Welcome to Austin, Texas! We’re the “live music capital of the world,” home to the largest bat colony in North America, the only city in Texas with a nude beach, AND the only city in the world to still operate moontowers (look it up!). If you find yourself either planning or attending an event in Austin, there’s a lot to know about us. To help make your visit the best it can be, we’ve compiled the Party at the Moontower team’s favorite Austin coffee shops, restaurants, and bars as a quick reference for any out of town guests!
Favorite Austin Coffee Shops
Starbucks, who? When you’re in Austin, do as the Austinites do and drink way too many oat milk lattes for one day. Seriously, there is no shortage of local coffee shops in the Austin area and it’s so hard to choose favorites, but we did our best for you!
Favorite Coffee Shops
- Flat Track (East)
- Afuga Coffee (East) – good to hit up at during your walk on the Lady Bird Lake Trail
- The Perch (Downtown)- Another spot on the Lady Bird Lake trail, right on the water/shares a building with the Austin Rowing Club
- Cabana Club (East) – new spot with a pool, open during the day for coffee and co-working and turns into a bar at night. Check it out!
- Little Swedish Hill (Downtown)
- The Carpenter Hotel (S. Lamar)
- Better Half Coffee & Cocktails (Downtown)
- Mañana (South Congress)
- Jo’s Coffee (South Congress or Downtown)
- Cosmic Coffee (South Congress)
- Cenote (East)
- Cafe Creme (South East)
Best Austin Restaurants
The food scene in Austin is unreal and because there are so many options, it can be overwhelming to settle on a spot. There are also tons of new restaurants opening every day, so it’s hard to stay on top of it all! Nonetheless, here are our top picks for the best places to eat in Austin. We even included our favorite spots to take out-of-towners for you locals reading!
Favorite Brunch & Lunch Spots
- Proud Mary (South Lamar) – a new-ish team fav!
- Hillside Farmacy (East)
- June’s All Day (South Congress)
- Elizabeth Street Cafe (South First)
- Two Hands (South Congress)
- Summer House (South Congress)
- Dai Due (East)
- Tamale House (East)
- Lou’s (East)
- Taco Flats (any location) – sneaky good brunch with $3 mimosas
- Teal House (South Congress) – go for the cinnamon rolls!
- The Meteor (South Congress)
- Meanwhile Brewery (South East) – Beer, of course. Great for big groups and kids. Big playground and soccer pitch, live music/stage, tons of open shaded space
- Distant Relatives (Amazing BBQ)
- Side Eye Pie (Brick Oven Pizza)
- Pueblo Viejo (Mexican)
- Songbird (fried chicken and burgers)
- Besame Gelato
Favorite Dinner Spots
- Este (Seafood, East Side)
- Casa Bianca (Italian, East Side) – a new team favorite!
- Launderette (American, East Side)
- Pecan Square Cafe (American, Downtown)
- Patrizi’s, (Italian food truck, East Side)
- La Volta Pizza Club (Pizza/Italian, Downtown/West)
- Bar Toti (Spanish, East Side) – our team’s favorite burger!!
- Eberly (American, South)
- Olamaie (Upscale Southern, UT Campus/Central)
- Bambino (East)
- La Condesa (Mexican, Downtown)
- Justine’s (French, East Side)
- L’Oca D’Oro (Italian, Meuller/Central)
- Uchi or Uchiko (Japanese, South and Central North)
- Oseyo (Korean, East Side)
- Odd Duck (American, S. Lamar)
Favorite Places to Take Out-of-Towners
- Homeslice Pizza (South Congress)
- BBQ – a necessity for an Austin visit
- Terry Black’s (Barton Springs)
- Black’s BBQ (South)
- La Barbecue (East) – order in advance to skip the line
- Mickelthwait BBQ trailer (East)
- Ironworks BBQ (Downtown)
- Lamberts BBQ (“fancy bbq”, Downtown)
- P6 – (Downtown in The Line Hotel) for the views!!
- South Congress Lobby Bar – great for pre-dinner or going out drinks
- Suerte (Mexican, East)
- La Condessa (Mexican, Downtown)
- Comedor (Mexican, Downtown. Amazing Espresso Martini with Sotol vs. Vodka!)
Top Austin Bars
If you’re coming to Austin, you’ve likely heard of what we refer to as “Dirty 6th”—6th Street. While it is an experience in and of itself, it’s not really the place to mingle with actual Austinites. That said, we understand many out-of-town guests will want to experience the best bars, restaurants, and unique experiences Austin has to offer, and you’ll certainly find the latter on 6th.
Austin Neighborhoods for a Night Out
Here’s the full neighborhood breakdown for you in terms of bar scenes:
- Dirty 6th (6th Street from I35 to Congress Ave)—Think of Bourbon Street, but without the open container. It’s loud and, well, dirty. Its redeeming quality is that there is a Voodoo Donut that’s open until 2 a.m., though we wouldn’t recommend sticking around that late. The majority of the bars here sell their space to brands to throw their parties during SXSW so if you’re coming for the festival or another major event like ACL, you will most likely be around here at some point. There are a few hidden gem places to eat: Parkside, The Backspace, and Casino El Camino (burgers only, in a punk rock bar)
- West 6th (A two-block concentration of bars between Nueces St. and West Avenue on 6th)—It’s less rowdy than Dirty 6th, but only by a few drinks.
- East 6th—The chill kid on the scene. More spread out than Dirty or West, but still walkable and home to a few of the intimate bars below. If you’re down to earth and over 30, this is where you want to be.
- Rainey Street—Little houses turned into bars with food trucks and yard games in the backend. It’s very crowded on the weekend, but worth a stroll. It’s basically all bars (some with food), very few actual restaurants…but there are food trucks! The Hotel Van Zandt is a good oasis here for a drink or meal in their restaurant, Geraldines. Also a good spot for Sunday Funday! You also can’t go wrong at Banger’s (big German style beer garden with sausages and fries).
- Some of our Favorite Drink Spots :
- Holiday (East) – the frozen Mexican Martini is a must!
- De Nada (East) – another great (strong) frozen marg and good tacos!
- Daydreamer (East) – really good espresso martini
- LoLo Wine (East)
- Ah Sing Den (East)
- Kinda Tropical (East)
- Cabana Club (East)
- Nickel City (East)
- Drinks Lounge (East)
- Whisler’s (East)
- The Golden Goose (South Lamar)
- Rosie’s Wine Bar (Downtown-West)
- Driskill Hotel Bar (Downtown) – old school Texas vibes, great to get a sipping drink and find a big cozy, leather couch
- Small Victory – tiny cocktail bar, giant cocktail list
- Firehouse Lounge – hidden bar behind bookcase, enter through hostel
- South Congress Hotel Lobby Bar (South Congress)
Late Night & Dancing Party Spots
If the night goes later than you originally planned, here’s where you should end up:
- Two votes for Barbarellas
- Coconut Club
- La Reina & Roma – Lush rooftop lounge + downstairs sister club
- White Horse – “hipster honky-tonk”
- The Volstead Lounge
- The Beez Kneez – quality cocktails with dive bar vibes
- The Concourse Project – giant EDM nightclub
- Club Eternal – after hours spot
And there you have it—some of our top spots in our fair city! We hope you drink all the coffee, eat all the food, and dance the night away. Party on, Wayne!
