Eat, do, and know. Every Thursday.
One place to eat, one thing to do, and one thing to know in Austin. Written by a person who lives here, read in five minutes.
A short email with a point of view.
The same three sections, in the same order, every week. You always know where to look, and you never wade through a calendar dump to find the thing actually worth your Saturday.
One place worth crossing town for.
A single restaurant or bar, with the order written down for you. A verdict, not a roundup of everywhere, and I say plainly when a hyped spot is not worth the wait.
One thing worth rearranging a weekend for.
The event that earns the trip, with the timing, the cost, and the parking notes that actually decide whether you go.
One civic thing, no jargon.
The vote, the opening, or the closing that changes how the week feels in Austin, explained in plain English, with what you can actually do about it.
Every pick comes with the cut list: the places I left off and why, so you can trust the ones I kept. Anything a business paid for is marked clearly, every time.
The newsletter is new. The taste is not.
The guides are my ranked, dated, opinionated picks, held to the same standard as every edition. I name the one thing to order, the catch, and the spots I left off and why. Start with one, then let the weekly note keep you current.
The best tacos in Austin, ranked.
Where to actually eat tacos in Austin in 2026: breakfast tacos, al pastor off a real trompo, suadero, birria, and the chef-driven splurge, ranked.
The best bars in Austin, ranked.
Where to actually drink in Austin: the craft cocktail rooms, the East Side dives, the rooftops, the honky-tonk, and the wine bar, ranked. Skip Dirty Sixth.
The best things to do in Austin.
The best things to do in Austin, by mood: the springs and the greenbelt, the bats, the live music, the museums, and the free, only-in-Austin stuff.
What is Austin known for?
Austin is known as the Live Music Capital of the World, plus its tech boom, barbecue and breakfast tacos, the bats, the springs, and Keep Austin Weird.
The picks come from one person, not a content farm.
I would rather be right about one place than thorough about fifty.
I came to Austin from Pennsylvania, with a doctorate in speech-language pathology and a Division I softball career somewhere behind me. Joe and I live on Riverside with our son, Severus, and another boy on the way. The newsletter is the list I kept for friends, finally written down.
- What is The Austin Newsletter?
- A free weekly email about Austin, written by Carissa Spisak. Every Thursday morning it covers three things: one place to eat, one thing to do, and one thing to know about the city.
- How much does it cost?
- Nothing. It is free, it arrives once a week, and you can unsubscribe in one click anytime.
- When does it send?
- Thursday mornings at 7am Central. One email, and no second send if you miss the first.
- Who writes it?
- I’m Carissa Spisak, and I’ve lived in Austin for seven years. The recommendations are my own, researched and opinionated, and anything a business paid for is clearly marked.
- How is it different from other Austin lists?
- I publish what I would actually tell a friend, I say when to skip a place, and I keep the guides dated and updated. Specific over comprehensive, every week.
Still deciding? Read one first.
You read the whole page. The most recent edition is the fastest way to know if it is for you.
Read last week’s edition first