Hermanas, from Austin-born and raised Chef Silvino Sanchez, is now open off East Sixth Street in Austin.

The details: The restaurant is named for Sanchez’s father's hometown, Ejido Primero de Mayo in Coahuila, Mexico. The town is known locally as Hermanas after its train station that connects the region to Mexico City.

The menu: Sanchez worked at the now-closed Thai Kun under Chef Thai Changthong and spent four years as sous chef at BRUTØ in Denver, a one-Michelin-starred restaurant, before returning home to Austin to open Hermanas.

The menu is inspired by Sanchez’s Mexican heritage and summers spent in Guadalajara as a child. Sanchez grew up in Del Valle and has embraced Southeast Asian techniques in the kitchen that translate at Hermanas.

"You think the dish is Mexican, and then you bite into it and find all these Asian flavors. That's the connection," Sanchez said in a news release. "It's not fusion. It's just how these two cultures actually live in me.”

• 1100 E. 6th St., Austin

Austin parents and educators launched Keep Austin Schools Independent Aug. 13, opposing a potential state takeover of Austin ISD ahead of 2026 TEA ratings.

The gist: KASI describes itself as a districtwide, nonpartisan coalition of parents, students, educators and community organizations, according to the coalition website.

State law allows TEA to take over an entire district if just one campus is low-performing for five consecutive years. The agency is expected to announce its plan for the district once the appeal deadline has passed, with a takeover possibly starting as early as January, according to the TEA’s 2026 timeline.

On Sept. 1, the State Board of Education moved forward with an overhaul of what Texas high schoolers will learn in four social studies courses: U.S. History, U.S. Government, World History and World Geography.

What's happening: Roughly 100 Texans testified about the high school curriculum rewrite at an Aug. 31 meeting, with the debate revolving around how students would learn about the two largest world religions, Christianity and Islam.

Dozens of Muslim Texans asked that students learn about the religion’s core principles and how Muslims have contributed to advancements in math, science and medicine throughout history.

Some testifiers said the social studies curriculum should highlight the role of Christianity in the founding of Texas and the U.S., praising the board for prioritizing “American exceptionalism” and topics that they said would teach students to love the country.

The context: The discussion comes as the Republican-led board nears the finish line on its new K-12 social studies curriculum standards.

If approved, the new requirements will be rolled out to public school classrooms in the 2030-31 school year.

A data center in Hutto, the Texas Municipal Center in Georgetown and a 7 Brew in Austin are among the five most expensive projects filed with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation in the Austin metro this week.

1. Colovore Hutto ($280 million): This project involves the construction of a 192,694-square-foot, one-story data center building.

2. Texas Municipal Center ($60 million): The Texas Municipal League will be relocating its headquarters to downtown Georgetown.

3. Frontier ER ($2 million): This project involves the construction of a freestanding emergency medical facility.

4. C Store ($1.2 million): A new C store convenience store is coming to Bastrop, with construction expected to conclude next September. 

5. 7 Brew ($400,000): A new 7 Brew location will be coming to Austin. The drive-thru coffee shop has locations in Manor and Round Rock.