Here's a look at the best new Austin restaurants, hotels, party rooms, corporate event venues, conference centers, and private rooms to open this summer. These new and renovated Austin venues can accommodate groups large or small for private and corporate events, meetings, business dinners, cocktail parties, conferences, weddings, and more.
G’Raj Mahal, an Indian food truck concept, became a brick-and-mortar restaurant in March. There are multiple outdoor lounges, including the front patio lined with bicycle frames and the larger back lounge with low furniture. The full menu, including curries and appetizers, is available as well.
The former warehouse Fair Market is still available for events, even as it undergoes renovations expected to last into the fall. The large flexible indoor space with high ceilings has audiovisual capabilities, including a greenroom, and the outdoor space features a garden. Overall, the interior is 16,000 square feet and seats 500 guests or holds 1,500 for receptions.
Opened last month, Pleasant Storage Room is a 1920s Cuban-theme rum bar. The semiprivate Marlin Room holds 40 guests, while the entire space holds 99 people. The Cedar Street Courtyard, the live music stage, is also available with coordination.
Apothecary Cafe & Wine Bar is a local-focused coffee and wine bar available for buyout. Travel-inspired decor is featured throughout the space, including a vintage Indian bookshelf used as bar storage.
Almost every item in Ironwood Hall, the downtown renovated warehouse, was sourced from the Hill Country, from the sinks in the bathrooms overlooking the venue to the wood paneling of the private viewing deck. The woodsy venue space includes access to a staging kitchen, a greenroom with a private entrance, a removable stage, and electrical services. The space holds 575 for receptions or seats 250 at tables or 350 guests theater-style.
Located above pub Chicago House in downtown and accessible through a "secret" entrance, the speakeasy Vinyl holds 100 people. The red-lit 1,800-square-foot space features art, including chairs, designed by SprATX, a street art collective, as well as a vinyl collection of 13,000 records.
Vulcan Gas Company has about 9,500 square feet spread over two floors, which includes a 500-square-foot balcony overlooking the street below. The steampunk-inspired space has projection screens, a full PA and sound system, as well as projection mapping capabilities and customizable LED lighting.
Helmed by Mark Schmidt, the chef from the acclaimed Cafe 909, the British-inspired restaurant Blackbird and Henry opened in February. Available for buyout, the 4,536-square-feet neighborhood pub seats 120 people and features a communal-style table and a concrete bar; the spice is lined with mirrors, tiles, and salvaged antique brick walls.
Radio Coffee and Beer, a café and bar, opened in June in South Austin. The interior is 1,700 square feet and holds 100 guests, while the half-acre outdoor area with shaded seating holds more than 100. Pizza from East Side Pies and baked goods from Texas French Bread, as well as coffee from Stumptown Roasters and regional craft beers are available. Outside, a Veracruz All Natural truck serves Tex-Mex fare.
The house-turned-event-venue 901 is temporary—open for events through the end of 2014. The raw space is a mix of indoor and outdoor space, and, when combined with the parking lot next door, holds 600 people for receptions. The main building, the garage, includes a built-in bar.
