Austin Texas RFI

What do you like to eat, do, etc.?

Stuff to do: we like beers, I understand there are some microbreweries in Austin; we like comedy, obviously Austin is well known for this; we like museums, art galleries; we like music, r'n'b to minimal house; we like shopping, clothes - and considering the time of year, probably Christmas presents that we can't get in the UK for less.

We also like to stay in areas which have places to eat, do stuff, and are also value for money.

I'm always happy to meet iLX0rs and show them around!

There are indeed a good number of brewpubs around, including the esteemed Lovejoy's, which is pretty funky. A tonier choice would be The Bitter End. Austin is kinda tough for art lovers. There are galleries and musea, most especially the AMOA (Austin Museum of Art) and the Jones Center. Sadly, UT's most notable space, The Blanton Museum of Art will be closed down while you are here due to a move. There will probably be something worth seeing at the Harry Ransom Center, though. Also, Women and Their Work, the d berman gallery, etc. http://www.inthegalleriesaustin.com/

Musically, Austin tends toward good ol' fashioned honky tonkin and college hipster stuff. In the former category, definitely check out Haybale Sunday night at the Continental Club, and whatever's happening at the Broken Spoke and Ginny's Little Longhorn. In the latter category, I'm kinda outta touch.

The Austin Motel is a great suggestion, but will probably be hard to book. If you feel like spending a lot of money, the Driskill, on 6th street is a pretty gorgeous and historic place. There are also numerous BnB's if that's more your thing.

anyway, were you thinking of renting a car?

I would like to second and perhaps third all of these claims. Does Ararat still have the lamb with hibiscus flowers? And Curra's is especially good for breakfast. Have a breakfast taco with spinach and black beans. And the chopped beef sandwich at Ruby's is... well, you could live off of them. I have.

(I have been out of a job for a month and a half, so no, I ain't doing anything that costs money these days)

$350 a NIGHT for rent during ACL fest 2007!

http://austin.craigslist.org/apa/408386789.html

If G. wasn't so paranoid about people being in our house, I would seriously considering renting my place out.

No shit, just talked about this with my fellow as well.

OK, March 2, 10pm, 72F, and humidity out the wazoo. This is what defines "froggy".

yeah wtf was up with the weather today.

fucking rain already.

Maybe I will stay at the vaunted Double-Tree next time I am in Austin because honestly the Sheraton is a little ghetto. Not even a fridge in the room, let alone a bar. Weirdos inviting me to drive down alleys and then crazy punks spilling out of Built to Spill down the street WTF with that dude???

Ha well dude that's downtown for you. Can't say we're much better in the weirdo dept, but we do have a bar and fridges and a restaurant and shit. Just remodeled too.

I can't afford to stay here at the regular rate, but ay you (or anybody else!) hit me up if you're coming into town, I can hook a dude up like $79/night.

"Friends & Family Rates" are a wonderful thing.

This is all business trip shit and I don't really give a fuck what my company's paying, but the "negotiated rate" is $210/night and this is definitely not a $210/night hotel. For 1/2 that in LA I get a minibar and snacks which are v. important traveling amenities.

Damn skippy.

btw

fucking rain already.

-- BIG HOOS aka the steendriver, Monday, March 3, 2008 5:33 AM

I TAKE IT ALL BACK OH GOD

I'm an hour NW of Austin now, and can't work because the wind is blowing 50mph. This shithole little town has nothing to do, and I can't even buy episodes of the Wire on iTunes.

Trying to decide whether I want to learn to love Lost or One Tree Hill.

out in the burbs?

ps only go lost if you are willing to invest a bunch of time

only go one tree hill if you want to watch something terrible

one tree hill goes better with drinking alone.

rural - building a lodge on the Llano River (near... Llano)

Georgetown/Round Rock might be South Dallas... but I would gleefully take either of them over this area

STAY AT HOOS'S HOTEL

This winter has been so awful in Chicago. I am thinking of taking a schoolbus to Austin and spending a few days writing in my journal at a table outside the Taco Cabana on south Lamar, surrounded by grackles.

doooo it

TACO CABANA? you're better off at Hoos's hotel's hot breakfast buffet.

So, the gf and I find ourselves in Austin until Sunday. In addition to the fine suggestions found upthread, anything particularly unmissable going on this week Austin ilxors would suggest?

i hear good things about the doubletree hotel

^ lyar

nothin real big happening that i'm up on, just regular stuff. good jazz @ the elephant room. whereabouts you at?

I don't know of anything super-special happening this week either. I can't even say offhand if the bats are back from Mexico or if Barton Springs is open.

If you have the time on Sunday afternoon you should def. visit Ginny's Little Longhorn for honky-tonk music and Chicken Shit Bingo.

We're at the Crowne Plaza on I-35, thanks to hotwire and very last minute planning.

We ate at Polvo's last night. I dug it, the better half not so much.

Oh, and wtf is with your buses being so cheap? Paying fifty cents feels like I'm in a magical time warp. Or Pleasantville.

Yeah it's a beautiful thing dude. A buck and you ride all day!

drove into SW Austin looking for a guitar store (and/or because I was bored)

The 71/290/1/360 highway cluster is a fucking disaster.

yessir

Maybe this just a sign of how awful everything is these days, but last night's Nightline was an abridged version of a new Hulu doc about the Austin Bomber, and I had totally forgotten that happened.

Remember when a guy crashed his plane into an IRS office building on Research Blvd?

Yeah...now.

Took me a minute to remember the bomber and that was only a year ago. I guess the fact that he killed himself kind of brought that story to an abrupt end.

Yeah, and there isn't a whole bunch of public info about him. In the doc, they mentioned a taped manifesto that's been classified.

It's not a narrative that holds much appeal for the police, conservative leadership in Texas, or the press... a white Christian kid from the suburbs targeting black people. The Austin police chief and Governor Abbott's public waffling about whether or not his actions constituted terrorism are indicative.

and an explosion at a FedEx center near San Antonio last night; one injury

I'd nearly forgotten this happened, though to be completely honest after the nearby Sutherland Springs church massacre in November 2017 (and the 1979 Battle of Flowers shooting spree that took at least two lives before the gunman shot himself) "one injury" seems hardly worth mentioning.

We have a few nights in Austin in a week or two: anything any of you'd recommend doing / seeing that might not be in guidebooks?

Ok so 24 hours is obviously enough to make a definitive judgement and here is mine on Austin: nice town, nice people, shit weather.

Too hot?

It’s been like living inside a Bain Marie today. And then a stupidly violent storm. Then back to the steaming.

tomorrow's gonna be beautiful though

you came at a weird time, it had been completely dry and extremely hot for about 3 months straight prior to the past weekend

Any kind of extremely hot not desirable IMO.

Looking forward to tomorrow though!

Yeah, I'm glad we're getting rain and cooler weather

New Oral History of MTV's "Austin Stories"

https://www.austinmonthly.com/an-oral-history-of-mtvs-austin-stories/

I'm going to be spinning some vibey techno over at Gnar Bar on 6th tomorrow (Monday) night from 10-11. Drop by, say hi, grab a beer, dance!

https://www.kut.org/transportation/2023-10-17/austin-chronicles-historic-headquarters-to-be-paved-over-for-i-35

...and then

https://www.austinchronicle.com/daily/news/2023-10-05/austin-chronicle-co-founder-louis-black-sued-for-alleged-harassment-abuse-and-sexual-servitude/

I see now those stories are from October (KUT re-upped the first one to FB today, and I thought it was new).

Austin peeps, we got a real show coming up next week!

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5Eh28bJItF/?igsh=MW04M29hYWEwdzBkYw==

Gonna be in Austin briefly with my wife from late Tuesday night April 30 through Thursday May 2. Some time will involve hanging with my wife’s niece and her fiancé , but looking for other ideas just in case . What to see , where to eat , where to find music club listings.

Can definitely give food recommendations based on what part of town you're in or what you are looking for.

Tex-Mex , Mexican, barbeque. Cheap to moderate price. Don't have relatives address handy right now

You can probably talk some Zydeco and/or Southern Soul at Antone's Record Shop (if the right clerks are on duty).

You might also want to squeeze in a breakfast at Victory Grill: http://www.thevictorygrillatx.com/

Sorry, this link: https://atxhistoricvictorygrill.org/

My favorite place for burgers is the downtown bar Casino el Camino on 6th Street.

Good summary of live shows:

https://austin.showlists.net/

If you find yourself on the north side of town Interstellar for lunchtime BBQ and El Dorado for tex-mex.

Oh yeah, El Dorado is legit. I was just in town for the Lone Star Roundup, and it's becoming tradition that me and my best friend and her husband meet up to have dinner & drinks there.

We’re staying on south side . Had Veracruz Montopolis food truck tacos last night at Radio East. Went to the Capital building, then the Music exhibit and more at LBj Museum and we’re at Terry Blacks Barbecue now

Which Terry Blacks? If Guadalupe, get a drink next door at Hopfield's, they have delicious frites. Veracruz is good stuff, well played.

No, the other one. Went to the Continental after & saw some of free Hot Club of Cowtown texas country jazzy swing music & then West Texas Exiles (were supposed to be an homage to Flatlanders but maybe more like a country take on Rolling Stones circa Exile w/ a tad of modern sounds)

Victory Grill East (old-school r& b & soul food restaurant) was sadly closed when we there. It's interesting to look at with faded murals on the side, near street w/ Black Lives Matter painted on it and a park next door with a Jamaican food truck, faded "Black Artists Matter" paintings, not for from newly gentrified buildings , and old ones . Park also has a banner on a fence that says: "What Do you Miss About East Austin" and underneath someone spraypainted "Brown people, Mi Gente"

Saw a bit of the U T campus the other day in late afternoon with just a handful of protesters sitting on lawn down below the clock tower. We also went out to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower park . Butterflies, some baby owls and lots of flowers. Headed down to San Antonio today and then on to my wife’s other niece down in Harlingen, Texas . Didn’t do it all in Austin in the little time we had, but enjoyed what we did do.

My partner's in Austin from NZ for SXSW. Food-wise, a friend has recommended Torchys/Magnolia Cafe/Homegrown Pizza/El Alma/Joe's Bakery/Paco's Tacos; going a bit cross-eyed looking at bands playing during this week but hopefully they can catch Water Damage.

Casino El Camino has a very good buffalo/blue cheese burger.

― JacobSanders, Monday, May 9, 2011

Torchy's and Magnolia aren't really any good anymore, assume Homegrown means Home Slice which is very tasty pizza (I prefer Via 313 Detroit style, also ), Joe's is great but for Tex Mex breakfast also try Fruta Feliz or Mi Madre's (my fav for chips and salsa), Vera Cruz All Natural too, also hit up Hopfield's for delicious frites and good beer or Golden Horn is a cozy bar with snacks

Ooh, thanks!

I heard a big explosion about 50 minutes ago, reports that it was heard and felt for many miles around, looks like a house about a mile from me exploded, NW Austin near 183 and Spicewood Springs

yep, I heard it too!

https://www.chron.com/culture/celebrities/article/joe-rogan-friends-austin-texas-20790258.php

Another Rogan associate was more direct with his criticism of Texas.

"Texas f--king blows," comedian Shane Gillis said in a June episode of the Andrew Schulz podcast, recalling a storm that left his Austin home without power for three days. "It's hot as f--k. The second we ran out of power, the house was 90 degrees and bugs came in immediately."

...

But besides learning all about Texas' bizarre love affair with electrical independence, Gillis has complained about Austin's homeless population (whom he's called "screaming runners") and the number of emergency alerts the state of Texas sends out.

"Texas goes wild with Amber Alerts," he said on a 2024 episode of The Joe Rogan Experience. "It's a really depressing way to start your day."

https://a.pinatafarm.com/320x196/bbcd9d3933/skinner-pathetic.jpg

First visit to Austin this week, I have some free time, what should I do? (Including local parks and nature stuff as well as food/drink/arts/culture)

(I am scrolling back thru the thread for recommendations too)

I can recommend many food/drink places, depending on what you're looking for and where you'll be staying. Would also be happy to grab a drink if you have the time.

This doesn't help, but I wanted to mention I screened Songwriter (the Willie/Kristofferson film) last night, which was shot in Austin in '83 or so, and it has a ton of lovely shots of the old downtown and other since-retooled landmarks, like the Austin Opry House (currently Arlyn Studios and office spaces) and the Palmer Auditorium.

Used to be a Scientology center right off campus if you want to pop in for a reading.

I love Songwriter, I’ll have to watch it again after the visit.

Moodles, would love to grab a drink! I’ll message you on FB. I’m staying in the Zilker area, fwiw.

Are you going to the ACL festival?

I’m actually not, weirdly enough, just Monday-Friday. This just worked out as the best week to go for me.

Prepare for it to be a challenge to get around on Friday!