It’s been a very popular year for Austin, Texas. With everyone from young hipsters to big tech moving in, the place is booming—but thankfully, it has yet to lose any of its cool town charms. California-born, Hawaii-raised Scott Eastwood made a home for himself there long before the surge, moving in five years ago after visiting for nearly two decades. The city seems to suit him just fine—with his roguish, old school cowboy vibes and relaxed nature. Here, we asked the The Outpost actor, who’s got a slew of new films coming out—including Guy Ritchie’s new action thriller Wrath of Man– to guide us through some of his favorite spots in the city that keeps it weird.
Wrath of Man is out in theaters and VOD today, Friday May 7th.
LAY OF THE LAND
“I’ve been coming here since I was 19. I’m 35 now. I’ve been coming ever since I went to visit my buddy’s sister who was in college there, and we were just young kids going to a party. I fell in love with the vibe, really. The people are cool. There’s not a lot of pretentiousness. The women are beautiful. Everyone is nice and fun. I don’t know; I’d just had enough of California. I was done with it. Now everyone seems to be coming here. It scares me.”
EAST SIDE
“The area is little more youthful, as far as going out and going to bars. They’re a little on the side of hipsters, but it’s not California hipsters.”
SOUTH OF THE RIVER
“Cool area and a little more family-friendly.”
SOUTH OF CONGRESS
“Good for shopping and walking around. It is kinda touristy, but it’s still pretty cool.”
DOWNTOWN
“Has a little bit of everything. It’s got nice high end restaurants, but then you could also go to just whatever bar is on 6th—which is like the Bourbon Street of Austin. But it’s definitely a lot younger. I don’t think you would want to be there in your 40s.”
RAINEY STREET
“Really touristy. It’s really big for bachelor and bachelorette parties. It’s really fun on Sundays or just day drinking and hanging out because all the bars are in these old historic houses.”
WEST CAMPUS
“Collegey. You go there for games, to go see UT play.”
HOTELS
Hotel San José
“Hotel San Jose is cool, it’s a little more minimal, and it’s smaller. All the units are ground level, which I like. They feel like little bungalows.”
1316 S Congress Ave/ South Congress/ 512.444.7322
South Congress Hotel
“It’s got a little more happening. It has a few different restaurants. There’s a high-end sushi restaurant in the back. So you have a few different options which are cool, but it’s also not in downtown; it’s south of the river, which is better in my opinion.”
1603 S Congress Ave/ South Congress/ 512.920.6405
RESTAURANTS
El Patio
“My favorite Mexican joint is El Patio. It’s been around for 60 years, and my buddy owns it. It’s super cool and up by campus. It’s no pretentious bullshit.”
293 Guadalupe St /West Campus/ 512.476.5955
Uchiko
“Pretty awesome sushi. It’s on North Lamar and is a sister restaurant to Uchi. I like it because it’s less crowded and less of a nightmare to get to.”
4200 N Lamar Blvd / Austin/ 512.916.4808
BARS & PUBS
Broken Spoke
“The Broken Spoke is classic if you’ve never been line dancing or to a real old school cowboy bar.”
3201 S Lamar Blvd / Austin/ 512.442.6189
Whisler’s
“They have something for everybody. If you want to be outside, or if you want to be candlelit inside with awesome craft cocktails and a tequila bar upstairs, it’s great. You can check a lot of boxes in one place.”
1816 E 6th St / Eastside/ 512.480.0781
MUSIC VENUES
Stubb’s Bar-B-Q
“This is probably my favorite. It’s outdoors. It’s chill. It’s not a hoopla to get into. It’s an old school place.”
801 Red River St/ Downtown/ 737.465.1218
SHOPS
Bass Pro Shop
“Bass Pro Shop is kind of out of town, but it’s probably the best man shop on the planet.”
200 Bass Pro Dr / Round Rock/ 512.876.2700
Allen’s Boots
“Lucchese, which you can get at Allen’s, makes my favorite pair of boots, for sure. They were my favorite boots way long before I ever lived in Texas. They’re the best cowboy boots anywhere.”
1516 S Congress Ave/ South Congress/ 512.447.1413
EXPERIENCES
Alamo Drafthouse Cinema South Lamar
“Alamo Draft House on South Lamar is a pretty awesome place to see a movie. It’s not a fancy, fancy place. It’s not like a Cinepolis or something. What it lacks in the best seats and all of that, it makes up for in character and having top quality food. They have pretty amazing food offerings like truffle parmesan popcorn—that’s pretty bomb.”
1120 S Lamar Blvd / Austin/ 512.861.7040
Swimming in Lake Austin
“Head up all the way to Lake Austin to the top of the dam and go swimming in the really cold water up there. That’s the best.”
Golfing at Austin Country Club
“Austin Country Club is a fun spot to golf—you’ll need friend who’s a member.”
4408 Long Champ Dr/ Austin/ 512.328.0090
Editor’s Note: Some of the activities, hotels, and restaurants listed on our website may be currently closed due to Covid health restrictions. We urge you to check before visiting and to exercise caution and follow CDC guidelines if traveling or visiting any of our recommendations.
CHECK OUT SCOTT
COMING SOON
In Lionsgate’s action-thriller Dangerous
In Amazon’s new rom-com I Want You Back
OUT NOW
As Jan in Guy Ritchie’s action thriller New Wrath of Man
As war hero Clint Romesha in Rod Lurie’s The Outpost
BEST OF
As Nate Lambert in Pacific Rim: Uprising
As Little Nobody in The Fate Of The Furious
As Trevor James in Oliver Stone’s Snowden
As Lieutenant GQ Edwards in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad
As Sergeant Miles in David Ayer’s Fury