where to drink

Where to drink in Austin in May: 15 new happy hours, libations, and bars for cooling off

Trona has added eight new cocktails to its lineup.

Photo courtesy of Trona

Austin is constantly buzzing with news regarding its many fun cocktail bars, breweries, and distilleries, which can make it hard keep up with the city's lively night scene. Lucky for you, we've rounded up the 15 most refreshing beverage releases, happy hours, and cocktail bar openings to help Austinites find their next favorite hangout spot or hidden gem cocktail.

Openings

We can already tell this new tropical oasis will be busy all summer long. Fairmont Austin's new pop-up bar, The Broken Coconut, will begin its tiki takeover of the hotel's seventh floor rooftop bar starting Saturday, May 18. The pop-up will be Austin's top destination for all South Pacific cocktails, from a classic Piña Colada to a Texas-style Lone Star Mai Tai. The Broken Coconut will be open until mid-August, so there's plenty of time to stop by to find your tiki drink of the season.

ICYMI: Prélude, a new elevated cocktail bar and lounge from award-winning Chef Mathew Peters, opened its doors in downtown Austin on Thursday, May 2. The new concept will serve as a preview of the full-service restaurant to open in 2025, serving seasonal signature cocktails and corresponding complementary dishes.

New releases and menu additions

The Roosevelt Room launched its combination spring-summer menu, dubbed the Spring and Summer Featured Indulgences, with four refreshing cocktails to delight newcomers and regulars alike. The rotating specialty cocktails — "The Invisible Garden," "Clearwater Punch," "Nebula," and "Ides of March" — are experimental concoctions developed by Roosevelt Room's talented bartenders, and are made with fresh, seasonal ingredients. The menu will be available until the fall.

Austin legend Matthew McConaughey's Pantalones Tequila is making its restaurant debut at The Statesman in the restaurant's new Pickle Margarita. The Statesman is the first restaurant in the state of Texas to serve the agave-forward, organic tequila, and its inclusion along with fresh pickle juice is the perfect balance for a typically sweet margarita. The Pickle Margarita is $17.

Oaxacan- and Japanese-inspired speakeasy Trona updated its menu offerings on May 6 with the addition of eight new vivacious libations for guests to sip on. While most are being kept under wraps to lure in curious cocktail enthusiasts, visitors can expect new additions like the "Melona" (Soju Kuri Yokaichi, tamarind-infused ancho reyes, lemon, cantaloupe, pepper agave, tamarind leather); the "Mother Maguey" (Banhez Ensamble Mezcal, Lapsang Souchong-infused rum, Xtabentún Mayan Liqueur, horchata, chocolate bitters); and the "Kindred Spirits" (barley-infused Suntory Toki, Akashi Ume Plum Whisky, Kalani Mayan Coconut Rum Liqueur, soy, soda, watermelon pate de fruit).

Austinites may have heard about Harry Styles' lifestyle brand landing in a pop-up shop inside the South Congress Hotel, and now the hotel's Lobby Bar has released two new Pleasing-inspired cocktails to round out shoppers' experiences: "The Pleasing Saloon" (Carabuena Blanco Tequila, ginger beer, lime, cassis) and "Pleasing, Texas" (Carabuena Reposado Tequila, agave, grapefruit, orange, lime). The hotel's coffee shop, Mañana, has also added the"Peachy Cheeks Pleasing Lemonade" to its menu, featuring housemade white peach and fennel seed syrup.

East Austin's St. Elmo Brewing recently added a new German Helles Bock to its ever-growing list of offerings. May is a 6.7-percent ABV beer created as a transition between spring and summer, with notes of malt, honeycomb, challah, and lemongrass to keep its drinkers longing for a relaxing evening.

Vacancy Brewing and Cosmic Coffee + Beer Garden have teamed up to produce a whimsical beer: Cosmic Sans, an Italian-style Pilsner with tasting notes of melon, citrus, and "a grassy, snappy bitterness that lingers on the palate," according to the release. This 5.6% ABV brew will be permanently available on tap at both Cosmic locations starting May 17, and at the Vacancy Brewing taproom on St. Elmo road starting May 24. A release celebration — with samples — at Cosmic's South Austin location (on Pickle Road) will send the first 100 guests home with Cosmic Sans glassware. Vacancy's release celebration will feature Bad Larry Burger Club, Cosmic Sans' can debut, flash tattoos, and drink specials including glitter-laced beer.

Happy hours

Starting Tuesday, May 14, the recently openedHestia Bar will launch its new $10 Tini Tuesday special weekly from 5:30-7:30 pm. Hestia's signature martini is made up of Tanqueray Gin, Dolin Dry vermouth, housemade beef aminos, and garnished with smoked, blue cheese-stuffed Castelvetrano olives. The Tiny Tuesday special will only be available at the bar and front patio.

Happy hour doesn't get simpler than this: Azul Rooftop diners can enjoy half price tacos and house margaritas from 3 pm to close every week on Tuesdays. This rooftop hangout atop the 20th floor of The Westin Austin Downtown has great views of the city, and chilling by the pool doesn't sound like a bad idea with the hot weather around the corner.

Codependent Cocktails + Coffee is introducing a new happy hour with a few different options depending on the day. Mondays through Saturdays offer $5 off all Codependent Cocktails and $10 glasses of house wines; Most days that's from 5-7 pm, but on Mondays the deal applies all day. Mondays are also special for $5 off espresso martinis. Maybe just a little codependency...as a treat? [Note: Some details have changed since this article's publication and are now updated in the entry.]

As a personal fan of Uncle Nicky's, this writer says you can't really go wrong with the cafe's daily Aperitivo happy hour from 2-5 pm, where guests can enjoy a delicious (and complimentary) spread of marinated mozzarella, pasta salad, mortadella finger sandwiches, and marinated olives with the purchase of any cocktail.

Skinny's Off Track Bar has weekday happy hour down to a science with its $3 wells, $4 tall boys, $5 specialty cocktails, and half price bites from 4-7 pm Monday through Friday. For even more fun on a budget, Skinny's will host "Twosday Double Happy Hour" on Tuesdays, and cool off Austinites on Thirsty Thursdays with $5 frozen drink specials and bingo. Day drinkers can enjoy $10 mimosas and $25 beer buckets on Saturdays and Sundays.

Other notes

Beginner home mixologists will have an opportunity to improve their skillset on Thursday, May 16, during Cover 3's "Poolside and Patio Sipper's" cocktail class. Attendees will get to try their hand at creating three summer-themed cocktails while being guided by Cover 3 bartenders Jimmy Joe and Jen Munoz. The upcoming May class is the restaurant's third installment of the popular cocktail series. Tickets are $40 per person.

Local-favorite Tito's Handmade Vodka is bringing something new to its enjoyers' coffee tables, and it's not liquor. The brand's debut cocktail book, Spirit in a Bottle: Tales and Drinks from Tito's Handmade Vodka, is everything it sets out to be: A go-to guide full of cocktail recipes, stories, tips, and more. Home mixologists will be keen to try one of the unique cocktails inspired by their hometown, like the "Lake Breakfast", the "Bat-tini", the "Texas Sipper", among others.

restaurants bars where to drink austin cocktails

And Many More

Austin Mexican restaurant celebrates 40 years with deals, story contest

Photo from Manuels.com

For years, Manuels was located on Congress Ave. downtown. Today it lives on up north, off of Jollyville Road.

40 years ago, in a somewhat unlikely turn of events, a Canadian named Greg Koury started one of the best authentic Mexican food restaurants in town: Manuels. In October, 2024, he's celebrating its lasting success, and he's inviting Austinites to join in with some deals and a story sharing competition.

When Manuels opened, it was on Congress Avenue near our present day's 2nd Street District. But there wasn't a 2nd Street District then. There were hardly any businesses on that side of Congress in 1984, barring a nearby Salvation Army.

"When Greg was 27, his girlfriend at the time found the space on Congress," says Koury's wife and restaurant co-owner, Jennifer McNevin. "At the time it was a jazz bar, and it was for lease. He signed the lease at just 27, and after about a year of remodeling, he opened it. At that time, Greg pioneered that end of Congress Avenue. There was nothing there; just a bunch of derelict bars ... He used to have to kick empty liquor bottles away from the entrance!"

Today, this original Manuels location is now closed, and only the Great Hills location remains, which they originally opened up 25 years ago. According to McNevin, Covid hit the downtown restaurant hard.

"When restaurants were allowed to reopen, we chose to only open the location in Great Hills, because that's the one with the outdoor dining patio, and we were required to spread people out by six feet," she says. "Nobody wanted to go back to work either, because everyone was scared."

So they had planned on reopening the Congress location, and they even remodeled it. But problem after problem after problem occurred, and finally they realized they wouldn't ever be able to reopen the original location.

"Had we not had that patio up north, we would have gone out of business completely," says McNevin.

Four decades is a long time for any business — let alone a restaurant — to survive. And it has certainly not always been smooth sailing. Aside from the pandemic of it all, McNevin says the restaurant faced tough times during the stock market crash, the dot com crash, 9/11, and the 2008 recession. "But nothing compared to Covid."

Cut to 2024, and Manuels is coming up on an important anniversary. Though McNevin says it took some time for their original customers to migrate to their location up north, these days they still have their regulars. "We have regulars that have literally been coming in every Friday night or every Monday for lunch since we opened," she says.

And since these guys have been through some stuff over the past few decades, you better believe they are going to celebrate this anniversary in a big way.

From October 20 to 27, Manuels will be offering a special three-course anniversary menu for $40 per person. Plus, for the entire month of October, the restaurant is offering drink specials and giveaways, including a new concoction called the "The Manuelian Sunset." It's a blood orange margarita, where $2 of every purchase will be donated to Farm Share Austin and Hill Country Conservancy. This drink will debut October 11.

But what McNevin is most excited about is the Manuels Story Contest, where everyone is invited to submit their favorite memory or story about Manuels for a chance to win a gift card of $1,000, $500, $300, or $100. The top three winners of this story competition will also get an invite to a larger, invitation-only party on October 27 with complimentary cocktails, appetizers, and live music.

Manuels story contest Manuels is inviting patrons to submit their favorite Manuels memories and stories for a chance to win a gift card up to $1,000. Photo courtesy of Jennifer McNevin

"Whenever we're out in Austin, people stop us and tell us their stories about Manuels. So I wanted to give our patrons a creative way to share their memories and stories. And stories are flooding in," says McNevin.

I asked her what her favorite story is about Manuels. And while it doesn't exactly fit into the contest's 400-word limit, it is a cute one.

"When I was 22, I was living in Cincinnati, Ohio, and my best friend from college was living in Dallas ... I decided to fly down and visit her. And almost as soon as I got in, she said 'We need to go to Austin. You'll love it.' So we drove down to Austin. It was the first time I'd ever been here before, and the very first restaurant she took me to was Manuels.

"Skip to 13 years later, I'm living in L.A. doing interior design. A girl that I work with says, 'I think you're perfect for my brother.' She told me about him; everything sounded great ... Except that he lived in Austin, Texas."

McNevin was hesitant to start up something long-distance, but the guy did sound pretty great. So eventually, they connected and started dating. Once she got to Austin to visit her new flame, she realized it was Greg, the founder of Manuels, her very first stop in Austin.

The two just celebrated their 20-year anniversary and have been co-running Manuels for just as long. He's the introvert; she's the extrovert. He's good at managing the systems and standards; she's great at face time with the patrons.

"The people is what I love the most about it," she says. "Our staff is amazing, we have seven managers, all of whom have been with us for over 10 years or longer. We have a lot of longtime employees; we're all family.

"It's the old-school model for a restaurant," she adds. "And those are hard to find now. You have to have a passion and a love for it, to keep it going day in and day out, and most restaurants these days have gone corporate and they're all about the profit model..."

As far as what the future holds for Manuels, McNevin is optimistic, but says "it's just one foot in front of the other."

"We don't know what the future holds; we're just doing our best day in and day out. If you love Manuels, the best thing you can do is just keep bringing your friends in to support us."

To submit a story to the Manuels story contest, visit Manuels.com. All submissions must be in by October 20 and winners and finalists will be notified by October 22.

More information is available at manuels.com.

mexican cuisine old austin contest