Say You’re Staying in an airbnb in North Central Austin …

North Central Austin is a hidden gem for out-of-towners because airbnbs are much cheaper than staying downtown or other hip areas (ahem mueller ahem), but access to everything is easy due to Mopac (DON’T GO DURING TRAFFIC). I spent the first three months of my return to Austin in a great house off 2222 & Mopac (not actually an airbnb but you get the idea), which is also generally the area I grew up in, so here is your most expertly expert guide to that area of Austin.

In the Immediate vicinity: everything you need

Grocery Store: This is one of the best Randall’ss* in the city, but even better than that, I once saw a bachelor party pushing a cart full of beers back from the store to their rental house. It’s that close. There’s also a Twin Liquors in the same parking lot so convenience is serious here. (reminder: you can’t buy liquor in grocery stores in Texas ever, nor can you buy liquor at all on Sundays and beer or wine before noon on Sundays)

Brunch: Chez Zee is an Austin institution and walking to brunch is literally always a win. Because mimosas. Or bloody marys.

Coffee/juice: Starbucks on the corner; JuiceLand in the strip mall. What more could you want?

In the Very Close vicinity

Burnet Road is a straight shot down 2222 which under Mopac becomes Allandale Road and then after Burnet Road, Koenig Lane, so don’t be fooled, you’re closer than you think Austin is just real weird about naming streets. Anyway, go straight down this one and you can get to hotspot that is Burnet Road & North Loop and all its trendy restaurants and bars that aren’t just absolutely jam-packed.

Sports Bars in case you need to catch a game that isn’t UT, think Little Woodrow’s, there’s one downtown on West Sixth and one on Burnet Road. You’re also in the middle of two Cover 3 locations, and it was named one of the top 50 sports bars in the nation—choose from way West Sixth (at Mopac) or Anderson Lane (perpendicular to Burnet Road, off of Mopac).

Poke Poke & Fonda San Miguel make up a random delicious food corner at Hancock & North Loop—accessible by “back way” from your Central North Austin airbnb, both streets also hit the aforementioned Burnet Road (Hancock at Billy’s on Burnet which is a great spot for beers).

County Line is the other way on 2222 where it’s actually called 2222 and considered legendary barbecue on the lake (river). I’m not saying it’s the best, but it’s famous. You can also access 360 and 620 from 2222, which is convenient if you’re going to the lake (Travis).

In the Close vicinity

Hula Hut is my forever fave restaurant recommendation because it’s delicious, cheap, and has awesome views; I have taken quite literally everyone who has come to visit me there. After Hula Hut you can stop by Deep Eddy Cabaret for a taste of true Austin dive bar before heading downtown.

Downtown, duh. Less than a $10 lyft/uber.

The Domain, allegedly Austin’s second downtown, is also a cheap rideshare away. But there are lots of other guides for that.

Don’t Forget

Just in case you work on your fitness, you already know you can hit Town Lake Trail for a 3-, 4.8-, or 10-mile loop. Close to your house, though…

Hyde Park Gym is an easy bike or quick drive using the aforementioned “back way” and is just $12 for a drop-in at this super old-school body-building gym. No frills but it’s badass.

Yoga is everywhere but from this location I like Breath & Body for convenience; Black Swan at Orchard is nice because it’s donation-based so the drop-in can be less than somewhere else.

Leave any more Central North Austin questions or recommendations in the comments!

 

Salty Disclaimer: I barely even wanted to call this post North Central Austin because if you think about geography, density, and “old” Austin, this area is still central. Nonetheless, I’ve heard newbies (read: people who didn’t grow up here and probably live south of the river) call all sorts of things that aren’t north North Austin simply because they’re north of the river. So here we are. Central Austin is north of the river because downtown is north of the river. But whatever. Call it north if you want, but if you’re staying in it, know that you are central.

*no clue how to punctuate a plural possessive s. It’s mind-boggling. I care a lot about apostrophe abuse and even I can’t figure this one out.