Weekend Event Guide

Here are the top 5 things to do in Austin this weekend

This weekend the city is alive with tons of things to do and places to be. From jazz brunches to a festive Brazilian Carnaval, your weekend is going to be a busy one. Check out the five best events going on and ready your calendar. For a full list of happenings in Austin, visit our events calendar.

Broadway in Austin presents The Sound of Music
The Austin hills are alive! Catch Broadway classic The Sound of Music running through Sunday at Bass Concert Hall. The famed tale receives a brand-new production directed by three-time Tony Award-winner Jack O’Brien. Sing along to your favorite tunes from the musical as the Von Trapp family come to life.

Barbara Jordan Freedom Foundation Exhibit
The celebration of Black History Month continues with an exhibit honoring a great Texan and even greater history-maker, Barbara Jordan. Visit the Texas State Capitol and enjoy the free exhibit presented by the Barbara Jordan Freedom Foundation, open through Saturday.

Hotel San Jose presents Jazz Brunch
This Saturday, make brunch a little bolder at Hotel San Jose’s Jazz Brunch. Enjoy the ambiance of the San Jose courtyard while you sip $3 mimosas and dine on the brunch buffet of your dreams. Live music courtesy of the Wayne Salzmann jazz trio will keep you groovin’ between bites.

Fourth Annual Austin Oyster Festival
The Austin Oyster Festival returns this Saturday at the French Legation Museum, and you don’t want to miss it. Presented by Jeri's Seafood and Hope Farmers Market, enjoy oysters at their peak season prepared nearly every way imaginable. Wash down the seafood goodness with specialty cocktail offerings from Deep Eddy Vodka, beers by Thirsty Planet, and an extravagant Bloody Mary bar.

2016 Carnaval Brasileiro
Brazil brings the magic of Carnaval to the Palmer Events Center this Saturday with the return of Carnaval Brasileiro. Catch the spirit with electrifying samba drums, endless parade of exotic costumes, and Brazilian flare all night long. Better start practicing those moves and fluffing your feathers.

Dance the night away in Carnaval style this Saturday.

Austin Photo Set: News_Jon_Carnaval_feb 2012_8

Photo by Jon Shapley

Dance the night away in Carnaval style this Saturday.

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Hot Headlines

Salt Lick's new concept heats up Austin's most popular stories this week

Photo by Alie Jackson

Roxie's will open in the spring.

Editor's note: The top Austin news of the week includes a new concept from barbecue favorite Salt Lick and three luxury fashion brands making their Austin debut. Plus, we've rounded up all the ways to meet new people this winter. Read the five hottest Austin headlines of the week below, and find fun things to do this weekend here.

1. Salt Lick BBQ branches out with new restaurant concept in Austin suburb. Storied barbecue restaurant Salt Lick will extend its legacy with a new concept coming to Buda. Roxie's, a homey Southern restaurant fit for families, will debut in the growing Austin suburb sometime this spring.

2. 3 major luxury fashion brands move into famous North Austin mall. Austin's hottest shopping district will add the first three standalone stores in the city for Christian Dior, Balenciaga, and Zimmerman.

3. Way more than 15 ways to meet new people in Austin this winter. The new year is here, and maybe that means you want to meet new people. We've rounded up great ways — from classes to volunteering and, yes, apps — to do just that.

Students in a wheel throwing class. Meet fellow creatives in a wheel throwing class at the Doherty Arts Center. Photo from Doherty Arts Center Facebook page

4. Austin faces highest rent prices in Texas for 2025, new report says. A new cost-of-living index underscores what many Austin renters are painfully aware of: Local rents rank among the costliest in the U.S.

5. 14 Austin coffee shops band together for day honoring Daniel Johnston. Hi, How Are You Day is back on January 22, encouraging Austinites to meet up in community spaces and check in on each other's mental health.