Smoked by AI · Austin · people
Paula Forbes
Critic · Author — Restaurants across Texas, chosen around one question, which is what Texan cooking is now.
Listed with the critics and writers in Austin.
Paula Forbes joined Texas Monthly in 2025 as its senior food writer and dining critic, only the second person ever to hold the job: Patricia Sharpe was the first and retired in December 2024 after fifty years. Forbes wrote The Austin Cookbook, worked on the magazine's Big Texas Cookbook, and has lived in Austin since 2006. She publishes her own method, which is worth more than the verdicts: she waits at least six weeks after an opening before an official visit, and she picks what to cover rather than taking whatever is new. Hers is the byline on the magazine's 10 Best New Restaurants list.
Their own reviews and picks.
Their own judgment, in their own words, by the piece it appeared in.
- Texas Monthly ↗their review · 2026-06-11
- RoyaNorth Shoal Creek
“Roya shows off Persian culture’s famed hospitality with poetry, lacy tablecloths, and thoughtful service.”
- RoyaNorth Shoal Creek