One of Austin’s hottest restaurants online is a place you’ll never eat at

AUSTIN (KXAN) — I hope you’re hungry — for nothing.

Caviar-topped French fries, honeycomb-doused cheesecakes and Moo Deng-shaped croissants are just some of the treats curated and shared on the Instagram account for Ethos , Austin’s self-proclaimed No. 1 restaurant. More than 73,000 people follow the page, with commenters expressing excitement for the dishes and curiosity over where, exactly, Ethos is located.

The only problem? It’s not a real restaurant.

The account has been around since March 2023, posting photos of artificially generated dishes and staff members allegedly affiliated with the restaurant. On its website, Ethos outlines its full “team,” helmed by a general manager, executive sous chef, senior staff forager and senior sommelier.

Ethos’ website claims all reservations are listed at 4:30 a.m. on the first Monday of each month; those who try and make a reservation are, instead, sent to a meme page of a man getting slapped by an eel.

KXAN wanted to know why, exactly, someone would go to the trouble to concoct the façade and pose as a restaurant — so we messaged the account with an interview request.

Thank you so much for your interest in interviewing Ethos. At this time, we are unable to schedule any new interviews due to our current commitments, including ACL and various charity events, as well as the upcoming Michelin guide announcement in November. Our schedule is unfortunately packed for the moment.

We kindly ask that you fill out our requisition form, which we’d be happy to email to you Once completed and sent back to us, we will review it, and if approved, we will add you to our interview queue for future availability.

Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to connecting with you when we have more openings.

Best regards,
Ethos Team

Oct. 14 DM response from Ethos’ Instagram account

What’s part of that requisition form, you might ask? Questions about the reasons behind the interview, which are standard for media request forms, paired with multiple choice-style cooking questions and a required drawing of a “creative, detailed picture of a food that interests you.”

KXAN reached out to the Texas Restaurant Association to see if they were aware of this account or similar ones posing as Austin-based culinary spots. Below is their response:

“Technology, including AI, is a transformative tool that all industries, including foodservice, are adopting to enhance efficiency and customer experience. However, as with any powerful tool, it’s important to recognize the potential for misuse. For local restaurants, this underscores the need to prioritize genuine, authentic connections with their customers while utilizing technology to enhance their service offerings.”

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