Still Weird:

Old Austin Is Hiding In Plain Sight

Austin may be all grown up, feeling taller and wider than it ever has before, but if you dig a little deeper, you can catch glimpses of that timeless old pre-tech cool. Start wandering around the city built on loose schedules and you just might stumble into a new spot that feels like a portal to nostalgia. From classic pitmasters to jazz clubs to coffee shops disguised as bars, if you're not trying to maintain the weird old Austin vibes, what are you even doing? 

Photo By: Dan Herron

Food & Beverage

Although you can find any old food truck park in Austin, it can be difficult to find sit down restaurants that embody the atmosphere of the city. Luckily, we have local experts who are professional vibe vetters.

 Loro feels like it’s been here forever, in the best way possible. Grab a picnic table under the sun to snack on some chili crunch wings and enjoy some laid-back perfectly smoked flavors. Looking for a more high-maintenance Austin spot? Interstellar BBQ offers that “out of this world” Southern cookout experience we’re all looking for, but with Michelin Star level meats. Their mouthwatering bites hold unique recipes to encompass the Austin spirit while maintaining the heart of traditional BBQ. 

Back from the future, we have classic New York Little Italy meets Downtown Austin with Sammie’s Italian. It may not be Austin’s treasured Hut’s anymore, but the new owners kept the new outside aesthetic similar to the old, which still makes this spot feel nostalgic. This iconic Rat Pack location brings an intimate tone with coma-inducing food that will have you looking at your date dreamily. Snag a bottle of red wine, slide into a red leather booth, and get ready for some Lady and the Tramp action. 

Toasty Badger may be relatively new to the Austin scene, but it feels like a blast from the Dazed and Confused past. This lil diner feels like a time capsule, serving up your breakfast and burger staples right on the famous South Congress Street. Go straight for the BLT and don’t question the communal table hot cake - just order it. It’d be a lot cooler if you did. 

None of these spots are trying to recreate the past or take over an established city. They are unique in their own right and marinated with Austin vibes in every single bite. 

Photo By: William Wright Photography

Entertainment

Live music venues may have shrunk in numbers post-COVID, but it doesn’t mean the rules didn’t change. If you want to be a top bar in Austin, the live music capital of the world, you HAVE to have live music. Period. Here are some new-ish venues keeping the old Austin Vibe alive. 

Matchmaker Band is keeping Motown alive all over town with Motown Mondays held at a longtime Austin favorite venue, The Highball AND the newer, more modern eastside venue Pershing Hall. Both uniquely Austin in their own right, Matchmaker brings soul, dancing, and live music to these venues almost every Monday night. Catch them at Pershing on the 1st Monday of every month and at The Highball every 2nd and 4th Monday of every month! Highball even offers free dance lessons before the show, and nothing is more old Austin than partner dancing with strangers. The show starts at 8:30 PM - 10:30 PM, keeping things early for a Monday Funday in true Austin day-drinking and partying fashion.

Armadillo Den is nestled in South Austin, the most Austiny part of Austin left, and surrounded by trees so you can kick back with an ice cold Karbach and your favorite Americana band live. The picnic tables, fire pits, food truck park, pups, and live music make this an Austin gem worth frequenting. 

Brand spankin’ new to Austin is a potentially short-term pop-up experience at Wanderlust Wine Co: the Broadway Sing-Along Bar. Think karaoke bar meets x theatre kid, and you’ve got yourself a classic Austin experience. This city is all about letting your freak flag fly and bringing strangers together with loud and inclusive off-key songs.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a real music city without hundreds of graduated jazz majors looking for a home to play the music they really want to. Monks is newer to the scene than the famous Elephant Room, but it still has that lived-in feel and the live improvisation of a jazz band is unlike anything else for such an intimate venue. Sip on an old fashioned, tap your foot, and disappear under bustling city nightlife. 

A night out in Austin doesn’t have to feel like you stepped into a new city. It can still be modern with the soul of what makes this town so cultured and great. 

Photo By: Lauren Johnson Photography

Interactive Activities

Ate your body weight in BBQ, beer, pasta, and cocktails and need an activity to bring the energy up? This new Austin still has all the charming, out-of-the-box, quirky ideas we remember loving. 

Sip on a frozen marg while you trash talk during a mean game of pickleball at Bouldin Acres. Nothing says Austin like a backyard party filled with lawn games, cookout food, live music, fun drinks, and family friendly energy. They have two locations as well for when you are needing a pre-Austin FC soccer game beer! 

Trying to avoid kiddos altogether and snag a first date coffee? Radio East is the perfect spot to enjoy everything we love about this great city. There’s something about a spot that still hums with an old spirit. Monday swing nights, trivia, and concerts oh my! Who knows? That date might go well and the second drink could be a cocktail. 

Live Band Mario Kart (Valhalla Esports Lounge) crashed into the city like Toad over the Rainbow Road finish line. Can you imagine using your star item and hearing a live band shred the theme song while you race against someone in a Donkey Kong outfit? Out of this world. It offers you a chance to release your inner child because what is Austin if not a playground for imagination? 

Photo By: Dan Herron

So, yeah, Austin may be all grown up and the glass may have replaced some of its grit. However, there are still Austinites out there who believe in keeping the city’s soul alive. Those who keep the BBQ pits smoking, the music flowing, and the drinks pouring - but in the name of weird. You can feel how real those dreams are when you walk down South Congress or bite into a barbacoa taco. This city invites you to stay awhile and reminds you that growing up doesn’t mean getting boring.