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Last week was pretty dense. The USMNT's World Cup dream, which had really united the city for a few giddy weeks, died a spectacular death in a 4-1 loss to Belgium in Seattle on Monday. The Chronicle's July 10 issue called it "nothing short of a total meltdown," and half of Austin is now just counting the days until college football. The same issue published a devastating deep dive on Austin's Colony, the far East Austin neighborhood where about 8,000 residents are served by a private company called Texas Water Utilities instead of Austin Water. A new UT study found lead, arsenic, and other heavy metals in household tap water at levels exceeding regulatory standards, and residents are paying a $59.39 monthly base fee (Austin Water's is $7.75) for water that regularly comes out brown. The $7 million NSF grant that would have funded more comprehensive testing “got DOGE'd," as one researcher put it; pulled back by federal cuts. City Council is simultaneously wrestling with a proposed $6.6 billion city budget that touches everything from infrastructure to public safety, and Austin EMS is reportedly in crisis mode; a retired captain described medics as "living on some form of survival instinct" under crushing workloads. The department is calling for more personnel and resources.
The KUT saga still hangs unresolved after UT fired general manager Debbie Hiott over the KUT Festival dispute, with donors now openly discussing whether the station can (or should) separate from the university entirely. ICE enforcement escalated locally enough that activists gathered outside the Travis County Administration Building last Tuesday to warn Austin's immigrant community about increased arrests in the area. The voucher and education funding debate rumbles on too; Texas families can now use state tax dollars for faith-based curriculum and AI-taught online courses. Lastly, disability rights advocates rallied at the Capitol to protest Texas joining a multistate lawsuit that could undermine Section 504 protections for all disabled Texans, not just the gender dysphoria provisions the suit claims to target.
On the food front, the week's biggest story was Olamaie, the Michelin-starred Southern fine dining restaurant on San Antonio Street, announcing it's closing after 12 years. July 19 will be its final service if you want to visit beforehand. Chef Michael Fojtasek told the Statesman that Austin's restaurant market has become impossibly challenging (slow summers, rising rent and labor costs, a lack of late-night diners) and that the Michelin bump only lasted about eight months before business leveled back out. It's the latest in a growing list of beloved closures this year (Vespaio, El Naranjo, Lammes Candies, and Hoover's) and it's getting harder to chalk up to one-offs. C.L. Butaud Wines also announced it's closing its St. Elmo tasting room on July 26 after a lease renewal priced them out, and Taqueria Chapala on Cesar Chavez is shutting down this fall.
Some good news: Grey Orchard soft-opened in Round Rock on July 9 as an upscale modern American spot, Neighborhood Sushi expanded to Dallas and announced it's relocating from South Congress to a bigger space on S. First later this year, and L'Oca d'Oro quietly launched a Southeast Asian pop-up menu through August that riffs on the overlap between Vietnamese-Thai and Southern Italian cooking. Uchi went full weird-luxury with a limited-edition caviar ice cream dish: Moscatel ice cream, funnel cake, white chocolate pearls, and Kaluga caviar for $26, available through the end of the month only! and Meanwhile Brewing hosted its annual firefighter fundraiser while Still Austin threw a party where the first 100 people got $1 cocktails every day through October.
This week is going to be EPIC. It starts off with a filmtastic Monday, and ends with a weekend the likes of which I have not seen in awhile, especially during the dog days of summer (including a whopping 12 events on Thursday, SHEESH). Make sure to click through for the full list.
Not to be missed: Hot Summer Nights is this weekend, the festival where the Red River District serves the entire local music scene to you on a FREE silver platter. If you’re not already a groupie for a local band, this is THE way to find the band you’ll want to name drop at every party. As usual, I’m preparing features for this to make it as fun for you as possible, and as usual, I’m behind. Click here if you want to be notified as soon as my features are ready (should be sometime midweek)!
Monday, July 13
Switchback x Sightseer Coffee Cupping
4 PM–6 PM @ Switchback Coffee and Beer, FREE!
A proper coffee cupping session pairing two local roasters, no purchase required. Come for the tasting notes, stay because it's free and Austin takes its coffee as seriously as its beer.
JURASSIC PARK MOVIE PARTY
7 PM @ Alamo Drafthouse Village, $20
A live intro from an actual paleontologist precedes the movie, because only Alamo Drafthouse would think to add that. Details and tickets for a rewatch with more credentials than you expected.
ATX Short Film Showcase
8 PM (doors 7:30) @ 29th Street Ballroom, $12 online
Eight local short films and a filmmaker Q&A, inside the Ballroom ATX with a full bar and food trucks on-site. More info and tickets here; Austin's monthly showcase for filmmakers who don't have Hollywood budgets and don't need them.
House Crasher | Ravencraft's Vault of Horror
6:30 PM @ Mister Tramps Sports Pub, FREE!
A black-and-white horror screening with live paranormal theatrics layered on top — ghostly manifestations, strange artifacts, possibly a séance. Event page here; hosted by a man who goes by Saul Ravencraft, so expectations are appropriately set.
More interesting events on Monday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Made In Cookware® - The Cookware Chefs Actually Use
Plenty of cookware brands will pay a famous chef to hold a pan and smile. Made In doesn't do that. Their cookware is used in 4,000+ professional kitchens and has been adopted by millions of home cooks.
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Most people who need a full kitchen replacement start with their Cookware Sets, where you’ll find their best deals. Pasta lovers need the 3 QT Saucier, the piece chefs call their most-reached-for pan and is the pan that powers world-famous Italian joints like Mother Wolf in L.A.
Tuesday, July 14
Bastille Day w/ Open Carry, Hot Donna & More
6 PM @ Justine's Brasserie, FREE!
Justine's throws its doors wide for Bastille Day with a giant cake, a photobooth, roast pig, and a possible World Cup screening with France in it; the restaurant is fully aware Bastille Day landing on a Tuesday is an opportunity, not an obstacle. Come for dinner, stay for the raucous free show.
Scratchdown: Austin DJ Battle & Competition Series
7 PM – 10 PM @ Dub Academy, $7.77
A knockout-style DJ competition where talent, creativity, and raw crowd energy decide who advances: one DJ moves on, everyone else goes home. Cheap cover, real stakes: grab a ticket and watch Austin's next big name get crowned in real time.
The Invisible Mammal: Austin Premiere
6:30 PM @ AFS Cinema, $20
Only in Austin does a documentary about bat conservation get an actual red-carpet-style premiere, complete with a Q&A featuring the director, producer, and Bat Conservation International's chief scientist. It's an all-woman biologist team racing a deadly fungal disease: book your seat here before the bats beat you to it.
Jonathan Roxmouth: "I Love a Piano"
7:30 PM @ Parker Jazz Club, $45+
A South African musical theatre star making his U.S. debut, described as the "secret love child of Liberace and Jerry Lee Lewis," runs through everything from Beethoven to Broadway with a wink. Tickets here for an evening that's equal parts virtuosity and camp.
Kinusaiga: Quilted Style Art
6 PM – 8 PM @ Captain Quack’s, $28.52 🔥
Learn the contemporary Japanese technique of building intricate patchwork art with zero sewing involved; just fabric, precision folding, and patience. It's a genuinely unusual craft class for anyone whose textile skills stop at "can operate scissors."
More interesting events on Tuesday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Wednesday, July 15
Puzzle Race
6:00 PM @ Blue Owl Brewing, FREE!
Teams of two race the clock across two rounds of puzzle challenges for bragging rights and brewery swag. It's free to play, but sign up your duo in advance — one ticket covers a team of two, not a solo run.
DAC Nights: The Art of Dungeons & Dragons
6:00 PM–9:30 PM @ Dougherty Arts Center, FREE! 🔥
Paint tabletop-RPG minifigures, then settle in for a screening of the 2019 documentary on the art history behind D&D. It's the indoor-kid dream night done up as a genuine city arts-center program, complete with a limited stash of figures for anyone who arrives early.
Local Queer Ice Cream Social
7:00 PM @ Amy's Ice Creams South Lamar, FREE!
A scoop shop hosting a queer meetup to debut a new LGBTQ-flavored sorbet is exactly the kind of low-key, high-charm gathering Austin does best. Swing by South Lamar and taste the treat; no cover, just community and something sweet-tart.
LOVERS: Adonis with RF. Alvarez
6:00 PM – 8:00 PM @ The Contemporary Austin, Jones Center, $85 (Waitlist)
Austin artist RF. Alvarez brings his famously intimate nude life-drawing sessions out of the studio and into the museum for one night. This installment, themed "Adonis," pairs a single muscular male model with three mezcals chosen to echo his structure and story. Ticket includes admission to the museum's Rooftop Sessions party happening right after.
Craft Night
6:30 PM @ ART Hub ATX, FREE! (Waitlist)
A loose, come-as-you-are crafting hangout; bring your own supplies or grab a pre-made kit, then settle in with music and snacks alongside other makers. RSVP here for a night built around zero pressure and genuine creative company.
Silly Billies: An Evening of Clown
8:00 PM – 9:00 PM @ Fallout Theater, $7.77
Devised clown work with open signups for live direction — meaning the audience doesn't just watch, they shape what happens. It's the rare night where showing up early to snag a signup slot might be the whole point. Downtown, cheap, and gleefully unserious.
Rooftop Sessions: Summer Lovers
6:00 PM–8:30 PM @ The Contemporary Austin, Jones Center, $10
Frozen Cowhand Coladas, a line-dancing lesson from Country Fried Dance, and DJ sets from Ed West of Neon Rainbows turn the museum rooftop into a summer-lovin' hoedown. Arrive early for a soft-launch look at Phillip A. Townsend's new photo book on a century of Black queer ecstasy before the dance floor takes over.
More interesting events on Wednesday @ WhatsGoodATX!
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Thursday, July 16
Meet Your Project
6-8pm @ Createscape Coworking, $33 (20% off below)
Are you a creative? Maker? Builder? If you're working on a project and having a hard time finding focus, wrestling with fear, or maybe it's just a lot of excitement pulling you all over the place - this workshop is for you! Your hosts Kristen & Dave teach a new technique to meet your project and find your flow. RSVP here with code WEIRDO for 20% off!
Frond 10-Year Anniversary After-Hours Plant Party
6pm–8pm @ Frond Plant Shop, FREE!
South Lamar's beloved plant shop turns 10, and they're marking it with live music, a complimentary drink token, and a plant raffle after normal hours — details are on the Frond listing. Free, plant-adjacent, and a good excuse to finally buy that monstera you've been eyeing.
The Austin Social Anxiety Social (Ages 20s-30s)
7pm–9pm @ Meanwhile Brewing, $16.25
Billed as a color-coded mix-and-mingle icebreaker, this one exists specifically for people who'd rather doomscroll than make small talk — so naturally it forces you to do the opposite, in real life. It's a low-stakes way to test your extroversion without committing to a whole bar crawl.
Matchbook Collage Shadowboxes
6pm – 8pm @ Wheatsville Food Co-op, $39.19 🔥
Bring your hoarded matchbooks, ticket stubs, and pocket ephemera and turn them into a proper shadowbox at this hands-on craft session. It's a quiet, screen-free couple of hours that ends with an actual object to hang on your wall.
FEAST.
8pm @ Hyde Park Theatre, $24 (through Saturday)
An immersive, visceral reimagining of Beowulf that crashes myth into pop culture as a warning against rising authoritarianism, per the event listing. Not a passive night of theatre; expect the kind of staging that gets in your space.
Shuffle It Up
7pm–10pm @ Austin Motel, FREE! with RSVP
A queer-centered mixer at Rocky's Bar where a deck of cards decides who you talk to next, followed by a dip in Austin's most photographed motel pool: the full rundown is here. Every third Thursday, so if you miss it this round there's always the next one.
Lip Service: An Advice Show
9pm–10pm @ East Austin Comedy Club, $13.54
Part standup, part live group therapy — audience members spill their actual problems and the hosts serve advice with, per the event description, "just the right amount of chaos." Weekly, so the format's clearly built an audience that keeps coming back to overshare.
ORO NOIR Cabaret Night
7:30pm–9:30pm @ RichesArt Gallery, $35+
An Afro-Latin burlesque showcase built around heels choreography and fluid partnering, with an open bar included in the ticket price: full details here. This is the third installment in ORO Dance Company's 2026 series, so the choreography's had time to sharpen.
Umbral Court Summer Fun Pool Party & Social
6pm @ Cabana Club Austin
The Eastside's Burning Man crowd takes over a private pool club for an evening of fire spinners, raffle prizes, and regional-burn education, described in full on the Facebook event page. It's swim-drink-mingle logistics wrapped around a genuinely niche subculture meetup — not something you stumble into twice.
All Things Deep | JT Donaldson
9pm @ Neon Grotto Lounge, FREE!
A 25-plus-year deep house veteran with releases on Classic, OM, and Cajual headlines an intimate night of underground grooves: event info here. Donaldson's résumé of collaborators (Chez Damier, Derrick Carter, Mark Farina) speaks for itself. This is a small-room show, not a festival stage, which is the point.
Sofar Sounds — Lake Austin
7:30pm @ Secret Location, $50
Sofar's whole gimmick is not telling you the lineup or the venue until you've bought the ticket. This one's staged aboard the Lake Austin Riverboat, with Dogfish Head sponsoring the drinks. You show up curious and leave having discovered at least one act you'll want to follow.
Moments & Memories: Art Show + Mixer
6pm @ Hi SIgn Brewing, FREE!
A one-night-only solo exhibition from artist Angel Okolie exploring nostalgia and personal memory through visual art, deeply rooted in emotion and culture. One night means one chance! This isn't a run you can catch next week.
Find more fun stuff on Thursday @ WhatsGoodATX!
Friday, July 17
Craft and Create: CreateAbility Experience
5pm–7pm @ Old Gregg Brewing Company, $40
Design your own vinyl-record wall art guided step-by-step by artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities. No experience needed, all materials included. Sign up here for a craft night that doubles as support for a genuinely meaningful cause.
Hot Monster Summer: A Dating Adventure / Dungeons & Drag
7pm–11:55pm @ the Tiny Minotaur Tavern, $12
An audience-interactive drag show built like a tabletop RPG: you roll a giant d20, vote on NPC names, and occasionally get pulled into the scene yourself. Dungeon Mistress Petty Cakes and her heroes are ready for chaos! Costumes are encouraged, and just $5 gets tavern members in the door.
Friday Night Painting: Vino al Arte, Inspired by Nicholas Roerich
8pm–11:30pm @ ArteStudio Austin, $41.95
A bilingual, English/Spanish painting session where you learn about a featured master painter's life and technique while sipping your drink of choice, no experience required. Book your easel for a laid-back, communal art night with a genuine cultural angle.
Glow Party
7pm–12am @ Ani's Day & Night, Free glow paint station
Black-light DJs, a free glow-paint station, tarot readers, jewelry vendors, and food trucks all under UV light at this East Riverside cafe-turned-nightclub-for-a-night. Ani's hosts the crowd with sets from local DJs and open decks running all night.
KINTSUGI Workshop: Repairing Broken Ceramics with Gold
6pm – 9pm @ Kuya Wellness, $32.48
Take a broken teacup and make it more beautiful than it started, using the centuries-old Japanese practice of mending pottery with gold lacquer. It's part craft class, part meditation on impermanence, and you walk out with a functional piece you actually made. Reserve your spot here before it fills up.
More amazingness on Friday @ WhatsGoodATX !
Saturday, July 18
Birding 101 Walk (North Austin)
7am - 9am @ Cedar Park, $15 🔥
Kick off the summer birding season with a beginner-friendly walk covering the basics of bird ID and spotting gear, followed by a stroll to find what's out there. Loaner binoculars are available if you don't have your own, and the early start time helps beat the heat. Great low-pressure intro if you've been curious about birding!
The Highball Retro Market
12:00 PM – 6:00 PM @ The Highball Austin, FREE!
Vintage clothing, physical media, and collectibles fill the Highball's floor, with Evil Dead trivia running for prizes to mark the release of Evil Dead Burn. Come for the VHS crates, stay for the horror nerdery.
Gathering at Shipwreck'd Pirate Bar
7:30 PM @ The Eleanor
The Brotherhood of the Crossed Bones convenes at The Eleanor's summer-long immersive pirate takeover, complete with octopus-shaped punch bowls and a full pirate-costume discount at the bar. Bring an eyepatch and commit or don't bother — half-measures earn you full price.
Reverdie Ball: A Night in Valhalla
7:00 PM – 1:00 AM @ Distribution Hall, $214+
Norse gods and Arthurian legend collide for one night of medieval dance lessons, a Bifrost entrance, and quests for coin and honor. Full details on the gathering; arrive ready to mingle in character, because the room will not be doing irony.
World Listening Day 2026: "Listening to 2116"
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM @ Texas State Capitol, Underground Rotunda — free
Collide Arts and Phonography Austin mark eleven years of this event with a talk on acoustic ecology followed by a group listening exercise imagining what the Capitol will sound like ninety years from now. Recording gear recommendations are posted at phonographyaustin.com if you want to bring your own mic and contribute to the archive.
Botanical Perfumery Workshop
11:00 AM – 1:00 PM @ Lizard Yoga, $100.19
Blend your own custom scent from plant-based ingredients in this hands-on session, no chemistry background required. Book a spot through Eventbrite before the good botanicals get claimed.
PowerPints
8:00 PM – 10:00 PM @ The Highball, $6.40
Eight presenters get five minutes each to deliver a PowerPoint on absolutely any topic, drinks encouraged throughout. It's the original edutainment-comedy hybrid, and tickets run cheaper than a movie.
Metaphysical Fair for Austin
12:00 PM – 6:00 PM @ Wyndham Garden Hotel, FREE!
Psychic readings, tarot, reiki, and a hotel conference room's worth of crystal vendors turn a fairly unglamorous venue into a full-on spiritual bazaar. Full lineup and RSVP for anyone who wants their aura read between errands.
Christmas in July
12:00 PM – 12:00 AM @ Lala's South Pole, FREE!
Santa shows up in July, tiki drinks flow, and Hawaiian shirts are the closest thing to a dress code. Follow @lalassouthpole for the full rundown of a holiday that shouldn't work in this heat but somehow does.
Other cool stuff happening on Saturday @ WhatsGoodATX !
Sunday, July 19
Reverse Brain Rot
9:00 AM @ Location TBA, FREE!
Doomscrolling detox, sanctioned: one hour of reading, one hour of writing, zero screens allowed. Sign up here and join forces with Nicole Stump of Stumped by Nature to flex some atrophied cognitive muscles alongside strangers doing the same.
8th Annual Belly Flop Contest
2:00 PM (watch party) / 6:00 PM (contest) @ Rustic Tap Beer Garden, FREE!
Rustic Tap pairs the World Cup Final with Austin's most committed-to-the-bit summer tradition: adults hurling themselves belly-first into a pool for glory. Drink specials and merch included; check the venue for details for those who'd rather cannonball than watch soccer.
La Fenice Masterclass: Fighting with Weird Stuff
2:00 PM – 4:30 PM @ East Side Performing Arts, $25 (Sliding scale available)
Company member Tobie Minor teaches stage combat with deliberately absurd props — think surfboards, tentacles, a T-rex. RSVP if you've ever wanted formal instruction in fighting someone with a pool noodle.
Poddy Rules The World: Gilbert Shelton's Underground Comix & Art
1:00 PM – 5:00 PM @ 506 Congress Avenue, $25.09
A deep dive into the wild, rebellious underground comix of Gilbert Shelton, one of the founding voices of the genre. Tickets and details here for anyone who thinks their art history needs a little more anarchy.
Dye-namic: An Ice Tie-Dye Experience
2:00 PM @ 13130 Pond Springs Rd, $29
Ice slowly melts over fabric, dragging dye into unpredictable patterns as it goes — bring your own natural-fiber item or use one provided. Details on the event page; the appeal here is genuinely not knowing what you'll end up with.
Figure Drawing Session @ The Commune
3:30 PM – 6:30 PM @ The Commune, North Loop, $15 model fee
A monthly life-drawing session with a live model: bring your own materials and settle in for gesture studies followed by one long pose. Register here; open to artists 18+ (16+ with a parent).
ELEMENTAL: FIRE
12:00 AM – 6:00 AM @ How Much? Studios
Part two of a quarterly two-stage DJ series that runs well past last call, with every DJ rotating between the indoor and outdoor setups so nobody misses a set. Details on Facebook for the truly nocturnal.
Mahjong Pop Up
11:00 AM – 2:00 PM @ Austin Beerworks, $30
itsaMahjing brings American mahjong to the brewery patio, with beginner lessons for newcomers and open play for regulars; beautiful sets provided. More info here; cold drinks at the bar, tiles on the table.
More interesting events on Sunday @ WhatsGoodATX!
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