How to Eat and Drink Your Way Through Austin
Checkout some of our favorite Breweries, Bars, BBQ and street art!
I find it funny that Austin is the capital of the proud state of Texas. It’s quite unlike the rest of Texas; you’ll find more hipsters than cowboys. It’s known for its music, film, and arts festival, South by Southwest. And the locals have coined the phrase, “keep Austin weird” to support small local businesses over corporations - Portland hijacked that phrase, not the other way around. When we told a guy in Dallas that we were headed to Austin the next day he rolled his eyes and went, “sure, everyone wants to go to the ‘California’ of Texas.”
BBQ Joints
One way Austin is wholly Texan is the BBQ. There is no lack of smoked meats in this city. The place that tops everyone’s list is Franklin BBQ. Unfortunately I cannot attest to this because I was a little too slow getting out of bed the morning we ventured to Franklin, and we missed all the meats. As we we were walking there on a dreary Saturday morning I kept going back and forth in my inner monologue, “it’s a yucky rainy day the line won’t be so long, we’re going to make it. But…I don’t want to miss out on this BBQ maybe we should pick up the pace. Would it be weird if I started running? No that’s silly, there will be plenty of BBQ by the time we get there.” Well, I was wrong. We arrived around 8:50am and they had already sold out of the brisket. They don’t even open until 11:00am; the idea is you go early, take a chair, maybe a 6 pack, and you wait in line to secure. that. brisket! It’s all about the brisket, baby. Now I’m hungry. The point is: go early to enjoy delicious meats. You can even snag a coffee and a pastry from the little coffee cart near the end of the line.
If you’re prone to tardiness try The Salt Lick. No alarms necessary to eat there. It’s farther out of town; one in Round Rock (North of the city) and one in Driftwoord (Southwest of the city). The Driftwood location sits on a beautiful property along with their vineyard, Salt Lick Cellars.
Music and Bar Scene
We had heard from some locals say that Austin was the “live music capital of the world.” Apparently it’s the city’s slogan, and there’s a 15 foot mural that encourages this belief. I however, don’t agree with that assessment. Nashville is the live music capital of the world in my opinion, but no one asked me.
In the hopes of being serenaded by some locals we set out to find some live music on a Saturday afternoon. We tried all 3 sections of the infamous 6th Street: East Sixth, ‘Dirty’ Sixth, and West Sixth
“Dirty Sixth” is known for its frat bro party scene and that familiar aroma of Red Bull and vomit. On weekend nights they close the road to car traffic and mounted police patrol the area while literally thousands of drunk people stumble through the street celebrating, hollering, and or crying. It’s quite a spectacle. Daytime is quieter since the clientele who will be invading this area at night are still fast asleep at noon.
West Sixth is a bit trendier, where you can find anything from craft cocktails to sports bars to back yard bars.
East Sixth has more of an artsy feel with an eclectic crowd. You’ll find the hipster contingency here. This was my favorite area - does that make me a hipster? It’s a little more subdued and neighborly-like, because most of the bars and restaurants are built in old houses in a neighborhood. Rainy Street offered a lot of unique bars that we enjoyed.
Bars and Restaurants we loved:
Un Bar Lievable might be one of my favorite bars I’ve ever been to. It has a circus flair to it, and it claims to be the “Greatest Drinkery on Earth.” There is a huge tube slide that will get you from the main floor to the outdoor lower floor! And it spits you out right near the stage where you may find some live music.
Craft Pride had fantastic beers and some really good pizza too. Via 313 is the resident food truck that has setup shop in the patio area, and it serves up some mean Detroit style pizza - thick crust, square cut, ample toppings.
We had some fun wandering through Austin Container Bar. It has two stories built out of old shipping containers. It’s got an industrial feel and is a bit maze-like, the setup is definitely the most unique thing about it. It appeared there might be live music there, but there was none to be heard around 9:00pm on a Friday night. It likely started after we moved on to the next bar.
If you’re into rooftops give HandleBar a try. There’s an adult sized see-saw, bags (or corn hole depending on where you’re from), and giant Jenga. They also have a photo booth on the first floor to make some memories.
Finally on our last night we did come across some music in an underground bar called Elephant Room that sounded pretty lively. There was a line out the door so we figured it must be worth the wait. After squirming around in line for 30 minutes for one-in-one-out, we finally entered this cool little jazz dive with dollar bills taped all over the walls. Patience is not my strong suit, but the wait ended up being worth it because of the hip and cozy atmosphere and excellent live music.
Tacos/Tex Mex
Aside from the BBQ we were definitely on the hunt for some delicious TexMex and tacos. Licha’s Cantina is a casual quaint Mexican restaurant inside an old house that looks like it was decorated by the abuela whom it was named after. They serve the best pozole I’ve ever had in my life. If we had found it before our last meal of the trip, we might have eaten there a second time.
Austin Taco Project had some tasty tacos, and the menu has an international flair to it. You’ll find some old style tacos like barbacoa, al pastor, pollo, and you’ll also find some “new school” tacos with toppings like curry chicken or kimchi.
On our final day we decided to see more of Austin than the insides of bars. We walked to the State Capitol building and popped inside to appreciate the dome’s architecture. We strolled down by Lady Bird Lake to enjoy a little slice of nature inside the city. You can cover more ground in Zilker Park and Lady Bird lake by renting a bike for the afternoon at Barton Springs Rentals, or have them take you on a set tour. Rentals start around $8-15/hour depending on what type of bike you chose. Tours are between $35-60.
To cap off the weekend we set out on a quest to find some cool graffiti. I’m always looking for artsy pockets in any town, and I feel like I’m headed in the right direction when I encounter graffiti. There isn’t just one neighborhood where you’ll find wall art around Austin. Just walk around town and you’ll encounter some whimsical, if not provoking pieces.
We had heard Hope Outdoor Gallery is a fun place to checkout graffiti and even add some of your own, so we wanted to see for ourselves. It did not disappoint. It’s almost 3 stories of half of an old foundation of a building, and it’s 100% covered in spray paint. On the main level there are some larger installations where the pros have dedicated hours of effort to the temporary art of graffiti. We climbed to the top of the hill where it’s more amateur hour, and we left our tags there. Since the art is constantly evolving, there’s no telling what you might see there. On a Sunday afternoon, it was very lively. There were several large works in progress. We watched artists on ladders perfect large pieces, and and we also watched 2 music videos being filmed there.
It’s amazing what you can fit into 48 hours! From BBQ and beer to cultural sites and the arts, you can get a good taste of Austin. As usual there is a lot more to explore next time! In the mean time, as the Austinites like to say, “don’t be a dick.”