Austin, Texas, the “Live Music Capital of the World,” is a city of loud music, bold flavors, and exciting people. It has the best of both worlds: small-town spirit and big-city buzz. As the state’s capital, Austin is replete with daytime activities and vibrant nightlife. Yet, the city also maintains the welcoming vibe of a smaller community with plentiful parks and preserved natural areas to explore around the city. No need to worry about fitting in here. As a community where locals pride themselves on being different, your uniqueness will serve you well in this eccentric city.
Around Town
If you’re in Austin during the summer, escape the heat by heading to Barton Creek, where the true locals go to cool off and hang out.
“Everyone in Austin is there during the summer,” said Sydney Hausman-Cohen ’13, an Austin native.
The creek runs through the Barton Creek Greenbelt, which is almost 8 miles long and offers many options for outdoor adventure-seekers, including swimming, rock-climbing, hiking, and biking. Explore the Greenbelt’s exquisite waterfalls, cliffs, and swimming holes.
“There are secret spots all around it,” said Nora Hansel ’11, another Austinite.
For shopping, head to the South Congress Avenue neighborhood known as SoCo. It’s an artsy, trendy area that’s made a great turnaround in recent years rising from its less-respectable past.
“It’s a street that has a lot of antique shops and other crazy things,” Hausman-Cohen said.
Hausman-Cohen recommended taking a peek inside Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds, a store on South Congress Avenue, which she said is a “huge costume shop that’s so much fun.”
For an unusual experience, head downtown at sunset to check out Austin’s nightly flocks of bats.
“There are like a million [bats] that live under the Congress Avenue Bridge downtown,” wrote Justin Papermaster ’10, another Austin native, in an e-mail to The Argus. “They all take off at once around sunset and it is a pretty amazing spectacle.”
Restaurants
For some true Texas BBQ in Austin, head to The County Line.
“They have giant slices of bread that are really amazing, and just fantastic ribs and brisket and turkey… I’m getting hungry just thinking about it,” said Hannah Lewis ’13, another Austinite.
She and Papermaster both recommended The Salt Lick, as well as Rudy’s, which Lewis said is “a little bit outside of Austin…but they have really, really amazing barbecue.”
Papermaster named Cooper’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que as his favorite eatery, although he admitted it is a bit outside of Austin.
“You walk up to a big barbecue pit and just point at the meat you want and then they cut it up and throw it on a tray for you,” he wrote.
If your hankering for steak has been sated, pick up a breakfast taco—a uniquely Austin creation.
“There are little trailers all over town with breakfast tacos,” said Hansel. “They’re delicious.”
For breakfast or a post-clubbing snack, dine at Magnolia Café in SoCo (or the original location located just outside of Austin), which Hansel said is open all night. Hausman-Cohen suggested ordering the pancakes.
Hausman-Cohen and Lewis both recommended Kerbey Lane Café and especially the café’s Kerbey Lane Migas, which Lewis described as devilish concoctions of “eggs and onions and peppers and corn tortillas” topped with delectable “Kerbey Queso.”
For a quieter dining spot in a serene setting, sip some java or dig into dessert at Mozart’s Coffee Roasters, which overlooks Lake Austin.
“It’s on the lake and they have amazing cheesecake and chai,” Lewis said.
Music and Nightlife
Keep your eyes peeled for fliers as you walk around town: Hausman-Cohen believes they are still the best way to find out about local events.
“That’s the real way to learn about crazy concerts and shows because there’s always something happening,” she said.
Stubbs Bar-B-Que is a restaurant as well as a live music venue, and was unanimously recommended by the interviewees.
“I love Stubbs which brings in some bigger name features, but in an ‘in your backyard’ type setting,” wrote Papermaster.
“Stubbs has everything. I saw Rufus Wainwright at Stubbs,” said Lewis. “During South by Southwest, I think 3OH!3 played there.”
Try to synchronize your visit with one of the many music festivals taking place throughout the year. The South by Southwest Festival (SXSW)—a combination of music, film, and interactive events—takes the city by storm every spring since 1987. The Austin City Limits Music Festival (ACL), which includes three days of music from over one hundred artists, is held annually in Zilker Park in early October. It is the largest event of its kind in Austin.
Austin’s 6th Street is comparable to New Orleans’ Bourbon Street and is perhaps just as infamous.
“The debate is always whether to go to ‘dirty’ 6th,” Papermaster wrote. “If you are feeling a little classier, West 6th is the place to be.”
At Speakeasy, on Congress Avenue, you can take your pick of any of the club’s three levels, including the main floor, which features jam bands every night, the Mezzanine, which has a lounge feel, or Terrace59, which offers a rooftop view of downtown Austin.
“The rooftop lounge at Speakeasy is a great place to hear live music and also catch a great view of the skyline lit-up at night,” Papermaster wrote.
Beware that you’re likely to be rejected by bars on 6th Street if you are underage.
“Most of the bars card and you have to be over twenty-one,” Lewis said.
If you’re underage, she suggested hitting up gay bars, some of which “are really fun and are eighteen-and-over.” If dancing is what you’re after, then hop on over to the Broken Spoke, which is near Barton Creek.
“For a truly Texas experience I go to the Broken Spoke,” Papermaster wrote. “It is a run-down dance hall, great for getting your two-step on.”
Papermaster also suggests Hill’s Cafe on South Congress Avenue, which he said “is always a must in the summertime when they have the KVET Texas music series every Wednesday.”
If you’re in more of a movie mood, select one of The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema’s four Austin locations and sink into your chair for a unique film-watching experience. Waiters serve food along with your flick, and the cinema often plans events in which they tailor the menu to the movie.
“Thursday nights they have sing-alongs, and they take various themes,” Hausman-Cohen said. “I’ve been to 90’s Alternative and 80’s Pop Princesses.”