Things to do on a Saturday Night In Austin??

[SashaStaxXx]

Good Morning. I may be stopping in Austin Saturday. What are some good places to eat? Good place to stay? Any sites I should see?

Thanks so much for your help

[TravelingTex]

Lotsa folks will chime in to suggest hotels, and you can search this forum for "hotels" to see that the so-called Vagina Triangle is more active but somewhat lower class than other parts of town. That's a rough triangle (sometimes, that pun applies) around the large intersection of Hwy 290 from the east and I-35 going N/S. Farther west is the Domain area, almost as active, nicer hotels. If you stay north in Williamson County, you won't be taking any incalls because of the LE reputation there.

Regarding eating and visiting, a lotta tourists hit the South Congress area (SoCo), about a mile south of downtown. It's a bit like Bricktown in OKC. There are Guero's Restaurant and a couple of others, some cool gift shops, and lotsa people watching. Parking is tough, but strolling is easy.

Downtown, for this native, is over-rated. Sixth St. doesn't have the live music it once did, and offers shot bars and canned electronica for the early 20s set. It can get downright dangerous around closing time and afterward, so you may want to walk-not-stroll down one side of the street, back up the other side, and get the heck out. (The street is closed for pedestrians only on Fri and Sat nights.) The danger comes from the psycho homeless (as opposed to the regular crazy homeless) at the homeless center a couple of blocks off Sixth St., as well as a buncha punks with too much energy and cheap shots in them, but not enough sense.

Back around the Domain, in NW Austin, it's not really Austin style any more, but it does offer a safer, cleaner experience for restaurants and shops. And more expensive.

The East Side (east of I-35 along Sixth St., etc.) has some interesting cafes and music spots. Parking is not too bad, but there's not the close concentration of establishments like there is on SoCo or downtown or the Domain.

And that's all for now.

p.s. Well, almost all: if you're a live music fan, let us know. Austin really does have the most accessible, cheapest music scene in the world.

[Still Looking]

Don't forget the Vagina Triangle.... could be an SL sighting!

[snkapeek]

Along with what has been said (6th and South Congress) Rainey street is also an Austin hotspot for some Friday or Saturday fun.

For good food, there are so many good restaurants in Austin it is hard to answer without any more to go on. What kind of food? What price range? There are websites dedicated just to Austin sushi restaurants. There many well regarded BBQ places like Salt Lick, Stubbs, Franklin's, and more. There are amazing taco places like Torchy's and Tacodeli.

Food networks alone has 57 hits for Austin:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/search/de...earchType=site

As far as sites to see, the two most obligatory Austin landmarks would be the Capitol and the UT tower, and both are easy enough to enjoy with a quick drive through downtown.

[GneissGuy]

Originally Posted by snkapeek

Rainey street is also an Austin hotspot for some Friday or Saturday fun.

Maybe, but that's an old slum area they're trying to turn into hipsterville.

Might be safe, but looks scary.

[drtyrodguy71]

SL.......TT mentioned the Vagina Triangle in the 1st sentence! Are you ok???

[TravelingTex]

Originally Posted by GneissGuy

Maybe, but that's an old slum area they're trying to turn into hipsterville.

Might be safe, but looks scary.

Rainey St. is very safe for the same reason parking is a PITA: it gets very crowded, no room for muggings. There's actually great music to be had there, with acts like Mrs. Glass at Blackheart (free, great bar) and the Jack Burton Trio at Banger's (also free, great sausages on picnic tables outdoors.) If it weren't for the parking, I'd visit Rainey St. more often, because I can just ignore the lately arrived wanna-be hipsters and part my way through the crowd like the professional music fan I am :-)

It wasn't quite a slum, just lower-middle class Hispanic, and so all those establishments are set in smallish, older houses.

[Guest062019]

Food trucks soon at the domain.... Much more Austin style

[TravelingTex]

Originally Posted by TravelingTex

Rainey St. is very safe for the same reason parking is a PITA: it gets very crowded, ...

If you're curious about Rainey St. bars, this wknd and next are good times to visit, what with ACL in town. To quote The Blackheart from Facebook:

"Dang! Y'all need to rally after cargo short fest (aka ACL)...
A quick review of what the bar staffs on Rainey were doing last night.
Bar 96: Arm wrestling
Lustre: Busy telling everyone how they were first.
Clive: Cleaning
Bungalow: Pumping terrible music and drinking.
Blackheart: Complaining about it being slow.
Bangers: Happy to have a lil quiet time.
Lucilles: Who knows...
Javalina: Doing shots with two chicks from Chicago.
Craft: Who knows...(maybe talking about TX beer)"