Chef Rene Ortiz took Austin by storm in 2009 when he moved from a long stint in New York to open La Condesa on the just-blooming 2nd Street. Two years later, Ortiz is one of many lights on an Austin landscape booming with chef-driven restaurants. We recently spoke with Ortiz about his charity work, Cinco de Mayo party, and future plans as he took a quick break from La Condesa's lunch service. more ›

Two independent local fashion-related launches on Thursday are daring to buck the dismal trend of retail closures we've seen lately. more ›

After failing to negotiate an affordable lease, Second Street's modern design shop Kirk Gallery will be closing in October. more ›

Local upscale Tex-Mex eatery La Condesa recently scored a People's Choice Award for best restaurant at this year's annual AIA Los Angeles Restaurant Design Awards. more ›

Photo by *clairity* on flickrA public hearing is scheduled for tonight to discuss a proposed city-wide ban on panhandling. The ban would outlaw panhandling on roadsides and within 1,000 feet of all schools. The current solicitation ordinance prohibits panhandling in three zones of downtown, including the area around the University of Texas, a section of North Austin near the 51st Street day-laborer site and the Second Street District down to Lady Bird Lake. APD reported... more ›

The Austin City Store hasn't been open for a year yet and has already seen its share of controversy. Besides the charges of nepotism involving the shop, the larger problem the store is having is that it is not making a profit. Perhaps because of the disappointing range of items available for sale? Whatever the reason, current projections show that the shop wouldn't be able to cover its own costs until 2013. more ›

Austinist wondered, "What are the top spots these days to get your wine on?" Certainly one can order a lovely glass of wine most anywhere - but, for the distinguished Austin wino who wants to polish off a beautiful bottle or sample a creative wine flight in a sassy setting, we suggest the following: Vin Bistro Vin Bistro knows how to treat a guest. By far, this is the most excellent service we have enjoyed... more ›

Many of our vigilant readers emailed to inform us that new Wal-Marts are planned for various locations around Austin, including the lot shown above on Second Street and the former location of the Binswanger Glass Building on South Lamar and Toomey (presumably as the ground floor component of 300 South Lamar). Clearly, this is a response to the community's gleeful embrace of Wal-Mart's plans at NorthCross. An April Fool's prank? Guerrilla marketing by Wal-Mart's... more ›

If you watched the State of the Union last night (we tried to, but ended up choosing the guilty pleasure that is Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Orange County" over it), you heard our Fearless Leader not mention a hurricane starting with K or the region affected by it plug his plan for Iraq. This weekend, various national organizations are sponsoring a peace march in D.C. against the war. Local peace organizations are eager... more ›

Benchmark Development has supposedly begun sales of the planned 155 condos in what they are now calling "The Austonian" (the website is now up). The current plan is a 700 foot tall, 55 story tower of condo power above what appears to be (and had better be) ground floor retail on the corner of Congress and Second Street (across Congress from the current location of Las Manitas - BTW, word is that Las Mas... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

First Night Austin Schedule 2-5pm Family Festival 5:30-6:30pm Grand Procession 7pm Family Finale at City Hall 7-11:30pm Evening programming Midnight Grand Finale First Night Austin takes over downtown this Sunday, kicking off the second annual festival with three hours of family-friendly activities, performances, and art installations. From hip hop freestyling to Appalachian-style clog dancing, there promises to be enough culturally-rich distractions to entertain even that obnoxious nephew of yours who'd rather stay home to... more ›

Official Poster of First Night Austin 2007 by Peat Duggins After the tremendous success of last year's inaugural festival, First Night Austin returns to downtown this New Year's Eve with an all-day program full of music, art, theatre, dance, and more. Begun in Boston back in 1976 as a massive public gathering to ring in the new year through "art, ritual, and festivity," First Night events are now held all over the world, from... more ›

The City of Austin is hosting GIS Day from 9am to 3pm today at Austin City Hall. Short for Geographic Information System Services, Austin GIS collates and reinterprets "geographic knowledge" in order to create location-based analysis to serve various public purposes, such as: our computer-aided 911 dispatch system; automated vehicle location tracking; generating three-dimensional, interactive aerial images; and preserving endangered species in the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve. As Prentiss Riddle points out over at aprendiz de... more ›

In a few years, Second Street may look a lot more like Times Square, with the new glass-clad TRL ACL studios looking out over the proletariat. Stratus Properties is planning to develop Block 21 (just north of City Hall). The building will include the new home for KLRU's "Austin City Limits," which will function as a live venue between tapings. more ›

Some things skip a generation. Others round the bend, never to be heard from again. Still others seem to hop in and out of mode with consistent regularity. While some fads and fashions may fall out of style, one that seems to breath new life into the dance scene at regular intervals is the original Lindy Hop. This highly improvisational and interpretive dance style was born in Harlem during the Jazz Age. The same... more ›

Do you have burning questions about burning food? Do you want to know more about cutting on the bias but want to remain impartial? Do you want to know why saffron is only somewhat less expensive per pound than crushed Faberge eggs and Bald Eagle skulls? Well, we may not know the answers, but we certainly know a ton of people in the culinary community who might. Don’t be afraid, just ask. We’ll run... more ›

Plans for the block between Second and Third Street on the east side of Congress have been released. In the place of Las Manitas, Escuelita del Alma Learning Center, and Tesoros Trading Company, we will have a Marriott hotel, a Marriott Renaissance Hotel and a Springhill Suites by Marriott Hotel. These will complement the Courtyard by Marriott and the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott being built on Fourth Street. All five Marriotts will... more ›

Four and a half years ago, Catellus Corporation was chosen as the developer for the site of the former Robert Mueller Airport in North Austin, which spans 700 acres along I-35 around the east 40's. Catellus specializes in constructing modern, urban communities that combine residential and business areas, and -- wisely -- art. (Check out their previous work in California here.) If you flip through the 1,000+ page agreement between Catellus and the City... more ›

Austinites who frequent the Town Lake shores may be in for a nice change of scenery - half a decade from now. Pending a vote by the City Council this afternoon and public approval later this year, the John Henry Faulk Central Library at Eighth and Guadalupe is slated to be replaced by a brand new 300,000 sq ft facility where the Green Water Treatment Plant now resides, mere blocks west of City Hall... more ›