downtown Austin's neighborhood and real estate blog
Welcome to the first edition of our Sunday photo gallery featuring views from around Austin. This week will feature shots I’ve taken on and around the Hike and Bike Trail. For those of you who have never seen it before, I hope this will serve as an introduction to one of Austin’s most beautiful and cherished trails.
A view of the trail and the Austin Convention Center from Ceasar Chavez.
Photo by Cecily Johnson
On Wednesday I kicked off my list of Austin’s Top Ten Coffee shops. These choices were not easy—every name on this list stands for a place with its own special charm, devoted clientele and unique atmosphere. Honorable mentions like Rio Rita, JP’s Java, The Green Muse, Quacks, Progress Coffee and countless others all have strong arguments in their favor and plenty of people who will vouch for them. They would probably make the Top Ten in just about any other town. But sadly this is Austin.
And it goes without saying that Austin’s Top Five Coffee shops are among the best anywhere.
Welcome to the Top Five:
5. Mozart’s Coffee Roasters
3825 Lake Austin Blvd.
Nestled on the shores of Lady Bird Lake with a spectacular view of the hill country, Mozart’s is the definition of an upscale, European, coffee house. With bottomless cups of gourmet coffee from around the world, a superb bakery, and two-story outdoor deck, Mozart’s is the unrivaled choice for pure class. Come watch the sun set over the lake and see the twinkling lights of Tom Miller Dam.
4. Flipnotics
1601 Barton Springs Rd.
Having a cup of coffee or a beer at Flipnotics can feel a bit like hanging out in a tree house. Settled atop a hillside in the Barton Hills, below a canopy of trees, Flipnotic’s shaded deck and indoor seating offer the safety and comfort of a mountain clubhouse. And like any good clubhouse, Flipnotics specializes in unusual concoctions—if you’re curious, try the “Moonquake Shake,” a delicious banana-coffee milkshake. At night, Flipnotics indoor seating turns into an intimate venue for live music.
3. Flightpath
5011 Duval Street @ 51st
Deep in the heart of Hyde Park, just a few minutes away from the University of Texas, lies one of Austin’s classic study spots. Comfortable, spacious and uncluttered, Flighpath is dedicated to the fine art of ‘getting-it-done.’ They proudly refer to themselves by the unflattering moniker of “home office away from home” and extol their lack of live music, poetry slams and comedy hours. But don’t be deceived; Flightpath is in no way stodgy. This worn-in, artsy, hangout, with a sociable backyard patio, exudes energy and creativity. And when you’re down to the wire, there’s no better place to be.
2. Epoch Coffee
221 W North Loop Blvd
Just down the road from Flightpath, lies Epoch, the heir to Mojos, a legendary coffeehouse that once lined a corner on the northern fringes of The Drag. With puffy chairs and couches, an odd assortment of tables, lamps from the happy 1960s, dark mahogany wood, and a seemingly perpetual game of chess in a far corner, Epoch instantly commands a distinct vibe. Their co-ed bathrooms are referred to as ‘heaven’ and ‘hell,’ and are decorated with the appropriate murals and customer graffiti. In ‘hell’ one finds the words of Jean-Paul Sartre scribbled on the wall with a sharpie: “hell is other people.” This can be true. On some evenings—especially Sundays and throughout the finals season— Epoch can turn into a riotous affair with scarce seating and crammed patios full of caffeinated smokers. Learn it, love it, live it.
Yes, Epoch is a love-it-or-hate-it experience, and there’s nothing quite like it.
1. Spider House
2908 Fruth St.
Like Epoch, everyone has a strong opinion about Spider House. Just off Guadalupe Street, a few blocks north of the campus, Spider house is a place that enjoys a variety of adjectives: glamorous, pretentious, eclectic, colorful—happening.
Yes, ‘happening’ is probably the most appropriate.
One person on the Yelp Message Board put it like this: “Things happen here, which I am leaving intentionally vague.” Another writes, “I’ve long heard that there were quirky, nay, interesting happenings [there].”
So what exactly is happening at Spider House? First of all, the outside patio looks a little bit like a cross between a junkyard and an eclectic, garden museum. A fountain constructed out of bronze cherub and a bathtub is only the tip of the iceberg. You can also find a handful of gargoyles inside and outside. Aside from its splendid décor, Spider House can be counted on for free movie screenings, DJs and an assortment of you-name-it cultural events.
But what really makes Spider House a ‘happening’ place is how blatantly scene it is. Or is it “seen”? Either way, this is definitely a place where people go to be looked-at and eavesdropped, to ogle and to overhear. It’s also a place for chance table-joiners and bombastic Christmas lights. Be there or be square—seriously.
***
And that wraps up Austin’s best coffee houses.
“But Ben!” you say, “You’ve hardly said anything about actual coffee this whole time!” That’s true. This list is not based on the individual house-blends or the overall selection at any of these places. If you’re on this list, it’s because you are unique and wonderful place to spend an afternoon. A good cup of coffee is a given. That being said I do want to let you in on the absolute best cup of coffee in the whole city:
Anderson’s Fresh Roasted Coffee
1601 West 38th Street
Not a sit-down experience like the other names on this list, Anderson’s is a boutique located in the quaint little plaza on 38th Street. Everyday Mr. Anderson himself, the protégé of Alfred Peet of Peet’s Coffee, offers a $1 cup of coffee from one of his glorious, international blends. This coffee not only tastes better than others, it actually gives you a better buzz. (This is probably not scientifically verifiable, but it’s been my experience.)
Ok, that’s it! Please, let us know what you think. Vote in our poll. And definitely speak up about all the wonderful places I’ve neglected.
Town Market has opened below the Legacy apartments on Rainey Street. It’s a unique space. Leasing a live/work unit on the ground floor of this downtown Austin apartment tower, Town Market is a two story affair with wine, coffee, sandwiches on the ground floor and dry goods on the second floor. The Town Market concept comes from the same people who brought you Cissi’s on South Congress.
The store is 50 paces from the Hike and Bike trail, so I expect they will do well during breakfast and the early evening hours. The Rainey Street District has one of the highest residential concentrations in Austin, and Town Market is a welcome addition to the downtown Austin neighborhood.
Hours: Monday – Saturday 8am-8pm, Sunday 8am-6pm
Google Map: 43 Rainey Street, Austin, TX 78701
InFactDaily is reporting that the owners of the old ‘Chase Bank Building’, located in downtown Austin at the corner of Lavaca and 7th Street, have entered into a purchase contract with the Travis County Commissioners Court. TCCC will purchase the 315,000 ft building for $61.25MM.
In a related story, Chase Tower on 6th Street was recently purchased by Spire Realty Group.
Because of its large population of students and artists, Austin is a hotbed for eclectic, privately owned coffee shops—Austin houses more of these coffee shops than most large cities in America. With local favorite Little City slated to move or close by January 2011, and with several new coffee shops cropping up in recent years, it seemed like a good time to assess the changing landscape of Austin’s coffee scene.
I love ‘Top Ten’ lists. Their neatness alone commands credibility. But really, why should you trust me? Isn’t this just a matter of taste? Citysearch provides a voter based listing, though it hasn’t been updated since 2005. But can we really trust the democratic process? I think not. My list is based on over 20 years in Austin and countless all-nighters. I may be bleary-eyed and a little wired, but I know what I’m talking about.
It should also be mentioned that this list will not include any corporate chains. Some of these places make a great cup of coffee, but they aren’t what makes the Austin’s coffee scene what it is.
Without further ado, here’s the first five in my list of Austin’s Top Ten Coffee Shops.
In reverse order:
10. Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse
1501 South First
Just a few minutes from Downtown Austin along South First Street, Bouldin Creek is an artsy coffee shop with a nice blend of outdoor, indoor and covered seating. Apart from its distinctly laid-back South-Austin feel, Bouldin Creek distinguishes itself with an excellent food menu. With both vegan and vegetarian options—even a “gluten free menu”—their breakfasts are superb.
9. Halcyon
218 W 4th St, Austin, TX
Located in the heart of Downtown Austin, Halcyon bills itself as a Coffee Shop/Bar/Lounge hybrid. Far more chic than the other names on this list, this coffee shop owes its special appeal to its location and a unique crossover ambiance. I often hit up Halcyon when I’m downtown for drinks and need to recharge—or I actually want to hear the person I’m sitting next to.
R.I.P. 8. Little City Espresso Bar & Café
916 Congress Avenue
Right on Congress Avenue, Little City is Austin’s classic downtown coffee shop. They’ve won accolades from all the usual suspects, including the Austin Chronicle Reader’s Poll, The Statesman, and Texas Monthly—Heck, they even come recommended by the New York Times. If you’ve never been before, you need to stop by before they close their doors indefinitely in January 2011.
R.I.P. 7. Café Mundi
1707 E. Sixth
Café Mundi provides a totally unique ambiance. Hidden in plain site a few blocks East of I35 on Sixth Street, in the vicinity of Mexican dive bars and family diners, this coffee shop has “escape” written all over it. A beautiful garden filled with crate myrtles compliments a cozy little interior. This is by far my favorite spot on the south end of the east side.
6. Bennu 24 Hour Coffee Lounge
2001 E. MLK Blvd.
Bennu wins the ‘Best New Coffee Shop’ award. The atmosphere is reminiscent of the “living room” style established by predecessors Flightpath and Epoch, but Bennu’s ambiance falls comfortably between the two—a little cozier than Flightpath and a lot quieter than Epoch. This comfortable, hip place is perfect for work and study. Though it hasn’t yet generated enough of a scene to crack the Top Five, for most people, Bennu might be the most appealing choice on the whole list.
To see who rounds out the top five, check back this Friday when I discuss Austin’s tiptop cup of joe.
This was the question raging on the Austin Chronicle’s message board in early April after the arrest of two bikers participating in one of Austin’s more controversial political parades—the monthly Critical Mass bike ride.
The Chronicle reported that riders James McCue and Nathaniel Hill had been arrested for running a red light at the Sixth and Congress intersection, a form of civil disobedience Critical Mass has fashioned into something of an art form (others might liken it to a tragicomedy), since its emergence on the streets of San Francisco in the early 1990s.
With no predetermined route, the “leaderless” cluster of bikers meet at 5 P.M. on the last Friday of each month on UT’s West Mall— located on Guadalupe between 22nd & 23rd Streets. Here a collection of fixed-gears, two story trick bikes, unicycles, plain-old road bikes and a man transporting a giant boom-box in a wheel-sled participate in something resembling a seasonal mating ritual, as they swirl around the West Mall fountain building up mojo.
When enough bikers have coalesced to form “the critical mass,” a peloton large enough to pierce and block an intersection of oncoming auto-traffic, an unspoken euphoria spreads throughout the gathering. Then, at a seemingly innocuous moment, everyone slips into the congested afternoon traffic to the sound of horns and pounding beats. Through the open windows of cars and trucks come the sounds of encouragements and admonitions—a reminder of the ambivalence Austinites feel towards this motley crew of vigilantes.
It is no coincidence that their monthly vigil takes place during rush hour on the busiest day of the week. Though the unofficial CM website claims that the organization “doesn’t have any specific agenda or goals,” they do confess that most riders “would like to see an end to the car culture.”
“Everyone has their own reasons for riding on Critical Mass,” writes Michael Bluejay, the operator of the site. “Some see it as a protest of cars, others just like to go on a fun bike ride. After being menaced every day by cars, many of us find it exhilarating to ride with 50-100 other cyclists in a fun, supportive atmosphere.”
Critical Mass has had a long and controversial history in Austin. An early adopter of the movement, the city first responded to the bike ride with intense police scrutiny. Bluejay writes that during the first year of the ride, “typically, dozens of motorcycle, car, and bike cops would be waiting at the meeting site before the ride started, and ride with the mass, looking for any excuse to issue tickets or make arrests.” Though CM enjoys a more amiable relation with the city’s police force today, it has not been without some bumps in the road.
In late September of 2001 an incensed Jeep driver, frustrated by delays, accelerated into the gathered bikers, hitting one. After exiting his car to confront the riders, the man returned to his vehicle only to cruise into a Honda Civic parked at a red light because there was a bike lodged around his car’s axle.
The event was carefully chronicled by Bicycle Austin info, including video documentation, and is held up both as an example of the danger inherent in this kind of demonstration as well as the unfair portrayal it has received in the media. According to the website, “The Statesman ran one version of the events, the Chronicle ran another,” pointing to the cultural split which the movement has inspired.
On the same message board where the debate took place over April’s arrests, one of the first participants of Critical Mass Austin summed things up eloquently:
“It’s a fun, empowering participatory event that also incited near-fatal road rage on my very first tour. We desperately need improved bicycle infrastructure just as urban centers are increasingly finding cycling preferable to hunting out parking spaces. But we also need improved services. I don’t expect sympathy from rush hour commuters, but I do expect the APD to cease operating as if cyclists live with a level of privileges and liberties below that of both motorists and pedestrians.
The city needs to put cycling issues at the forefront of their agendas, if for no other reason than to prevent downtown from becoming a rush hour battleground.”
Whichever side of the debate you may fall under, it’s hard to deny that Austin owes some of its patented “weirdness” to the continued success of Critical Mass. Moreover, participants argue that the ride has helped transform the role of bikers in Austin, paving the way for new bike lanes and making bikers more “visible.”
As someone who’s been on a few rides (mainly as a spectator, though the line gets a bit blurred), I can tell you, there are few local events as exhilarating as riding neck and neck with four hundred people in the heart of downtown Austin.
This Friday the 29th will be a big day for Critical Mass, with the monthly bike ride falling on the same day as the “Full Moon Cruise,” a midnight ride through the city. If you’re bold enough, and if Critical Mass’s brand of activism squares with your values, this will be the perfect day to wheel by.
And forgetting everything else about it, Critical Mass is admirably inclusive. More like an event than an organization, anyone will feel welcomed by this odd lot of peddlers.
AMLI is rumored to have signed a lease with an operator for a 3-4 screen movie theater to take the space above Malaga and Z Pizza. We’re told the theater will serve food and drinks (including liquor), and the menu would consist of items from restaurants located in the 2nd Street district. It’s clear from the photo above that the space isn’t very deep, and it’s possible that part of the venue would extend over the sidewalk.
We don’t know who the operator is, but we do know it’s not local favorite Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas. The addition of a destination venue like this, and the wrap-up of the W-Hotel’s construction will be a breath of fresh air for neighboring retail on the 400 block of W 2nd Street.
Downtown Austin’s 2nd Street District retailers have been hit hard with the economic downturn, and the venues on 400 block have struggled to keep up with the foot traffic found just two blocks over where Jos, Estilo, and DWR are located. Many pedestrians end up not walking beyond the W Hotel construction site.
We have Jose Lozano from SkyscrperPage to thank for this awesome time lapse video of the construction of Austin’s W Hotel and Residences in the 2nd Street District.
UPDATE: For SXSW 2012 venue and event rental contact Downtown Austin Blog here
It should come as no surprise that downtown Austin venue rental during SXSW is not cheap. Want to brand a piece of real estate off of 6th Street? $10k in venue rental + $10k guarantee in drink sales was what one national brand paid a venue on Red River for a single day last year. Of course, there are other deals depending on what your company is trying to accomplish. SXSW brings ~100,000 people into downtown Austin, and competition for space is fierce.
Knowing the venues and the operators is key. If you send me a note telling me about your company/group, describing the kind/amount of space you need, how long you need the space for, and for what purpose, I’ll be happy to talk with you about what’s available.
-Jude
January may not be the ideal month for a visit to the great outdoors, but since this morning’s weather report is promising some unseasonably warm days ahead, and with spring not too far off, I thought I’d serve up one of Austin’s best outdoor destinations—the Barton Creek Greenbelt.
For those of you who love Lady Bird Lake’s Hike and Bike Trail, but are looking for a more rugged, less urban experience, the Greenbelt will be a welcome change of pace. Comprising an area of 809 acres and a total length of 7.9 miles, this amazing nature reserve, only minutes from Downtown Austin, lets you wander in the isolation of steep limestone cliffs, untamed vegetation, countless hiking and biking trails and dozens of natural swimming holes and waterfalls.
With spring on the way, the creek will soon be at it’s peak flow, though veteran hikers will tell you that the Greenbelt’s waterways can be a bit unpredictable—high-water years are remembered with a touching sentimentality. These, after all, are the same people who risked their lives to hang those rope swings from the branches of the trees along the creeks edge.
Though most people tend to enter the Greenbelt from an access point along the side of Loop 360, veteran visitors are quick to point out the value of knowing it’s lesser known entrances. Each part of the reserve has it’s own special characteristics.
Here’s a rundown of the Greenbelt’s access points:
Loop 360 (3755-B Capitol of Texal):
This is the main access point to the Greenbelt due to its location at the center of the trail. This entrance leads to some of the finest trails near the Seismic wall and will take you either west to Twin Falls or east to the Gus Fruh pool. Parking is available right alongside the highway.
Zilker Park:
Closest to Downtown Austin, the Zilker Park entrance leads to an easy trail ideal for mountain bikes and families who are bringing strollers.
Scottish Woods Trail (1710 Camp Craft Rd.):
This entrance lies on the opposite end of the Greenbelt and offers a more challenging experience. Less crowded, this access point begins with a downhill climb towards the creek. Numerous paths diverge from the main trail, offering a chance for more adventurous hikers to explore. Choose this entrance if you want to earn your visit to Sculpture Falls.
Twin Falls Access (3900 Frontage of Mopac):
On the other end of the spectrum, this entrance offers easy access to Twin Falls and is a short walk from Sculpture Falls. This is the best choice for someone looking to get to the Greenbelt’s best swimming spots. Unfortunately, during dry seasons these areas can only be explored on foot.
Gus Fruh (2642 Barton Hills Dr):
A direct access point to the Gus Fruh pool. This is an ideal place for dogs and kids to play. This is also one of the best areas for rock climbers. Climbing areas are located on the other side of the creek. “Guide Wall” is a good place to start.
Spyglass (1500 Spyglass Dr.):
This is also a good access point for climbers, and is the only way to reach Gus Fruh’s cliffs when the creek is too high. “The New Wall” is only fifteen minutes away.
If you decide to hit the trail, don’t forget to check out this handy map, complete with contours and top destinations, courtesy of the Austin Parks and Recreation Department. They also provide an incredible, exhaustive list of Austin trails.
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