Sorn Thai Kitchen, a new restaurant concept by Brendan and Sirin Sipple, opened late last year on the Georgetown Square.

The backstory: The couple started out running a food truck about five years ago before opening their first restaurant, Khon Thai Kitchen, in Austin a year later.

Sonny Sampath, the owners’ friend and business partner, urged the Sipples to choose Georgetown as the destination for their newest restaurant. A Georgetown resident, Sampath told the couple that he wished he could get the authentic Thai food closer to his home.

What’s on the menu: Most of the menu items are Sirin Sipple’s recipes, and she has adapted her traditional Thai dishes to accommodate the clientele in Georgetown, she said. She is also the head chef at the restaurant.

Menu items include appetizers like gyoza and spring rolls, main courses like pineapple fried rice, Thai stir-fried noodles and curry dishes, and homemade desserts such as mango sticky rice and Thai tea cheesecake.

• 708 S. Austin Ave., Georgetown

A second Discount Tire opened in Georgetown earlier this month, according to a news release from the company. The auto shop sells a variety of tires and wheels.

About the company: Founded in 1960, Discount Tire operates nearly 300 locations in Texas and 1,275 in the United States.

• 8201 W. Hwy. 29, Georgetown

Check out the latest Austin metro transportation updates.

Ongoing projects
Austin seeks public feedback on Cesar Chavez Street renaming: The city is seeking public feedback on the potential renaming of Cesar Chavez Street following some City Council members' request for the change earlier this year. The city is asking residents whether the street should be renamed, and if so, what designation to use as a replacement. Council will take that input before making any final decisions. Three public meetings about the renaming process will be held from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. on Aug. 11 at the Central Library and  Aug. 15 at Sanchez Elementary School, and Aug. 18 via a virtual webinar. 

Completed projects
CapMetro's Bikeshare service to resume Aug. 11: After a temporary service suspension due to an operations facility fire, Capital Metro officials announced that its rentable electric-assist bike service Bikeshare will return in phases beginning Aug. 11. Nearly one-third of the Bikeshare fleet will be available for riding by Aug. 18 in priority areas with the highest customer demand

Five-year-old Avry Jo Schapansky rang the bell at Dell Children's Blood and Cancer Center on Aug. 7, celebrating the end of her cancer treatment and marking her as the first patient in Central Texas to complete a stem cell transplant through the hospital's new program.

Why it matters: Before Dell Children's launched the program in August 2025, families needing this level of care had to travel outside Central Texas, often for a month or longer, to hospitals in Houston, Dallas or San Antonio.
Schapansky, diagnosed with high-risk Stage 4 neuroblastoma, underwent a roughly year-and-a-half treatment plan that included chemotherapy, surgery, tandem stem cell transplants and radiation.

Dr. Shannon Cohn, her pediatric oncologist, said the family's decision to stay reflected trust in a brand-new transplant team.

The program was made possible in part through a gift from the Shivers Cancer Foundation, which helped recruit Dr. Amir Mian to lead it, along with a partnership with nonprofit blood center We Are Blood. Dell Children's is now working toward offering CAR T-cell therapy and gene therapy in 2026.