened. I was thrilled from the get-​go, when they told us we could sample anything…(yes, anything!) from the salad menu. I was like a kid in a candy shop. So many choices! I tried the Thai peanut pasta and was sold.
I ordered the fresh veggie sandwich; my friend got the pimento cheese — both equally wonderful, but be forewarned… the latter was a bit too spicy for me. Initially, I was surprised at the cost of my salad — $ 3.95 — but as soon as I tasted it, it was well worth it.
Bottom line: Great place for an occasional amazing lunch — or somewhere to take visitors to show them how awesome Austin food can be.

Wow, just wow.
I went here for lunch and their weekly special was a half sandwich, small soup and a side for $ 6.99 ($ 7.99 for omnivores). I got the cream of cauliflower soup, the pimento cheese sandwich and the (.. . wait for it…) butternut squash with goat cheese and truffle oil. O to the M to the G. I don’t even LIKE butternut squash, but it turns out that when you top it with goat cheese, truffle oil and chives, I will not only want to eat it but am torn between rolling around in it naked or selling my first born for another serving.
The pimento cheese on wheat was the best pimento cheese I’ve had in my life (has a spiciness to it) and the cauliflower soup was a bit bland until I stirred in the bleu cheese they’d topped it with. And then it had this depth of flavor that sent it over the edge.
I’m so glad a place like this exists, where the food tastes superior to food you’d get at another restaurant.

When it comes to new lunch spots, I’m always on the prowl. Today was my third time inside Fête. The first time I was just checking it out. The second time I wanted the pimento cheese sandwich, but they were out of wheat and only had foccacia. And this time, yet again, I went for the pimento cheese. And, yet again, they were out of wheat, but I got it anways on the tomato-​garlic sub roll (unaware of the fact it wasn’t sliced bread). It wasn’t ideal for pimento cheese — too bready but tasty nonetheless.
I would probably just give Fête 3 stars (due to this second incidence of no wheat) if it weren’t for the staff. Everyone in there was super-​friendly, and if I wanted to, I could’ve tasted every single prepared food item in their case, which they change up some every week. I just went with the hummus and chicken salad (both very tasty).
Their pre-​made salads look divine too, though they’re kind of on the pricey side, averaging $ 10−12/each.
Overall, this place has potential, and I’ll definitely be back.

This place is a breath of fresh air! I was so excited when I discovered Fête. I go to ACC, and this is by FAR the best place to eat around campus! HECK! It’s my new favorite lunch spot! Today I had a box lunch with 4 sides/​salads/​veggie. I chose roasted cauliflower, roasted beets, hummus, and a sweet potato salad with chipotle and lime! MmMmmMmM!!! Can’t wait to try something else!
If they have the HUMMUS, get it!

Truffled deviled eggs and homemade hibiscus lemonade! Delicious! This place has a nice variety of tasty gourmet foods and drinks. The staff is very friendly and offers to let you sample the various salads and dishes on display. They also have a good selection of sandwiches and soups. I wished I lived in Austin, because I would eat here every week!

Ho, my god. Everything looked so delicious and tempting I was kinda afraid of choosing wrong.
Then they told me about the BOX LUNCH, where you choose 4 salads… and you get a dang cookie to boot! Everything I put in that box was amazing!
Only quibble, I wish there was seating indoors, but even on a 98º day, it was tolerable in the slim sliver of shade out front.
I’m going back for the take-​out dinners they say they have during the week. Wish me luck!