Stillwater on Lake Nasworthy

Stillwater Bar and Grill in San Angelo, Texas

Inside Stillwater Bar and Grill in San Angelo, Texas

The facade of Stillwater Bar and Grill in San Angelo, Texas

Lake view seating at Stillwater Bar and Grill in San Angelo, Texas

T-Shirts of Stillwater Bar and Grill in San Angelo Texas

Bruce Hitt (left) and Laurie Deckers bookend the bar staff at Stillwat...

Until now, there wasn’t a place on Lake Nasworthy where boaters could dock and enjoy good food and drinks, unless you owned property adjoining the waters there.

Today, things at Lake Nasworthy are changing.

Stillwater Bar and Grill opened May 6th on Nasworthy’s Red Bluff Slough. “Slough” is the official name of the cove where the waterfront restaurant and bar reside, and “cove” is probably a better word for the atmosphere there.

Already, there is in-water docking space for three boats, and plenty of room for beach mooring. Proprietor Bruce Hitt says that there are plans for a larger, eight-boat, in-water dock soon.

But you don’t have to have a boat to enjoy Lake Nasworthy from the spacious seating areas of the Stillwater Grill. To get there via land craft, turn west off Knickerbocker Road at the Packsaddle Barbeque Restaurant onto Red Bluff Road and drive 2.5 miles exactly. Do not turn, continue straight ahead. The restaurant is located on the south (left) side of the road and has plenty of parking.

Hitt says the idea for the venue came to him in early 2010 when he and his girlfriend spotted the property while surveying Lake Nasworthy just after a snowfall. When Hitt examined city plans for the area, he learned that a “café style restaurant with a bar” was the best use-case in the City of San Angelo’s master plan for the area. The problem is that the city wasn’t ready to start zoning the area as quickly as Hitt, the land developer, was. But Hitt put his best foot forward convincing city staff to buy into his vision. He submitted the concept January 5, 2011, and had the building permit in hand two months later. “We opened the day we got our occupancy license [May 6],” Hitt says.

Featured prominently at the center of the venue is a stage for live music. Hitt says he was a frequent customer of San Angelo’s live music venues before what he calls a “life-changing event” occurred (he met his girlfriend and took himself off the market). A fan of Texas country music, Hitt is already experimenting with live music. The popular San Angelo band Crossing Tyler plays at Stillwater this weekend. But Hitt is hesitant to have his venue pigeon-holed as strictly a country music establishment. “I’d like to experiment with all kinds of music, even like The Deadhorse bands,” he says.

For food, Hitt’s partner Laurie Deckers is introducing a full lunch and dinner fare, featuring burgers and steaks. The “Hog” is a one-pound burger that’s 50% beef and 50% bacon, for example. And then there is the “Tomahawk,” 40 ounces of prime rib ribeye steak. “We’re only going to cook six of these per week, and you can pick it up with your hands and eat it like a man,” Hitt says. The grill will have lighter food too. That is, dishes like salads, wraps, and a “Cajun Steam Pot”: Think potpie with Cajun influences.

And guys, wait until you see the wait staff. They’re known already for dancing on the bar.

“I want folks to see this place as their own backyard. You can get out close to the water and enjoy good company and food and a little drink. The music too,” Hitt says.

Stillwater Bar and Grill is open Wednesday through Sunday 11 a.m. until 11 p.m. Live music is featured usually on the weekends. For more information, call or text Bruce Hitt directly at (325) 234-7553. Visit them online at stillwaterbarandgrill.com.

Print this article out, bring it in, or show this article to the wait staff on your smart phone, before June 1, 2011 and get any appetizer for 50% off.