I recently got back from an incredible 4 day trip to Austin, Texas and am now officially obsessed!

It might take my spot for 2nd favorite city in the U.S. (after SF)!

WOAH.

I can’t even believe I just said that. Sorry Chicago, you might be moving to 3rd place.

The food, live music, rooftop bars, friendly people, and cost of living all make me want to pick up my life and move there.

I did the drive from Dallas to Austin because I was in Dallas for work. My girlfriends and I decided to meet in Austin since none of us had been there before. I ended up driving in a rental car from Dallas and it took me about 3 hours.

I stopped to buy kolache’s at The Little Czech Bakery on the way and they were incredible. You can’t miss this little area if you’re driving from Dallas to Austin. I didn’t even know what a kolache was until I stopped here and fell in LOVE.

Here’s an extensive list of all of the things you MUST do in Austin, Texas. I started the list with areas to explore and ended with FOOD…duh.

Areas to Explore/Things to Do:

• Greetings from Austin Mural – photo above at the mural
• Austin Graffiti Park – It was hot as hell when we went, but it was fun to check it out!

• Tears of Joy Hot Sauce Shop – I tried the 3rd spiciest hot sauce and thought I was going to die. This store is SO cool though!

• I Love You So Much sign – You can’t miss it when you walk down South Congress street.
• 6th Street mural – This is at the end of East 6th. Pretty easy to find.

• South Congress – Or ‘SoCo’ is awesome for shopping and eating. This is also where the “I Love You So Much Sign” is and it’s very close to the “Greetings from Austin” mural

• 5th Street – Really cool restaurants and bars to explore.
• 1st Street – Street full of trailor park eateries and tons and tons of restaurants.
• Zilker Park – Huge park in the middle of the city. Barton Springs is located inside the park.
• Barton Springs – Swimming hole located on a river. Stays the same temp all year round (apparently). Bring cash with you because you have to pay $4 to get in. GREAT people watching!!

• Bat Cave Bridge – Get there at dusk and watch MILLIONS of bats come out from under the bridge. It was pretty wild!

• University of Texas – check out the campus and buy some burnt orange Longhorn gear! We were there for a game and the city was crazy!!
• Lady Bird Lake – pretty to walk around.
• Hamilton Pool Reserve – A little ways out of the city, but looked amazing!  We couldn’t go because the water quality was low, but try and go if you can!

Where to Eat:

Tex Mex:

• Chuy’s – This is the original Chuy’s (it’s a chain now), but it was INCREDIBLE. Great stop after a day at Barton Springs!

• Trailor Park Eatery – Torchy’s Tacos (food truck) – The trailor park has a few different food options, but Torchy’s is a must. Ask for the diablo sauce and all about their hidden menu!

• Jo’s  – YUM. More breakfast tacos. How have I never had one of these before?
• Z’Tejas Southwestern Grill
• Taco Deli – Breakfast Tacos x3
• Benji’s Cantina – Fancier Mexican restaurant with great sharable plates and awesome margaritas. Great place to start for a night out on 6th street.

• La Condessa
• Lavaca Street Bar and Grill – Go here and order any of the fish tacos or the blackened ribeye.

BBQ:

• Ironworks BBQ
• Lambert’s Downtown BBQ – If you go to their Sunday brunch, don’t be tricked. It’s an all you can eat buffet including all of their menu items. We literally rolled out of there, but who can turn down ribs for breakfast?

• Terry Blacks BBQ
• Salt Lick – a little bit out of town, but a good stop on the way to Hamilton Pool Reserve
• Franklins BBQ – The line is apparently 5 hours long (we didn’t go, but must be worth it!!)
• La Barbecue

Brunch:

• South Congress Cafe – Get the carrot cake french toast, the watermelon salad and the Benedict. YUM.
• Elizabeth St. Cafe – This place is the cutest!! Great for lunch or brunch. It has an awesome Vietnamese/French vibe and it turquise inside..which I love.
• Bangers – A must go! It’s located on Rainey and is an amazing outdoor place for food/drinks and live music. Especially good for brunch and mimosas!

Cenote – Cutest little cafe and brunch spot. I could have spent all morning in there drinking coffee.

Josephine House of Austin – Such a great brunch restaurant in a little rustic cottage.

Treats:

Amy’s Ice Cream – On South Congress street with a great ice cream selection. SO YUMMM.

Juju Juice – Awesome little juice shack right by Cenote Cafe

Other:

Hopdoddy – amazing burgers!

Spartan Pizza – There are tons of late-night pizza places in Austin, but this place has the BEST ranch. Get it…it’s amazing.

Bars:

Rainey Street – This street is awesome! All houses turned into outside bars. We went to quite a few fun ones including Bungalow, Icenhaurs, The Container Bar, The Black Heart, and Clive Bar.

West Sixth Street Bars – These bars are super fun with a bit of an older crowd.

Dirty Sixth Street Bars – Mostly college kids, lots of alcohol specials, a great place to rage.

*We rented an AirBnB at the Corazon apartments in Austin. This location was perfect close to most of the places we wanted to go. We mainly got around by taking Lyfts and Ubers and rented a car to drive to Barton Springs.

If you go, let me know so I can live vicariously through you!!