The October Hit List: Pelon’s, Carpenters Hall, Marlow, and More

The Red River district is often the go-to place post-UT Football games or before ACL aftershows, but food options are limited. Our move: to grab a Resy at Pelons which is located across from Stubb’s, with a patio big enough for your whole crew. If you’re into sharing with the table, order queso, guacamole, and a variety of fajitas for everyone to try. If you’re more of a everyone for themselves kind of crew, spiced chicken enchiladas or carne guisada tacos are also solid options for before or after your live music or football.

Gearing up for the ACL Festival, Carpenter Hotel is perfectly situated on your path to the park. Get a table for brunch before the festival or dinner if you plan to escape early to try the newly reopened Carpenters Hall. Executive Chef Thomas Malz spiced up the menu with Gunpowder pork rinds, roasted gulf oysters, and a wagyu tartare with shoestring fries. The cocktail menu is also hot with a spicy paloma or Carpenter Michelada during brunch or the Beso Verde with poblano, mezcal, and lime at night.

The beloved Cosmic Coffee got a second location on East Fourth Street. Like its original location, the spacious set up works great for people who want to drink specialty coffee drinks  all day on a scenic patio like the Mole Mocha or the frozen Matcha Painkiller with or without booze. There are more frozen cocktails, local beers on draft, and select wines, so it’s a great day-drinking and happy hour location too. The new Cosmic Tacos truck serves breakfast tacos with sunny side up eggs as well as al pastor and carnitas options.

Find more information here.

While “healthy” is a subjective term when it comes to meal planning, Picnik usually covers most people’s version of a healthy meal while still serving delicious food. With multiple locations, we recommend getting a Resy for brunch at the South First location before ACL. The spring harvest hash and bibimbap both offer a range of cooked vegetables, fresh eggs, and other ingredients that will fill you up but not make you want to nap before it’s time for the festival. And though it is a place focused on healthy, whole foods, they aren’t too healthy that they can’t serve cocktails like pitaya margarita or the hard cherry limeade in case you want a pre-festival drink.

Walking down Dirty Sixth Street, it’s not uncommon that you’ll see people dressed for Halloween starting October 1, pedicabs blasting “Thriller” and “Monster Mash”, and ten bars offering two-for-one Fireball shots. But for the wiser Austin folks, they know about the high end cocktail bars in that same neighborhood that aren’t screaming for your attention. Marlow is the newest neighborhood bar in a renovated building from the 1950’s along Waller Creek. It’s the kind of place where you can order wine at the bar or a nicely made cocktail with fresh ingredients.

Find more information here.

Tiny Boxwoods is always ready to impress no matter your mood or the occasion you’re celebrating. Grab a Resy at this tucked away haven for a light-ish lunch with wood-fired artichokes, black bean and beet veggie burger with chipotle aioli, and avocado toast with smoked salmon on fresh sourdough. Or you can go bigger at dinner with the bucatini carbonara or espresso rubbed ribeye. They are famous for their cookies and milk, so be sure to get some for the table … or just for yourself.

Back on the April Hit List, we clued you into the elevated ice cream that came from Merry Monarch Creamery. The chef from Merry Monarch teamed up with two others with experience in and outside Austin to create an Italian-inspired cafe in Mueller. The affogato can be made with Oreo Miso ice cream and Onyx coffee that perfectly fills the crater of the scoop. They have other more substantial snacks like the Garden Toast or Stone Fruit Bruschetta. In addition to coffee, there’s a solid selection of beers and wines too.

Find more information here.

Smashburgers in Austin are trending. Maybe it’s the nostalgic taste sensation of the original fast food burgers or maybe it’s the greasy flat top flavor that always shines through. Whatever it is, the magic of Cuantos Tacos plus the magic of smashburgers resulted in Cuantas Hamburguesas food truck. The Campechana is their most popular burger which is a hamburger patty, a smashed longaniza patty, a griddled tortilla with cheese, spicy mayo, onions, pickles and more all in a sesame bun.

Find more information here

Littlefield’s has been a hot toddler hangout for a few years now. There’s ample turf for running, a shady tree for time outs, and food trucks to keep everyone watered, fed, and snow-coned. The addition of Goldy’s is a big upgrade for the toddler chaperones with quick grab and go options like the chicken salad or pasta salad and some well-made breakfast and lunch choices like the avocado hash brown and roast chicken panini with whipped goat cheese. Pro-tip: Come early in the day if you want a judgment free zone for your toddler’s behavior or later in the day if you want to avoid all the toddlers.

Find more information here.

When wandering in the warehouse district, Péché has long been a go-to for a quieter place to drink where you can actually get some good food too. Make a Resy during happy hour for $6 cocktails and half off select food. Their bartenders are knowledgeable about all of the absinthes but they can also help you with your other spirit of choice like the Péché Old Fashioned. The French menu has lighter snacks like mushroom fritters or tuna tartare or you can go for a full dinner with duck confit or bouillabaisse with mussels and clams.