SoCo Shake-up

Favorite South Congress restaurant and bar announces closing date

Doc's on South Congress will close Friday, December 23.

Photo courtesy of Doc's Motorworks

Time to pour one out for another Austin watering hole. Doc's Motorworks Bar & Grill will hold last call on South Congress Avenue on Friday, December 23.

"The property was sold to a developer and, although Doc's has several more years on their lease, the owners of Doc's determined that due to the disruption in business with surrounding construction it would be in their best interest to negotiate a buy out of the current lease," states a release. "An agreement was reached recently which both parties feel is reasonable under the circumstances."

The homegrown chain, which has two additional Austin outposts, as well as one in Houston, opened on South Congress in 2005. Following the closure in December, the team is looking to relocate the original location.

"It has been an incredible 11 years on South Congress, and we are looking forward to getting another spot in the area. We have so many regular guests at our SoCo location and we know they will be just as disappointed as we are," says partner and COO Charles Milligan in the release.

Doc's is the first of what may be many closures along South Congress Avenue. Plans filed with the City of Austin by developers Big Red Dog detail a 130,740-square-foot development with office, retail, and restaurant space on South Congress Avenue near the intersection of Music Lane.

The project, dubbed Music Lane Mixed Use, encompasses a 1.5-acre lot from 1123 South Congress Ave. (Doc's) to 1011 South Congress Ave. (Sfanthor House of Wax, which shuttered in October). These buildings, and those in between, would need to be demolished to accommodate the development. Other affected businesses include Wet Salon & Studio, Parts & Labour, Strut, Texas National Outfitters, United Apparel Liquidators, and Ignite Fitnez.

"We feel extremely grateful to the entire Austin community and especially to our neighbors who supported us all these years, like the Texas School for the Deaf and many local social groups, for making Doc's an Austin icon," says Doc's partner Ted Karam. "We look forward to continuing servicing the community with our other two existing Austin locations."

drinks closings

Refill, revere, rejoice

Austin distiller refills Kentucky Bourbon bottles for $1 in UT gameday stunt

Photo courtesy of Still Austin Whiskey Co.

Still Austin is filling up empty Kentucky Bourbon bottles and adding its own label in a display of Texas dominance.

Cheap bourbon isn't usually something people line up for, but in this case they know it's good. Still Austin Whiskey Co., a favorite Austin distiller, is offering $1 refills of its own Cask Strength Bourbon on empty Kentucky Bourbon bottles on November 23.

The promotion celebrates the Texas Longhorns vs. Kentucky Wildcats football match the same day. This is a highly anticipated game because the two teams have only been matched up once, back in 1951. Kentucky coach Mike Stoops reportedly also upped the ante by saying the Longhorns have "no weaknesses."

Essentially, this is a parallel challenge by Still Austin: Replace your Kentucky Bourbon with our Texas spirit and watch the Lone Star State win again.

"Why would I ever taint your bourbon with dried up Kentucky juice[?]" asked a (frankly, terrifying) customer on Instagram.

There is a misconception that bourbon has to be made in Kentucky. The Kentucky Distillers’ Association itself points out that, "According to the 1964 Congressional Resolution, in order to have “Bourbon” on the label it must be made in the United States of America and meet all other federal “standards of identity” for Bourbon."

Still Austin CEO and co-founder Chris Seals is setting the record straight with a little snark, inviting both fans and "skeptics" to stop by to take advantage of the deal.

“We’re deeply grateful to Kentucky for inventing the stuff, but after 200 years of the same old bourbon, people want something new,” said Seals in a press release.“The idea that great bourbon can only come from Kentucky is a myth based on decades of misinformation. We’re inviting everyone still holding onto this old guard notion to ‘Kentucky Fill Up’ to experience the difference for themselves.”

The product he's chosen to represent the brand, the Cask Strength Bourbon, is described as "a deeper more 'metal' version of our beloved straight bourbon." It's 116 proof (58 percent ABV) and has won double gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition twice, in 2022 and 2023.

Still Austin will only refill 500 bottles. Here are the rules: The bottles have to be 750 milliliters, clean, intact (with the original cap on hand), and they must have originally contained bourbon from a Kentucky Distillery. There are two time slots for refilling at 9 am and 11:30 am. Patrons can get tickets ahead of time at stillaustin.com.

In addition to the fill-ups, Still Austin will host a watch party starting at 2:30 pm. More Texas-Kentucky crossover will include Frozen Texas Julep cocktails, Texas fried chicken, and an armadillo derby race. There will also be exclusive merch and giveaways. Still Austin is the official corporate partner of Texas Athletics.

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Fans of Austin sports and Austin food and drinks can now score tickets to The Tailgate, CultureMap's all-out party devoted to everyone’s favorite way to get in the gameday spirit. The event, presented by Verizon, goes down from 6-9 pm December 12 at Distribution Hall. Find out more about it here.

whiskey university of texas longhorns