Hot Headlines

Austin's best bartenders and designers star in this week's top stories

Editor's note: Local design experts and bartending talent lead this round of top stories. Read on for more of the week's most popular headlines.

1. Austin's top five interior design stars to watch right now. Home sweet home is even sweeter with the right look. Keep an eye on these Austin interior design experts for fresh ideas.

2. The 10 best bartenders in Austin give us something to drink about. Austin has some of the best bars in the country, and behind those stellar bars you'll find a community of dedicated bartenders. The competition is real for 10 of the best bartenders in Austin, who are nominated for Bartender of the Year in our Tastemaker Awards.

3. Eight Austin restaurants for the perfect Mother's Day brunch. All year long your mother looks after you, but on Sunday, it's time to return the favor. Mother's Day also happens to be one of the biggest brunch days of the year, so take a look at the decadent options, and then treat Mom to something special.

4. The nine best places to camp in and around Austin. Whether you prefer your camping primitive (you and your tent), premium (you and your RV), or somewhere in between, the Austin area is home to spectacular parks that are just waiting to be explored.

5. Rents are rising the fastest in these popular Austin neighborhoods. If you're in the market for a new place — or a new neighborhood — take heed. A report from rental site Zumper reveals which Austin neighborhoods have the fastest-growing rents.

Justin Lavenue from The Roosevelt Room is one of our Tastemaker bartender nominees.

Austin bartender Justin Lavenue Roosevelt Room

Photo by Julian Bajsel

Justin Lavenue from The Roosevelt Room is one of our Tastemaker bartender nominees.

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put it on santa's amex

2 wealthy Austin suburbs top list of biggest holiday spenders in U.S.

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash

Cedar Park, Round Rock, and Austin loooove to do up the holidays.

It looks like Santa Claus is going to be competing with residents in Cedar Park to see who brings the most lavish holiday gifts this year.

This festive Austin neighbor ranked No. 23 in WalletHub's annual report of U.S. cities with the biggest holiday budgets in 2024.

Residents in this well-to-do suburb are expected to spend $2,930 on their Christmas gifts this year. That's up $576 from the $2,354 they were ready to shell out in the 2023 ranking — and it bumped them up 21 spots from their previous ranking at No. 44.

The U.S. Census Bureau says that Cedar Park's estimated population of 77,516 had a median household income of $118,903 in 2023. No wonder they have the extra cash to spare.

Cedar Park consistently makes the list of the top U.S. cities with the biggest holiday spenders, and now Round Rock is also climbing up the list, landing at No. 39 this year, up significantly from its previous low ranking of No. 283 in 2023.

The average holiday budget in Round Rock skyrocketed from $1,148 last year to $2,538 this year in an eyewatering $1,390 increase. You gotta spend to stay on top.

The No. 1 city in the U.S. for biggest holiday spenders in 2024 is Newton, Massachusetts, a wealthy suburb right outside of Boston, where the median income measured in 2022 was $176,373. Slots 2 through 5 were all cities in California's Silicon Valley: Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Mountain View, and Milpitas.

Meanwhile, Austin proper landed at No. 87 in 2024 with an average holiday budget of $1,905.

Each year, WalletHub calculates the maximum holiday budget for over 550 U.S. cities "to help consumers avoid post-holiday regret," the website says. The study factors in income, age of the population, and other financial indicators such as debt-to-income ratio, monthly-income-to monthly-expenses ratio, and savings-to-monthly-expenses ratio.

Whether an Austinite's holiday budget is under $200 or more than $1,000, it's better to prioritize remaining within that budget instead of racking up the credit card bill, according to WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

"There are plenty of ways to enjoy the holidays and show you care without spending much money, like hosting potlucks or giving handmade gifts," said Lupo.

Other Texas cities that made it into the top 100 are:

No. 7 – Flower Mound ($3,541)
No. 11 – Frisco ($3,412)
No. 13 – The Woodlands ($3,395)
No. 15 – Sugar Land ($3,214)
No. 18 – Allen ($3,070)
No. 25 – League City ($2,897)
No. 32 – Plano ($2,658)
No. 45 – North Richland Hills ($2,484)
No. 52 – McKinney ($2,386)
No. 60 – Pearland ($2,223)
No. 76 – Richardson ($1,980)
No. 81 – Carrollton ($1,932)
No. 92 – Lewisville ($1,848)

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