Last call
Party's over after iconic Central Austin beer and wine drive-thru closes
Party Barn, a longtime fixture on Guadalupe Street with legions of Longhorns fans, has closed permanently.
On its website, Party Barn says the drive-thru beer and wine store — “as weird as Austin but as Texan as the damn Alamo,” the business bragged — shut down March 30 after 42 years in business. No reason for the closure was given.
In February, management of Party Barn told CultureMap that the business was negotiating a lease with the owner of the site, at 3300 Guadalupe St., near the University of Texas campus. A representative of Party Barn couldn’t be reached for comment.
A “land use determination” application filed February 24 with the City of Austin lists Austin-based Treble Enterprises Inc. as the owner of the Party Barn property. A representative of the company couldn’t be reached for comment.
Easily recognizable by its red barn-like structure, Party Barn sold beer, wine, champagne, soda, juice, ice, and other items. But its specialty was keg beer. Party Barn boasted the biggest selection of keg beer in Central Texas, with 50 types regularly in stock.
“The Party Barn is damn near a tradition for University of Texas students, native Austinites, and visitors from foreign lands such as Missouri or California,” boasts the website.
“The Barn has been a friendly face in the community for so long that folks commonly stroll or cruise through our driveway, just to be able to tell their friends that they did it. Pedestrians will even halt midstride to snap a photo from the sidewalk. Hell, the neighborhood teenagers love to spray paint their names and idioms on the barn, and this is obviously due to Party Barn’s iconic status.”
