We’ll Drink to That

Austin ranks among best U.S. cities for the ultimate pub crawl

Austin is the fifth best city for a pub crawl.

Courtesy of Bangers

That group of bleary-eyed partiers you just passed on Dirty Sixth? They very well could be participants in the time-honored, beer-soaked tradition of pub crawls.

With so many bars packed together on Dirty Sixth, East Sixth, West Sixth, and Rainey, Austin lends itself to pub crawls — but don’t take our word for it. Real estate brokerage Redfin just crowned Austin as one of the 10 U.S. cities built for the perfect pub crawl.

Austin grabs the No. 5 spot on Redfin’s list, with a pub crawl that covers 62 bars along a walkable — or stumble-able — 3.3-mile route. Redfin’s Austin map doesn’t offer the names of the bars or the specific areas where bar patrons would be “crawling,” but we can tell the map includes Rainey Street and various streets around downtown Austin. The entire crawl outlined by Redfin is west of I-35.

Redfin spokeswoman Keena Bean mentioned four crawl-worthy bars cited by local Redfin agents — Clive Bar, The Ginger Man, Moose Knuckle Pub, and CU29.

How did Redfin come up with its pub-crawl list?

“Redfin data scientists found the optimal route for hitting the most bars in succession in every city in America,” the company says, “and ranked the cities based on the number of pubs and length of the crawl.”

Redfin warns that you shouldn’t go wild and hit up every bar during one of its recommended pub crawls.

“As our legal team points out, these pub crawls should probably not be attempted in a day or even a single month in some cases,” Redfin says. “The goal here is inspiration to see the city and find some new favorite watering holes, not to hit 49 pubs on a Saturday!”

Here are the 10 cities that Redfin identifies as being built for the perfect pub crawl.

New York
New Orleans
San Francisco
Chicago
Austin
Baltimore
Orlando
Detroit
El Paso
Portland, Oregon

craft-beer cocktails rankings happy-hours drinks downtown

Meet the Tastemakers

Austin's 10 top coffee shops are about more than the caffeine

Photo courtesy of Terrible Love

Terrible Love's Trrble Latte adds banana and chocolate syrups, whipped cream, and crumbled Nilla Wafers.

Austinites live at coffee shops. Every city has its quick-fill morning stops. Austinites have social and artistic havens, coworking spaces, and casual date destinations. They go with just their wallet, or they go with a laptop, notepad, drawing tablet, tarot cards, and golden retriever — everything but the bar sink.

The 10 coffee shops vying for a CultureMap Tastemaker Award this year are all known for different things, whether it’s the coffee itself or the ambiance. But none is a choice of convenience. Visitors go because they love them, and discussions about one’s favorite coffee shop are largely tied to how they spend their days.

The Tastemaker Awards judges are taking all this and more into consideration when choosing the coffee hangout that'll take home the trophy. Only one can walk away with it at our Tastemaker Awards ceremony and signature tasting event on April 9 at Distribution Hall. Read up on the 10 contenders below, and consider doing your own field research in the meantime.

You can see all of the Tastemaker Award nominees here and learn more about them in our special editorial series leading up to the big event.

A limited number of Early Bird tickets are available now at discounted rates of $65 for general admission and $110 for VIP (includes early access to the event and a dedicated bar). Prices will increase March 19. Grab your tickets now before they sell out.

Keep a cup warm for our nominees for Coffee Shop of the Year 2026:

Ani’s Day & Night
This coffee shop and bar’s homey feel comes from its location in an actual house, with cheerful trim colors and a peaceful layout that reduces noise by placing tables in separate rooms. With food trucks, outdoor seating, and events always on the calendar, there’s really no reason not to actually spend day and night there.

Talisman Coffee Co.
What makes Talisman extra special is that its owners also own the 35-acre coffee farm in Nicaragua that provides the shop with fresh beans. They are meticulous about small-batch roasting in-house, and their beans are offered in bulk for coffee enthusiasts who want to sip on their brews at home.

Cabana Club
With its own pool, this daily hang feels a bit like a resort where it’s okay to work on a laptop, great to slack off, and easy to chat with others. Cabana Club’s mostly straightforward coffee menu rests on roasts by Progress Coffee Roasting in Buda, with rotating take-home bags and a few specialties.

Codependent Cocktails + Coffee
One part coffee shop and one part cocktail bar, Codependent Cocktails + Coffee exists in the sweet spot between satiating the morning rush of caffeine addicts and entertaining evening crowds with original cocktails. For non-caffeinated and non-alcoholic options, Codependent’s tea blends are produced by the local purveyors at the Steeping Room.

Epoch Coffee
Epoch Coffee’s mojo and espresso are well-respected, but its cultural cachet is unmatched. We refer, of course, mostly to the 24-hour North Loop location, where local artists and activists post flyers, college students work next to 30-somethings planning Dungeons & Dragons campaigns, and the bathroom graffiti is an archeological record.

Palomino Coffee
Austin is no stranger to trendy coffee shops, but Palomino Coffee stands out with its Southwestern-style decor, numerous live plants for sale, and strong Gen Z vibes. The seasonal lattes are a must-try, but Palomino’s signature cardamom mocha is what keeps visitors coming back for more.

Radio Coffee & Beer
Just like Austin’s wonderful radio stations, Radio is on from morning til night, often transmitting great music — like bluegrass nights and bigger concerts at Radio/East. With food trucks and plenty of outdoor seating, many guests don’t even get to the coffee counter. However, they’re missing out on creative specialties, like the tiramisu cold brew with mascarpone cold foam.

Terrible Love
With coffee like this, who needs love? Terrible Love, located in a converted boiler room, saves the bells and whistles for the coffee. The grapefruit brown sugar latte is a creative main specialty that some guests are surprised to love, while the quality of the coffee in other, more traditional drinks speaks for itself.

Texas Coffee Traders
Texas Coffee Traders has spent more than 30 years perfecting its roasts and helping other Austin coffee shops get their feet off the ground with beans, equipment, and community support. In addition to a flagship café on East 7th Street, owner RC Beall operates a warehouse roastery in northeast Austin.

Brew & Brew
With enticing lists of coffee beverages and draft beers, Brew & Brew’s baristas are kept busy perfecting draft pours or innovating on new coffee flavor combinations for their patrons. It’s also a popular spot for remote workers to finish their workday with a happy hour espresso martini in hand.

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The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards ceremony is sponsored in Austin by Maker's Mark, Garrison at Fairmont Austin, NXT LVL Event, and more to be announced. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Central Texas Food Bank.

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