As a proud daughter of the Tristate Area, no phrase perks my ears up quite like "Italian American food." The dishes created by Ellis Island arrivers in the 19th and 20th centuries play a major role in the food landscape of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, and because I grew up in Connecticut with an Italian-American nonna constantly serving huge portions of Sunday gravy and pasta fazool, I get excited when I see a new Austin restaurant playing around with this flavorful, comforting, and very regional fusion cuisine.
Italian American food is the central focus of Loudmouth, a new pizza restaurant and bar helmed by the team behind local brunch legend Paperboy. As soon as I stepped inside - which inhabits a historic house on Rosewood dating back to the 1890s - I saw the Northeastern pizza joint inspiration with vivid clarity. Vinyl booths? Check. Stained glass panels behind the bar? Check. Framed photos in vintage black-and-white? Check. The retro vibes give the restaurant a distinct sense of place that helps put the menu in context. Should an alfresco experience better suit your tastes, Loudmouth also offers a sizable outdoor dining area with picnic tables and canopy coverings to protect against sudden drizzles.
Loudmouth's staff consists of cheerful and positive-minded people willing to offer recommendations and ready to make good if and when something goes wrong. Recently opened restaurants often have growing pains to work through when it comes to service pacing, and because Loudmouth includes several different dining areas (between multiple indoor rooms and the big lawn), it can be tough for the front-of-house team to take orders and refill water glasses expediently. But when I encountered a slight service lag during one visit and brought it to a staffer's attention, they immediately fixed the problem and comped one of my drinks as a gesture of goodwill. Perfection isn't a realistic expectation for new restaurants, but an ability to acknowledge and repair mistakes goes a long way, and I left that visit to Loudmouth feeling very seen and cared for.
The knowledge and informed opinions of the Loudmouth team upped my appreciation even further. On one visit, I took a seat at the bar and ordered a Spaghett, a tongue-in-cheek spin on the Aperol Spritz that replaces prosecco with Miller High Life. The drink comes pre-mixed and poured into the Miller High Life bottle with the extra beer served in a shot glass sidecar. I'll admit to being a bit confused by the presentation at first glance - which comes first, the bottle or the sidecar? But the patient and kind bartender fielded my question with no judgment and told me to enjoy the drink in any order I like. I found the Spaghett delightful; it features the familiar citrusy and aromatic notes that one might expect from an Aperol Spritz, but the mild lager brings a touch of yeast that cuts the sweetness. The resulting cocktail is light, crisp, easy to drink, and low-ABV.
The Spaghett's successful execution speaks to a surprising strength of Loudmouth: This is a bar program with serious chops. The cocktails incorporate Italian liqueurs in creative ways that never feel tokenized or shrugged off, and each drink manages to achieve excellent balance even when assertive flavors enter the equation. The Whiskey Thistle, a whiskey beverage with Cynar (an artichoke liqueur), mole bitters, and spiced orange, lets the bittersweet Cynar mingle with the peppery whiskey and the deep chile-chocolate strain of mole, and each sip brings a new wave of tastes and fragrances. While I was ready to write off the Limoncello Spritz as a sickly sweet, "unserious" cocktail, I was happily proven wrong by the bright tang of the house-made limoncello and the relatively low sugar content. These cocktails challenge the taste buds and defy expectations. Any finicky drinker could find a drink that makes them happy at Loudmouth.
If you've happened upon any Loudmouth posts on Instagram lately, you're likely already aware that this joint makes some very pretty pies. The wood-fired oven yields beautifully blistered crusts, and while the flavor of said crust doesn't have much of a personality on its own, I found myself impressed by its strength and structure. Loudmouth likes to apply pizza toppings with a heavy hand, and with thin crust pizza, that can go very wrong very quickly. But even greasier toppings, like those on the popular Hot Boy Summer (tomato sauce, mozzarella, pepperoni, pepperoncini, hot honey) won't seep through the crust during your dine-in experience (you'll need to manage your expectations for takeout, as the weight of the toppings does eventually take a toll on that narrow crust). The Hot Boy Summer earns its position as Loudmouth's biggest hit; the pepperoncini brings a zingy acidity that balances the rich pepperoni cups, and the hot honey rounds out the flavor dynamic with just enough heat and sweetness. If you're in more of a plant-dominant mood, consider the Emerald City, topped with an herbaceous pesto anchored by dark greens, creamy and salty ricotta salata, and mild allium flavor from red onions - although a thinner slice on the onions might make for better distribution.
The appetizer section upgrades Italian American staples without ever losing the neighborhood-pizza-place plot. Another very helpful tip from the bartender led me to order the garlic parm chicken wings with a side of Buffalo sauce and ranch; the wings boast perfectly crispy skin and tender meat, and while I would have liked some punchier flavors from the garlic and parm, the mellow heat and acidity of the Buffalo sauce and the dill-forward ranch made up the difference. A smooth and silky cauliflower caponata is an ideal partner for fresh toasted flatbread, and the sweet pepper arancini nails the crunchy outside, soft inside texture contrast - even if the sweet pepper flavor was conspicuously absent and the tomato sauce and swirl of pesto needed an extra hit of salt. If you visit for brunch, the Wake & Bake pizza with egg, potato, bacon, and a rich Mornay-style cheese sauce will cure whatever ails you from the night before. And while the tiramisu is a perfectly serviceable version of this classic Italian dessert, nostalgia lovers should opt for the Chocolate Chip "Cookie," a moist and warm brookie with vanilla gelato and a touch of Maldon salt.
Loudmouth isn't trying to reinvent the wheel. It clearly wants to be a reliable and relaxed spot catering to the neighborhood, and while innovation and bold culinary leaps aren't the point, plenty of intriguing idea sprouts are already starting to emerge from the soil. With a bit of time and some focused attention, Loudmouth may find that they can afford to take a few more risks (outside of their already pretty daring beverage menu), and I look forward to seeing what might happen when they do.