Allow me to introduce myself... I'm Rick Hahn

Austin, TX is a great city.  While similiar to Columbus in size, it has a dramatically different feel.  It is extremely laid back and casual while being cosmopolitan and sophisticated at the same time.   Visiting Austin offers a lot of options for shopping, entertainment, music, and dining.  Although this list is just a synopsis of some of the highlights, you can click on "contact us" from the website and we can tyr and get you more information. 

Lodging – (many hotels are already booked but you never know).

Although late in posting this up, we suggest book whatever lodging you are seeking as immediately as possible. Austin fills up pretty quick for UT football weekends and with the rabid Buckeye fans coming in to town it will be heavier than the typical Big 12 game weekend. There are any number of hotels to stay at but would suggest the following if they are available simply based on quality and location. These are not ranked in any particular order as they are all quality hotels. 

 

Downtown (The UT campus and stadium are essentially the north end of downtown)
 The Four Seasons
 The Omni Austin Centre
 Hilton Convention Center
 The Driskill
 DoubleTree Guest Suites on 15th St
 Hyatt Town Lake
 Radisson on Congress Ave
 Embassy Suites Downtown
North (IH-35 @ US 290 Area ~10 minutes from downtown)
 Red Lion
 DoubleTree Hotel
 Embassy Suites
Arboretum Area (US183 & MoPac Expressway ~20 min from downtown)
 Renaissance Austin Hotel
 Embassy Suites
South (IH-35 & Ben White Blvd about 15min from downtown)
 Omni Hotel

Food –

Austin is a restaurant mecca.  You can find chain restaurants everywhere but the key to Austin is delving in to its local flavor.  The dining options are fairly diverse although things tend to lean towards Tex-Mex.  All we can say is that if you want to eat in a chain restaurant you can but you are seriously missing out.  We have tried to break this list down by cuisine but you will often find some crossover.  Regardless, some of the best food anywhere, so explore and enjoy.  There are just too many to name.

Tex-Mex
Baby Acapulco’s
El Sol y La Luna
Z-Tejas
Polvo’s
Jovitas
El Mercado
Antonio’s Tex-Mex
Matt’s Famous El-Rancho
Chuy’s
Guero’s
Maudie’s
Trudy’s

Interior Mexican Cuisine
Curras Mexican Grill
Fonda San Miguel

BBQ
The County Line
Salt Lick
Smokey Mo’s
Iron Works
Pok-e-Jo’s
Green Mesquite
Stubbs

Italian
Carmello’s
Vespaio
Siena

French
Aquarelle
Chez Nous

Asian
Suzi’s China Grill
Kenichi

Pub Grub/Deli
Waterloo Ice House
Aussies
The Tavern
Opal Divine’s Free House
Katz’s Deli
Fox & Hound
Dog & Duck Pub
Jason’s Deli

Hamburgers, etc.
Hut’s
Shady Grove

Eclectic/Fusion/World Cuisine
Malaga
Saba Blue Water Café
Moonshine
Dona Emilia’s
Hula Hut
Mars
Thistle Café
Eddie V’s
Habana
Cuba Libre
Louie’s 106
North by Northwest
South Congress Café
Roy’s

Steak House
Sullivans
Austin Land & Cattle

Home Cookin’
Kerby Lane Café
Threadgill’s

Pizza
Brick Oven
Mangia
Austin’s Pizza

Miscellaneous
Freebirds Burritos
Pluckers Wing Factory

Shopping -  

 

The key on shopping in Austin is finding the great local shops. Try going to South Congress Avenue just south of Town Lake in downtown Austin.

 

Barton Creek mall South MoPac Expressway & RR360
Highland Mall at RR2222 & IH-35
Lakeline Mall at US183 & RR 620

 

Entertainment – 

 

Austin is called the "Live Music Capital of the World".  There are hundreds of live music venues throughout the city.   They are so numerious and diverse that it becomes almost impossible to direct people.  However, the following are probably the more respected and interesting.

The Continental Club
Antone’s
Stubbs
Broken Spoke
Emo’s
Momo’s
La Zona Rosa
Cactus Café
Saxon Pub

 

Also there are districts that many venues side by side. Check out the Red River District and 6^th Street. Some of the clubs listed above are located there.