Classic Austin Restaurant Fonda San Miguel Is Opening a New Daytime Mexican Spot

A revered Austin Mexican restaurant will be opening a new restaurant next year. Fonda San Miguel is expanding with Tzintzuntzan at the same 2330 West North Loop Boulevard address in the Allandale neighborhood in March 2025.

Tzintzuntzan will focus on daytime services for breakfast and lunch — it’s meant to complement Fonda’s dinner-only offerings. Natalie Gazaui, the executive pastry chef of Fonda, will become its executive chef, as reported by Tribeza. Expect Mexican baked goods through the panadería, ice cream, and takes on regional dishes from Mexican states and cities such as Merida, Yucatan, and Mexico City. (Fonda used to serve Sunday brunch for a while, but that’s been on hold for a bit.)

The forthcoming restaurant’s name translates to “place of hummingbirds” in the Purépecha language prevalent in the same-named Mexican region that dates back to the 1300s. Tzintzuntzan also refers to the current town in the Mexican state of Michoacán and the same-named archeological site. It’s pronounced “zin-zoon-zhan” per a press release.

Tzintzuntzan is being designed by architecture firm Miró Rivera Architects. Renderings and floor plans show indoor and outdoor dining rooms. The patio connects with Fonda San Miguel. The logo includes a hummingbird drinking nectar from a flower with an orange color scheme.

Fonda will host a preview of Tzintzuntzan on Sunday, September 15 for Mexican Independence Day (which takes place the next day). The Fiestas Patrias will include food, tequila cocktails, mimosas, live music, and a panel with the Fonda team where they’ll talk about their plans for the restaurant’s 50th anniversary next year, which includes a third update of their cookbook. It runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; tickets are $150.

Fonda opened in 1975 by co-owners and co-founders Tom Gilliland and Miguel Ravago (who died in 2017). The restaurant was one of Austin’s first to focus on quality interior Mexican cuisines (stemming from Mexican states and regions rather than Tex-Mex) in an upper-scale setting full of artwork and lush plants.

Rendering: Miró Rivera Architects