Pay By Donation Yoga in Rainey Street

Pay By Donation

Be Yoga just opened in the Rainey Street District!

Located in the Windsor (née Legacy on the Lake), Be Yoga is a no-frills studio, about 1,000 square feet, just a stone’s throw from the lake and across from the Milago condos.

Perhaps more intriguing than it’s location is the fact that it’s a [Read more...]

Second Bar + Kitchen in Downtown Austin

Grilled Cheese from Second

Second Bar + Kitchen is aptly named for it’s Congress Ave @ Second Street location.  But don’t think for a second that the food isn’t first-rate (wakka wakka!).

On a whim, I ventured over to Second a couple of Sundays ago (after a morning coffee at the Austonian’s Caffe Medici) and was pleasantly surprised by the food and the atmosphere of the restaurant. I was seated on the second story, which was a small, covered balcony with simple tables and faux grass carpeting: [Read more...]

AF1 Racing – Downtown Austin’s Neighborhood Superbike and Scooter Store

af1 racing - downtown austin retail store

AF1 Racing is opening a Downtown Austin store.  This is their second location, and they are taking the old OK Paper space near Cesar Chavez and Trinity.  I spotted the window graphics going up yesterday, accross the street from Downtown Austin’s Four Seasons Residences.

A quick check of their Facebook page confirmed the news.

Ironically, one month ago I sold my amazing Aprilia Scarabeo 50cc.  Back in 2008, I searched the entire country using Craigslist for a specific two-stroke version with low miles.  (The two strokes had more torque and could zip around much better.)  I found one in Atlanta and shipped it back home.  It quickly became one of my preferred modes of transportation in downtown Austin.

And, I never worried about parking.

Downtown Austin Home Bicycle Tour (Free Tickets – $44 Value)

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We are awarding 2 free tickets ($44 value) to 1 lucky DAB reader for this AWESOME bike tour happening this Saturday, April 23rd, beginning at 9:30AM.  MEET UP AT WHOLE FOODS ON LAMAR.  Winner will also receive 2 FREE Downtown Austin Blog t-shirts (priceless?)! [Read more...]

Live (Work, or Play) in Downtown Austin? Join DANA (Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association)

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Jude and I are both on the board of the Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association (DANA) – a grassroots community organization dedicated to improving the lives of those who live, work, and / or play in the Downtown Austin Community. It’s an organization that we believe in, and an organization that is affecting positive change in our community.

For our readers who are downtown residents (or, who spend a significant amount of time downtown for work or for pleasure), I urge you to become a member of the organization.

A little info: [Read more...]

Caffe Medici Opens Under The Austonian

Cafe Medici at The Austonian

Just in time for SXSW, Caffe Medici opens its third location.  Located in the Austonian on Congress Ave, I was immediately impressed with the finish out.  Great layout, great light, great coffee.  We’ll soon need to update our Best Coffee Shops In Austin list. A couple of quick android pics after the jump. [Read more...]

Container Bar On Rainey Street

Container Bar coming to Rainey Street

Our friends at Austin civil engineering firm Big Red Dog just sent us fresh new renderings of the planned Container Bar in Downtown Austin’s Rainey Street neighborhood. The site is currently being used by Cazamance African-fusion patio/restaurant on the corner of Rainey and Davis Streets.  It will be interesting to watch the this project come alive, as I’m not aware of anything else like it in Central Texas. [Read more...]

Dress Shop Austin

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Perhaps you’ve noticed the elegant fashions in the window next to Annie’s on an evening stroll down Congress Avenue. Perhaps you’ve seen the sign with the simple, but apt, words “Dress Shop.”

Perhaps you haven’t.

But you should.

Dress Shop is, you guessed it, a dress shop selling dresses, jewelry, handbags, and ladies undergarments. It’s located 315 Congress Avenue, right above the Elephant Room, and just south of Annie’s. And the dresses are [Read more...]

Spotted: New Bar Coming to Rainey Street Neighborhood

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No, not that one.  Or that one.  Not these, either.  Another one…

East Avenue Lounge, located along frontage road at 90 N IH-35 (aka East Ave), has posted their TABC application notice.  This is an interesting property.  It faces I-35. It has an upper and lower porch. In fact, it’s the only legacy two story structure in the area – a defining characteristic that hopefully will be embraced with creative uses and design. The proprietors will likely benefit from lots of “on the way home” traffic.  While inside the boundaries of downtown Austin’s Rainey Street neighborhood, this structure is located outside of the Rainey Street Historic District.



View Rainey Street District in a larger map

Downtown Austin’s W Hotel Trace MENU & La Condesa New Lunch Menu Items

The W's Restaurant "Trace"

The W's Restaurant "Trace"

Just a week or so ago, The W Austin Hotel in downtown Austin held it’s grand opening.  Boy, that place is nice.  Jude and I visited the lounge areas and had dinner at Trace (link to Yelp reviews) on our visit.  The decor is swank, and the menu is trendy.  The dinner menu is separated into five categories: foraged, farmed, crafted, hunted, or shared, and the hotel restaurant has even hired an official forager, Valerie Broussard, to select local produce for the plates.

A little pricey for some plates and a little small on the portion sizes (which, honestly – is to be expected, this is a *fancy* hotel restaurant, after all), but delicious overall.  I had the Winter’s Garden salad, the Pumpkin Agnolotti, a basket of fries (from the bar menu – which I don’t have), and a glass of Merlot, all wonderful – the cost was about $35 + tip.  Here are the menus – breakfast, lunch, and dinner (they apparently change fairly frequently, maybe seasonally?,  – but this should give an idea on food type and price range) To enlarge each image, click once on the image to get to the image page, then click the image again.  More after the jump.

[Read more...]