Honey is infused or directly mixed into many of the dishes and drinks at Apis Restaurant and Apiary, which is nestled on the Pedernales River in Spicewood, in the Texas Hill Country. The latter part of the name refers to 20 beehives situated at the back of the property, in a field of Texas wildflowers scattered with tall oak trees. The sweet nectar they produce is central to this establishment’s credo which is two-fold: serve fine dining fare and save the honeybees.
Places to Eat
Hill Country Fine Dining Restaurant is Saving the Honeybees & Serving Up a Side of Sweet Goodness
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Taylor Hall is a professionally trained chef with high culinary credentials, and together with his wife Casie, began a catering company in Spicewood in 2007. Shortly thereafter, he became aware through personal research of the plight of the honeybee in the U.S. and the collapse of their colonies at an alarming rate. He signed up for beekeeping school at Round Rock Honey, which empowered him to start keeping bees at their home. By autumn of 2008, the two had found property along the Pedernales River and chose to combine the idea of having a restaurant with Taylor’s honeybee efforts. Those who wish to tour the apiary can schedule one in advance of their visit, however, if you’re going to Apis Restaurant, rest assured you won’t have a surprise encounter with the honeybees as a result.
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Casie assisted Taylor with design and renovations and together they incorporated bee motifs into their fine dining establishment, complete with honeycomb-inspired light fixtures that shed a honey-golden light and ambiance throughout. And their menu, designed by Taylor along with Adam Brick (Chef de Cuisine) and Jose Luis Sapien (Beverage Director), uses honey in a number of delicious ways. Everything from specialty cocktails, to appetizers, through main courses, and finally dessert can have a wonderful blend of flavor infusions or honey directly in the mix at Apis Restaurant. It’s quite the arrangement when you consider that the average worker bee is known to produce approximately one-twelfth of a teaspoon of honey over its lifetime.
