So we’ll be spending Thanksgiving with family in Houston, and then I’ve got a conference to attend in Austin the following week. So wifey and I will be driving across TX for the first time. We don’t have that much time (only a few days), but it’s not a long trip if we go direct, but I thought it’d be cool to find some hole-in-the-wall, local color establishments (eating, tourist, shopping, museums, etc.) along the way, even if it meant some side trips and off-the-beaten path routes. She’s skeptical (having lived in TX for a few years), but has no real suggestions.
I assume you be headed NW on 290? A couple of miles out of town, okay maybe 20, in Hempstead just past the cutoff north on Hwy 6 is Lawrence Marshall’s Antique Car Museum. I haven’t been in a couple of years but it’s full of sme absolutely awesome cars magnificently restored. He has everything from As and Ts to 30s Buick roadsters to Hemi Cudas, Stingrays, etc. If you like cars, $5 and 30 minutes are a small price for this place. NW corner past intersection of 6 and 290. Call for hours.
Beyond that, well, there’s prettier, more interesting stretches that this but let me think…
If you go the 290 route, take a detour in Brenham and go to the Blue Bell Ice Cream factory. After you load up on the best ice cream in the world, go up 105 to Washington on the Brazos and see the Historical Park where the Texas Declaration of Independance was signed. It’s quite a place and not that far out of the way.
I haven’t driven the I-10/Hwy 71 route in probably 15 years or more, so I can’t offer any suggestions. Unless you want to stop just outside La Grange and mourn the passing of The Greatest Little Whorehouse In Texas.
…And get a ticket, or are the LaGrange police still as bad as they were when the highway went through town? That said, if you go down 71, stop at the LaGrange exit (just before the bypass) and get some kolaches from Weikel’s. I’ve never been there, but Katy’s Forbidden Gardens sounds interesting with its one-third scale replica of the terracotta army.
I secon the Blue Bell Creamery if you go through Brenham. The Antique Rose Emporium, just north of Brenham, is also worth a stop if you like roses or would ever need to buy someone a bush.
OK, an update. My wife is very excited about the trip (or at least the Austin part) and has decided we’ll spend the night in San Antonio. I think we’ll still be able to hit Brenham, Lockhart, and Elgin (though probably not W-ot-B).
So any suggestions for the road, or what are the Can’t Miss things to do in San Antonion or Austin (w/the caveat that once we arrive in Austin, we’ll be carless)?
Well, if you’re gonna be in San Antone, you’ll have to see the Alamo (ask about their special Basement Tour!), and if you can stomach the tourist-y ness of it, the Riverwalk. There’s also a Very Fine Zoo, as well as the Japanese Tea Garden and Botanical Garden.
Esther’s Follies is a good idea. It depends really on what you enjoy doing, but if there’s any movies you haven’t seen lately let me recommend the Alamo Drafthouse. There’s three plus one downtown that doesn’t show first-runs very often (though if you’re here on a Friday or Saturday night you might be able to catch the Sinus Show if you buy tickets ahead of time. Not having a car will be a positive BOON as it’s tricky parking downtown). The Drafthouse is undoubtedly my favorite theater, at all its locations. The general idea? Theater that sells beer, drinks, appetizers, dinner during the show. Last call is about halfway through the movie. Their chocolate cake is to die for.
If you like parks we have plenty of them, and I’d recommend Zilker Park in general. In wintertime it’s a bit cold for swimming, and it’s a real shame you aren’t coming just a few weeks later, because the really wonderful don’t-ever-miss-if-you-can-help-it is the Christmas light display on… I want to say 37th or 39th street, just north of UT campus. It’s a street that has community rules where every single house decorates the outside for Christmas, everyone trying to outdo everyone else. It’s not so much plastic Santas as it is… well, my favorite is the simulated volcano that “erupts” every 5 or 10 minutes. Some people drive down it, but they’re missing the fun of walking – and one house in particular must be walked around to be experienced fully. You’re coming after Thanksgiving so some of the houses might be set up already, but they tend to hit their real stride around early December.
For funky shopping I’d suggest South Congress, though prices there are starting to rise because everyone else knows about it too. Congress is the street that, when you’re standing downtown, seems to ride straight into the Capitol building.
As for stuff on the drive between Houston and Austin, all the good places have been noted – Blue Bell Creamery (only open on weekdays, sadly, though there’s an Exxon station in Brenham that sells ice cream cones. It’s where you have to do the funky loop to keep going on 290) and the food in Elgin. I make the drive relatively often, once every few months, but I just tend to go straight through nonstop.
If you go the 10/71 route, Bastrop (about 30 miles outside Austin) has a nice little downtown that’s worth the stop. It’s a little way to the east of the highway, which has the typical restaurant and auto dealership garbage, so for years I though Bastrop was just a hole, but it’s not.
I haven’t been to Austin in about 10 years, so who knows what’s still there. In any case, I always used to be fond of going to Sweetish Hill, a bakery on 5th or 6th St near MoPac. Not the typical mass produced crap at all.
For eating and drinking, the Texas Chili Parlor has a great atmosphere, and the food’s pretty good, too. Give me a couple of Magnums (a very large Cuba Libre), a bowl of XX, and some chile con queso there, and I’m in heaven.
I’ve made the Houston-Austin trip hundreds of times, and I recommend taking I-10 and Highway 71 over 290. 290 is a lot slower and FULL of speed traps. Sure, you have to drive something like the speed limit on 71, but the only time I’ve even been actually harrassed was on 290. Ick.
Bastrop and Smithville have cool old downtown areas. I’ve always meant to explore them more thoroughly, but I’m usually blowing past them on the highway and never have time to stop.
The Bob Bullock museum mentioned above is lots of fun. The Alamo Drafthouse’s South Lamar location is the nicest one and they show first-run movies. The original location downtown is beyond awesome and many of the happiest moments of my life have been spent there, but I don’t know what they’ll be playing that weekend. Austin has lots of cool places to shop too. BookPeople is a very large independent bookstore that can give Barnes & Noble a run for its money, so going there is like a pilgrimage for book lovers.
In Houston, there are several nice museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts and the Museum of Natural Science. Your relatives in Houston may be able to suggest some other fun stuff too. I’ve lived here for many years but I’m drawing a blank on other exciting things to do. Surely someone else can suggest something.
If you feel like driving further on 71, you can go another hour past Austin to Llano. It’s a gorgeous drive (mostly big hills overlooking Lake Travis) and when you get there, Cooper’s BBQ will be waiting. I’d check ahead for their holiday weekend hours, but it’s worth the drive. Their barbecue is some of the best I’ve ever had. You get in line, which is sometimes long but worth the wait, and when it’s your turn the pitmaster opens the big smokepit and you get to point at the specific cut(s) meat you want. It’s easy to go overboard with this! The brisket and pork tenderloin are to die for, but everything’s delicious. You can get it dunkd in sauce if you want, but it’s not at all necessary. Cooper’s also has the best potato salad I’ve ever tasted, hands down. I wish I had about a quart of it and a spoon right now.
There are more good places to eat in both Austin and Houston than you’ll have time for, but let us know what you like to eat (or want to try) and I’m sure we can come up with 20 or 30 suggestions.
The road trip is right around the corner so I thought I’d give it one last whirl, with the small addition that it looks like we’ll be spending a night in San Antonio, so any suggestions for there (other than The Alamo and its basement) would be great!
Actually, I’m open to anything but given that we’ll be in Texas, BBQ, Mexican, and anything with a more local flavor would be great. We’ll be staying in the northern parts of Houston (in The Woodlands) so anything in that area would be preferable.
Thanks again, everyone! I’ll be printing the thread out in a few days so I can plot a course.
As to San Antonio, if you’re int he Riverwalk area, I’d highly recommend Pico de Gallo for some of their Cabrito (baby goat). No, really, it is very, very good, and the restaurant is kind of a landmark.
If may be cheesy, but the boat tours on the river through the city was something we have enjoyed. Some of the things pointed out and the history is really interesting.
Another Mexican restaurant with local color and some pretty good dishes is Mexican Manhattan. Don’t think haute cuisine, think gritty local color. Pretty good, and the prices are right.
Texas Land & Cattle Steakhouse has a store right on the Riverwalk. It is good, prices are decent. My fave is their 1/4 wedge of lettuce with your choice of dressing. So simple, and yet really a great departure fromt he regular tossed salad.
Lots of stuff there. Whatever you do, I think you will like the area. I lived there for 6 months and barely scratched the surface.
If you like delicious TexMex served in a loud (both in an audio and visual sense), this is the place for you. I crave their jalapeno ranch dipping sauce.
The Dillos really are a great way to get around Austin. I used them all the time when I used to live there. Clean, safe and free.
Congress is the street that, when you’re standing downtown, seems to ride straight into the Capitol building.