June 2024

June in Austin: Summer Is Here, and the City Is Turning Up the Heat

June 2024

June is when Austin officially stops pretending summer is coming and admits that summer is already here.

The afternoons are hot, the swimming holes are calling, patios are packed later into the evening and the city starts shifting into its summer routine. People are looking for cold drinks, shaded patios, live music, swimming spots and any excuse to stay outside after the sun goes down.

But June 2024 is also bringing plenty of changes to Austin’s food and nightlife scene. New restaurants are opening, familiar Austin businesses are expanding, bars are adding new concepts, and the city’s entertainment calendar is filling up with concerts and summer events.

If you want to know what’s happening around Austin this month, the answer is simple:

Get outside, get in the water and make your plans after the sun goes down.

THE WATER IS THE PLACE TO BE

By June, Austin’s natural swimming spots become one of the biggest attractions in town.

Barton Springs is packed.

The Greenbelt is busy.

Twin Falls and Sculpture Falls become weekend destinations.

Deep Eddy starts filling up.

And everybody seems to have their own favorite place to cool off.

The key to surviving an Austin summer is figuring out which kind of water day you want.

If you want convenience, go to a pool.

If you want an adventure, hike into the Greenbelt.

If you want a full day outside, head toward one of the area’s parks and swimming holes.

And if you’re going to Barton Springs on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, expect plenty of company.

The secret is going early or later in the day.

AUSTIN’S PATIO SEASON IS IN FULL SWING

The patio culture that starts building in April and May is now in full force.

The trick is choosing your patio based on the time of day.

At lunchtime, shade matters.

At happy hour, you want somewhere that doesn’t feel like you’re sitting directly on the surface of the sun.

At night, almost anywhere works.

East Austin remains one of the easiest areas for a food-and-drink crawl because you can move between restaurants, bars and patios without spending your entire evening driving.

Grab dinner.

Find a cocktail.

Walk around.

Find another bar.

That’s a perfectly good June night.

NEW RESTAURANTS ARE KEEPING AUSTIN’S FOOD SCENE MOVING

One of the biggest stories around Austin this month is how quickly the restaurant scene continues to change.

June’s opening calendar includes everything from new casual restaurants to bars with food programs and new locations for established Austin names.

Tacodeli is opening a new South Lamar location, bringing its tacos and breakfast offerings to another part of the city.

Casa de Luz is expanding into East Austin with Casa de Luz Este, bringing its plant-based, organic and seasonal approach to a new neighborhood.

Uncle Nicky’s is opening a second location in South Austin with Italian-inspired food, pastas and spritzes.

And downtown is getting new casual food options as well, including Mad Dogs, a halal hot dog restaurant serving hot dogs, smash burgers and loaded fries.

These openings are a good reminder that Austin’s food scene isn’t just about high-end restaurants.

Some of the most interesting additions are casual places where you can grab something without turning dinner into a two-hour production.

PEDROSO’S PIZZA IS MAKING A MOVE

Pizza fans have another reason to pay attention.

Pedroso’s Pizza, which had developed a following as a pizza truck, is moving into a permanent restaurant space attached to Brentwood bar Lala’s.

That’s exactly the kind of transition Austin food fans like to see.

A food truck develops a following.

People start talking about it.

The concept grows.

And eventually there’s a place where you can actually sit down and eat.

It also creates a pretty good combination for a night out:

Pizza and drinks.

It’s hard to mess that up.

EAST CESAR CHAVEZ IS GETTING ANOTHER BAR AND RESTAURANT

The East Cesar Chavez area continues to evolve as one of Austin’s major food-and-drink corridors.

Armadillo Den is opening a new bar and restaurant concept called Chalmers.

The menu focuses on fry bread tacos and cocktails, giving the area another option for people looking for something different from the standard taco-and-margarita combination.

This is one of the reasons the East Side continues to be such an important part of Austin’s nightlife.

You don’t have to go downtown to find something interesting.

You don’t have to go to Sixth Street.

You don’t even necessarily have to plan ahead.

You can pick a neighborhood and start exploring.

SOUTH LAMAR IS GETTING BUSIER

South Lamar continues to be one of the city’s most useful areas for a night out because it combines restaurants, bars, breweries and entertainment.

The new Tacodeli location is another sign that the area continues attracting major local food businesses.

And because South Lamar sits between downtown and South Austin, it works well as a meeting point when nobody wants to drive all the way across town.

That’s an increasingly important factor in Austin.

Traffic can turn a simple dinner into an hour-long project.

Choosing the right neighborhood can save you a lot of frustration.

DON’T FORGET ABOUT THE COFFEE SCENE

Austin’s food culture isn’t only about dinner.

June is also bringing new coffee options.

Sightseer, a new coffee bar inside Sugar Mama’s on South First, is another example of Austin’s increasingly interesting coffee scene.

The coffee shop has a particularly Austin combination: coffee, an established bakery environment and a neighborhood location where people can stop in without making a production out of it.

Coffee has become part of the city’s nightlife strategy too.

A lot of Austinites aren’t necessarily looking for another cocktail at 9 p.m.

Sometimes they want coffee.

And the city’s late-night coffee culture continues to grow.

THE BAR SCENE ISN’T SLOWING DOWN

If anything, June is when Austin’s bar scene starts getting busier.

People are looking for places to cool down after work.

Rooftops become more attractive.

Hotel bars become popular.

Pool bars start getting attention.

And new cocktail concepts keep appearing.

One of the more interesting developments is Nickel City’s planned pool bar at the Downright Austin hotel.

The concept is designed around a bright, poolside atmosphere and gives the hotel another way to attract people who aren’t necessarily staying there.

That’s an important part of Austin’s modern bar scene.

You don’t have to be a hotel guest to spend an afternoon at a hotel bar or pool.

Sometimes those spaces become destinations on their own.

JUNE IS WHEN ROOFTOPS START MAKING SENSE

Rooftop bars in Austin can be a little ridiculous in July.

But June evenings can still be perfect.

Wait until the sun starts going down.

Grab a drink.

Find a table.

Watch downtown light up.

And enjoy the fact that you’re outside without immediately sweating through your clothes.

The trick is timing.

Don’t arrive at 4 p.m. expecting a comfortable rooftop experience.

Wait until later.

That’s when the city gets good.

LIVE MUSIC CONTINUES AFTER SXSW

If you think Austin’s music calendar slows down after SXSW, June will change your mind.

The city has concerts happening throughout the month at large venues, clubs, bars and smaller neighborhood spaces.

The best strategy is still to look beyond the biggest shows.

Some of the best Austin music experiences happen in smaller venues where you can get close to the stage and discover somebody before they become a bigger name.

Check Red River.

Check East Austin.

Check South Congress.

Check the neighborhood bars.

And don’t be afraid to see a band you’ve never heard of.

That’s part of the fun.

THE SUMMER FESTIVAL CALENDAR IS STARTING TO BUILD

June is also the month when you start seeing the summer calendar take shape.

Free concerts.

Outdoor music.

Food events.

Neighborhood festivals.

Pool parties.

Beer events.

And plenty of smaller gatherings that never make national headlines.

Austin’s best summer events aren’t always the ones with the biggest advertising budgets.

Sometimes they’re the ones your friend texts you about on Friday afternoon.

THE BEST JUNE NIGHTS START LATE

If you’re trying to plan an Austin night in June, don’t rush.

Start dinner around 7.

By then the worst of the heat is beginning to disappear.

Have a long dinner.

Get a drink.

Find some live music around 9.

Then head somewhere else around 11.

Austin is one of those cities where a night can keep changing locations.

Don’t feel like you have to choose one bar and stay there for four hours.

Explore.

EAST SIXTH REMAINS A GOOD STARTING POINT

East Sixth continues to offer one of the easiest bar-hopping experiences in the city.

You can find everything from dive bars to cocktail lounges, restaurants and music venues.

And because so many places are within walking distance, you can change plans without having to call an Uber every 30 minutes.

That’s especially useful in June.

You don’t want to spend the whole night sitting in traffic.

RED RIVER FOR MUSIC

If music is the priority, Red River remains the move.

The concentration of venues makes it possible to see multiple artists in one night.

Pick a show.

Grab food nearby.

See another band.

Finish with a drink.

It’s one of the most reliable Austin nights you can build.

SOUTH CONGRESS FOR A MORE RELAXED NIGHT

If you want something less chaotic, South Congress is still a good choice.

Start with dinner.

Walk around.

Get drinks.

Listen to music.

And take your time.

It’s especially good when you’re entertaining someone visiting Austin because there is enough going on that you don’t have to explain exactly what you’re doing.

Just walk.

JUNE IS ALSO THE MONTH TO START THINKING ABOUT JULY

By the end of June, you should already be thinking about July.

The Fourth of July is coming.

Hot Summer Nights is approaching.

Summer concerts are getting busier.

Pools are getting crowded.

And the heat is only getting stronger.

If there’s a restaurant you’ve been wanting to try, go now.

If there’s a swimming hole you’ve been meaning to visit, don’t wait until the hottest weekend of the summer.

If there’s a concert you want to see, get tickets before the last minute.

Austin doesn’t get less busy as summer progresses.

THE BEST WAY TO BEAT THE HEAT

The easiest Austin summer strategy is to divide your day.

Do outdoor activities early.

Eat lunch somewhere cool.

Take a break during the hottest part of the afternoon.

Go swimming later.

Then go out after sunset.

Trying to spend all day outside in June is unnecessary.

Austin isn’t going anywhere.

A PERFECT JUNE SATURDAY

Here’s how we’d do it.

Start with breakfast tacos.

Get coffee.

Spend the morning at Barton Springs or one of the Greenbelt swimming holes.

Head home and cool down.

Come back out around 6.

Grab dinner on the East Side.

Find a patio.

Have a cocktail.

Head toward Red River for live music.

Then finish the night with late-night tacos.

That’s an Austin summer Saturday.

WHAT’S NEW IS PART OF THE FUN

The biggest reason to keep exploring Austin is that the city refuses to stay the same.

A new restaurant opens.

A bar changes concepts.

A food truck gets a permanent home.

A new cocktail menu appears.

A neighborhood becomes the next food destination.

And six months later, everybody is talking about a completely different place.

That’s why June is a good month to get out and explore.

Don’t automatically go to the place you’ve been going to for the last five years.

Try somewhere new.

THE BALLER ATX JUNE CHECKLIST

Get in the water.

Try a new restaurant.

Find a new patio.

See a local band.

Visit East Austin.

Check out South Lamar.

Spend an evening on Red River.

Find a new dive bar.

Try a new taco truck.

And make at least one plan that starts after sunset.

Because June in Austin isn’t about staying inside.

It’s about finding ways to enjoy the city without getting destroyed by the heat.

SUMMER HAS ARRIVED

June is the transition month.

April was patio season.

May was the warning.

June is when Austin officially becomes a summer city.

The pools are busy.

The swimming holes are calling.

Restaurants are opening.

Bars are getting crowded.

Music is everywhere.

And the city is preparing for another long, hot Texas summer.

The trick is not fighting it.

Embrace it.

Swim early.

Eat late.

Drink cold.

Listen to music.

Find shade.

And save your best nights for after the sun goes down.

Because Austin summer isn’t going anywhere.

And neither are we.