15 best New Year's events around Austin to ring in 2023

NYE 2022

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Every new year, Austinites have a new chance to celebrate their own way. Maybe you start your New Year’s Eve with brunch, continue the festivities with a multi-course dinner, then finish off the night at any one of the lush evening celebrations happening throughout Austin. Or maybe you have a quiet evening at home with a prepared dinner from a local restaurant, and visit a new brunch spot on New Year's Day. (Either way, brunch.) Whether you’re looking to spend New Year's Eve at home, with your family, or out and about, we’ve got you covered with 15 fun-filled events happening around the city.

Saturday, December 31

Dining

Tillie’s at Camp Lucy’s New Year’s Eve Dinner
For those looking to spend an evening in the Hill Country, Tillie’s executive chef Andy Knudson will craft a special five-course dinner for guests from 5-9 pm. Enjoy hamachi tartar, ricotta gnocchi, pan roasted scallop, and more. Wine pairings are also available. Reserve ($125 per person) on OpenTable.

APT 115’s New Year’s Eve Menu
A special 10-course tasting menu by James Beard-nominated chef Charles Zhuo looks to impress, at APT 115’s intimate restaurant in an apartment unit. Chef Zhuo is the only kitchen staff, utilizing only a portable stove top burner and minimal cooking tools. Feel the welcoming atmosphere as if you’re in a friend’s home with curated music from owner and musician Joe Pannenbacker’s record collection. Reserve ($130 per person) on Tock.

L'Oca d'Oro's "Don't Worry Darling" NYE Dinner
Inspired by Olivia Wilde’s critically-acclaimed film and the aesthetic of a 1950’s science fiction utopia, L’Oca d’Oro will provide guests with a dinner to help them relax into 2023. The multi-course meal will finish off with a dreamsicle baked Alaska by Chef Jules Stoddart. Reserve ($100 per person) at locadoroaustin.com.

Evening Celebrations

City of Austin’s New Year’s Eve Celebration at Auditorium Shores
The annual "Austin’s New Year" celebration looks to be “unlike any other” this year with live music, drag performances, food trucks, and — for the first time — beer, wine, and champagne at a beer hall. The celebration will feature a dynamic firework show at midnight (instead of 10 pm like in previous years). Beginning at 6 pm, guests can bring their own picnic blankets and chairs to the lawn to enjoy performances by Extragrams, El Combo Oscuro, Taméca Jones, and The Texas Gentlemen. This event is free to the public and suitable for all ages.

The Paramount Theatre Presents Bob Schneider’s Great Big Spectacular NYE Party
Joined by special guests Primo the Alien and Big Skinny, Austin’s beloved Bob Schneider will ring in 2023 at The Paramount Theatre's annual celebration. A new option for guests this year is a "VIP seating for two" package that includes front row or center mezzanine seats, a custom table, and guests’ choice between champagne or wine. Tickets (starting at $35) available at austintheatre.org.

NYE at ACL Live with Pat Green
Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter and Texas native Pat Green will perform a special New Year’s Eve show alongside Corey Kent and Kody West at ACL Live at 8 pm. The show will feature a balloon drop, free champagne, and a midnight countdown with Father Time. Tickets (starting at $39) available at acllive.com.

Devil May Care's Stop the Clock
Wind back the clock with Devil May Care at their lavish, all-inclusive New Year’s Eve party at 8 pm. Guests are encouraged to dress on-theme. They'll enjoy a choice of four NYC classic-inspired cocktails, passed bites and food displays, live entertainment from Soleiman and Gamma, and an Ace of Spades champagne toast at midnight. Tickets ($150) available at devilmaycareatx.com.

Zanzibar’s New Year’s Eve Party
If you’re looking for something a little more tropical, Zanzibar is hosting an island-themed New Year’s Eve celebration beginning at 9 pm. Enjoy a panoramic view of downtown Austin while sipping on a complimentary glass of sparkling wine and trying an island-inspired small bites buffet. DJ Devin Taylor will provide the soundtrack for the evening, followed by a firework show over Lady Bird Lake at midnight. Tickets (starting at $100) available on Eventbrite.

Hotel ZaZa Austin presents NYE Bash
Don your best cocktail attire and enjoy a glam evening of live music and themed entertainment at Hotel ZaZa at 10 pm. Capture the moment with their interactive photo booth station. A bubbly toast will follow the midnight countdown. Tickets (starting at $125) available on Eventbrite.

NYE at Home

Aba’s New Year’s Eve Dinner To Go
Mediterranean restaurant Aba is offering locals a way to close out the year at home with their to-go New Year’s Eve Dinner Package from now until 9 am on December 28. The package serves two guests and includes seven menu items by Chef CJ Jacobson. Guests can pick up their orders between 10 am and 4 pm on Saturday, December 31. The food is served cold with instructions to reheat. To-go orders available on Tock.

Brunch

1886 Café & Bakery NYE Brunch
Get the day started early with an elegant brunch experience featuring holiday specials and favorites such as the Brazos huevos rancheros, Texas-shaped waffles, and cocktails crafted with Austin liquors. Brunch will be served from 7 am to 2 pm. Reservations are not required.

Family-friendly

The Thinkery: New Year’s Eve Celebration
From 9-11 am and 1-3 pm, partygoers can welcome the new year by joining The Thinkery’s celebration and participate in family-friendly balloon drops, bubble wrap stomps, music, and other activities. Baby-friendly activities will also be available. Tickets ($30, kids under 2 go free) available at thinkeryaustin.org.

Sunday, January 1

1886 Café & Bakery New Year’s Day Brunch
Start your 2023 on a high note with an elegant brunch experience featuring holiday specials and favorites such as the Brazos huevos rancheros, Texas-shaped waffles, and cocktails crafted with Austin liquors. Brunch will be served from 7 am to 2 pm. Reservations are not required.

Bathrobe and Bingo Brunch for Charity at TLC
Break out your favorite bathrobe or pajamas for a Bingo Brunch at TLC from 11 am to 3 pm, to benefit Cupid’s Charity for the Children’s Tumor Foundation. There will be raffle prizes, TLC’s full menu (including New Year’s Day brunch specials), Texas-sized cocktails, and $5 mimosas. RSVP on Eventbrite.

Dog Haus Biergarten Four Points
This gourmet hot dog franchise is ringing in the new year with their annual tradition celebrating National Hangover Day. Hot dog fans can lull their first hangovers of 2023 with any burrito or burger and a PBR for $9.99. For a little extra “hair of the dog,” the restaurant will have $5 pints available all day.

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This is how far a $100k salary goes in Austin, according to new study

Make that paper

Many people daydream about making six figures in their career before they enter the workforce. But the rising cost of living certainly throws a wrench in the works. Luckily for Texans, a six-figure salary still goes pretty far in the state.

In a new report from SmartAsset, a $100,000 salary in Austin is worth an average of $73,777 after taxes and adjusted for the cost of living. The financial technology company analyzed income in 76 United States cities, and adjusted them for the cost of living in each location. Austin ranked No. 24 on the list.

Seven Texan cities appear in the study’s top 10 where a six-figure salary goes the furthest. Houston ranked No. 6 as the fourth Texas city on the list, after El Paso (No. 2), Corpus Christi (No. 4), and Lubbock (No. 5). A Houstonian's six-figure salary is reduced to $74,515 after taxes, but is technically worth $81,350 when adjusted for the cost of living.

In a three-way tie with San Antonio for No. 7, a person who makes $100,000 a year in Fort Worth and Arlington takes home about $74,515 after taxes. When adjusted for the cost of living, which is seven percent lower than the national average, that money is worth $80,124.

Dallas appears at No. 34 on the list, with the average six-figure earner bringing home $72,345 after taxes. That salary shrinks in the northern Dallas suburb of Plano (No. 59), where the worker brings home $59,422.

The place where $100,000 goes the furthest is Memphis, Tennessee. Much like Texas, Tennessee doesn’t have a state income tax and has a lower cost of living in comparison to the national average.

After Memphis is El Paso, followed by Oklahoma City (No. 3), then Corpus Christi, Lubbock, and Houston. After the Texan three-way tie for No. 7, St. Louis, Missouri rounds out the top 10.

The 10 total Texas cities that appear in SmartAsset’s study include:

No. 2 – El Paso
No. 4 – Corpus Christi
No. 5 – Lubbock
No. 6 – Houston
No. 7 – Fort Worth, Arlington, San Antonio (tied)
No. 24 – Austin
No. 34 – Dallas
No. 59 – Plano

The report and its methodology can be found on SmartAsset’s website.

New Hill Country wine school teaches Texans how to become aficionados

TASTING NOTES

Texan wine enthusiasts and beginners wanting to test their skills or develop them further can now do so at a new Hill Country wine school led by an award-winning winery out in Hye, Texas.

William Chris Wine Co. (WCWC) has opened their William Chris Wine School with Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) classes and a one-of-a-kind ambassador certification course beginning in April. The school is offering these courses not only to educate fellow Texans about the intricacies of wine, but also to provide inspirational experiences that help ignite their passion for it.

“WSET courses are designed to inspire and empower anyone looking to develop their wine knowledge—regardless of prior experience, and from enthusiasts to professionals,” said Director of Education Kelsey Kramer in a press release. “So, we encourage anyone to sign up for our WSET courses no matter their current level of wine knowledge.”

WCWC is the first Texas winery to provide these educational courses to industry peers and enthusiasts. They’ll offer two WSET level tracks with multiple classes; their beginner-level WSET Level 1 classes are open for registration for April 15 and May 15. The WSET Level 2 Award in Wines courses are for more experienced aficionados, and are centered around trying new wines from all over the world while also educating on wine theory, grape-growing techniques, and more. The level two classes are scheduled for May, June, and July.

Kramer added that over half of the William Chris team have successfully passed the WSET Level 2 Award in Wines courses.

“Our ultimate goal, as always, is to increase the standard of knowledge for those in the Texas wine industry,” she said. “Anyone who participates in a course with us supports this goal and the future success of the industry as a whole.”

Though Texas wine is not included in the WSET curriculum, the wine school has their own solution for that. They are offering an exclusive Texas Wine Ambassador Certification program that focuses solely on wine-making and grape-growing in our own state. Their first certification class is scheduled for April 22.

More information about the William Chris Wine School and its classes can be found on their website.

Goofiness keeps Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves light on its feet

Movie Review

In the franchise world in which we now live, movie studios are always looking for the next big thing that will ensure fans come flocking to the theater. The role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons has gotten a pop cultural boost in recent years thanks to the Netflix show Stranger Things, and now – just shy of its 50th anniversary – it's getting its own blockbuster movie, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.

The film premiered at South by Southwest (SXSW) as the festival's opening pick. The somewhat complex story centers on two of the titular thieves, Edgin (Chris Pine) and Holga (Michelle Rodriguez), who lead a group of rogues who make a living by stealing, but only from those who deserve it. One such altruistic mission, a relic that can bring back the dead, leads to the pair getting caught and put in jail, separating Edgin from his daughter, Kira (Chloe Coleman).

Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures

Michelle Rodriguez and Chris Pine in Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves

Fellow thief Forge (Hugh Grant) agrees to look after her, but after a daring escape, Edgin and Holga discover that Forge is even more of a scoundrel than they thought, rising to the title of Lord in their absence with the help of the sorceress Sofina (Daisy Head), and poisoning Kira’s mind against them. They must gather the rest of the team, including Simon (Justice Smith) and Doric (Sophia Lillis), to try to take him down and recover the relic once and for all.

Written and directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, with help from co-writer Michael Gilio, the film has the unenviable task of turning the famously dense game into something that pleases both fanatics and those unfamiliar with its many characters, creatures, and locations. It’s clear the filmmakers are trying to strike a balance between the two, loading the story with terms they barely attempt to explain while at the same time making the movie as goofy as possible.

Only the second of those two approaches truly works. The problem the filmmakers run into is that this is an introductory film that barely seems to care about introducing its characters. A lengthy speech by Edgin at the beginning attempts to do that, but is staged in such a way that the humor of sequence takes precedence over the details of the people. The only reason the characters wind up likable is because of the sheer amount of time spent with them and the actors’ performances.

Well, that and the comedy sprinkled throughout the film. If Daley, Goldstein, and Gilio do anything right, it’s not taking the material too seriously. The world has already seen Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones, so adding in funny elements like the wise-cracking Edgin, a supremely fat dragon, and more keeps the film from getting lost in its own minutiae. Not all the jokes land, but 75-80 percent of them do, which is enough to keep the film buoyant.

Pine, as he’s shown in the recent Star Trek and Wonder Woman films, has charm to spare. He occupies this particular role extremely well, and so even if you can’t remember his character’s name, his performance carries the film. Rodriguez is an acquired taste, but her surly demeanor and physical prowess works for her here. The supporting actors shine at times, but the film doesn’t showcase them enough to make them stand out.

While miles better than the reviled 2000 Dungeons & Dragons, Honor Among Thieves is a merely okay beginning for a possible new franchise. There’s some excitement to be had and it stays light on its feet thanks to the comedy, but more attention paid to the story is warranted if they decide to make sequels.

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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves opens in theaters on March 31.

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