6AM City In-house

43 festivals and counting 🎉

Your guide to every Austin festival taking place in 2023
A hand holding out a plate of chicken
Try food from Austin’s best chefs at the Hot Luck Fest. | Photo by ATXtoday
Austin may be the Live Music Capital of the World, but we think it deserves another moniker: Festival Capital.

Between world film premieres, major comedy acts, political panels, foodie fiestas, and live music (so, so much live music), Austin is home to every kind of party.

It can be hard to keep track of all of these events, so we’re rounding up every festival taking place in the Capital City in 2023. Click the button below and bookmark this page, because we’ll update it throughout the year as additional information is announced.

To get you started, here are a few we’re excited about:

Urban Cultural Festival | Saturday, April 1 | 12 p.m. | Auditorium Shores, 900 W. Riverside Dr., Austin | $75-$150 | Headliners Stokley, Zapp, and Lyfe Jennings will perform at this family-friendly music festival.

Moontower Just for Laughs Comedy Festival | Wednesday, April 12-Sunday, April 23 | Times vary | Multiple locations | $150-$257 | Laugh out loud to sets from national headliners like Seth Meyers, Maria Bamford, and Trevor Noah.

A crowd of people under the flags at ACL Fest.

Austin’s signature music festival is a must-do event for live music lovers.

Photo by ATXtoday


Hot Luck Festival | Thursday, May 25-Sunday, May 28 | Times vary | Location TBD | $75-$900 | Save room for bites from dozens of Austin’s best chefs at Aaron Franklin’s annual foodie event.

ACL Music Festival | Friday, Oct. 6-Sunday, Oct. 8 + Friday, Oct. 13-Sunday, Oct. 15 | Times vary | Zilker Park, 2207 Lou Neff Rd., Austin | $285-$5500 | Austin’s signature music festival is back with hundreds of live performances and dozens of local food vendors.

Austin Film Festival | Thursday, Oct. 26-Thursday, Nov. 2 | Times TBD | Multiple locations | $60-$5,750 | Film fans will “feel like an eight-year-old at an Amy’s Ice Cream counter” at this festival filled with screenings, premieres, competition films, and Q&As.
38 MORE FESTIVALS
6AM City In-house

Click here to have your event featured.

Tuesday, Jan. 10
  • Texas Women’s Basketball vs. Kansas | Tuesday, Jan. 10 | 7-11 p.m. | Moody Center, 2001 Robert Dedman Dr., Austin | $9-$15 | Cheer on the Longhorns at Austin’s new state-of-the art venue.
  • Sean Bonnette & Tim Kasher | Tuesday, Jan. 10 | 7-11:59 p.m. | The Ballroom at Spider House, 2906 Fruth St., Austin | $17 | Special guest Veronica Everheart will also perform at this weeknight concert.
Wednesday, Jan. 11
  • Happen Twice Presents: Slurp The World | Wednesday, Jan. 11 | 7 p.m. | The Ballroom at Spider House, 2906 Fruth St., Austin | $10 | Witches Exist and Earth.MP3 will perform at the first night of this residency.
  • Parker Jazz Club’s Five Year Anniversary | Wednesday, Jan. 11 | 7:30-11 p.m. | Parker Jazz Club, 117 W. 4th St., Ste. #107b, Austin | $20-$30 | Celebrate five years of the jazz club with the Parker House Band and Doug Lawrence.
Thursday, Jan. 12
  • Jeff Dunham: “Still Not Canceled” Tour | Thursday, Jan. 12 | 7 p.m. | Moody Center, 2001 Robert Dedman Dr., Austin | $53.50 | The comedian is known for his global tours, ventriloquist routine, and best-selling autobiography.
Friday, Jan. 13
  • “Master Harold” … and the Boys | Friday, Jan. 13-Sunday, Jan. 15 | 7:30-9:30 p.m. | KMFA’s Draylen Mason Music Studio, 41 Navasota St., Austin | $25 | This award-winning show by South African playwright Athol Fugard narrates the brutalities of apartheid from the point of view of three people in a tea shop.
  • Shwayze | Friday, Jan. 13 | 7:30 p.m. | Empire Control Room & Garage, 606 E. 7th St., Austin | $17 | Audic Empire and David Shabani will also perform at this show.

We have a calendar filled with events and activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.
100+ MORE EVENTS
6AM City In-house

Culture

What’s your best pickup line?
Best pickup line image
Do you think you have the best local pickup line? | Graphic by 6AM City
With Valentine’s Day around the corner, we’ve got love on the brain.

To usher in the month of love, we want to hear the best pickup lines in the city. The pickup line must include the name of our beloved city, something that our city is known for, or a local landmark. It can be so sweet that it almost gives us a cavity.

We’ll use these pickup lines for something fun soon — keep your (heart) eyes peeled. 😍

So, let’s hear it…
DROP YOUR BEST LINE

Weather
  • 81º | Partly cloudy | 11% chance of rain
  • January who? Today’s temperatures could climb into the 80s and stay there until Wednesday night, when a cold front is expected to bring 60º days back into Central Texas. (KXAN)
Development
  • A 32-story residential tower could be headed to Lavaca and West 14th streets. The proposal for the project, which hasn’t yet been approved, lays out plans for 220 condominium units. 🏗 (Austin American-Statesman)
Announced
  • Texas State University’s Wittliff Collections acquired four hours of a 1992 audio interview with Cormac McCarthy. The interview marks the second time ever that the “All the Pretty Horses” author’s voice has been shared publicly. 🎙 (Austin American-Statesman)
Closing
  • The Violet Crown Clubhouse, an ice cream shop and arcade in Brentwood, will close permanently on Sunday, Jan. 15. Owners said a coffee shop, wine bar, and bottle shop will move into its space. (KVUE)
Open
  • Masa y Más, a new taco spot from the team behind Hopdoddy, is now open at 1817 S. Lamar Blvd. The restaurant sells dishes inspired by Central Mexico, plus aguas frescas and agave-based cocktails.
Biz
  • Austin-based Freebirds World Burrito has plans to expand with three new locations this year in Hutto, Missouri City, and San Antonio. The additions will bring the Tex-Mex company to 69 locations total by the end of 2023. 🌯 (Austin Business Journal)
Festival
  • Sign-ups are now open to volunteer at this year’s SXSW and SXSW Edu. Volunteers who work at least 24 hours can earn badges for the conference or film, comedy, and music festivals — learn more.
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So you like coffee, eh? ☕️

Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons plans to open ~50 new locations in Austin
A set of doughnuts and a coffee mug on a table
Tim Hortons has plans to open as many as 50 new locations in Austin. | Photo via waferboard, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Canadian coffee and doughnut chain Tim Hortons is planning to expand to the Austin area for the first time ever — in a big way.

The coffeehouse’s parent company has plans for as many as 50 Tim Hortons locations in the greater city area by 2028. Details for specific locations or timing aren’t yet available, but here are a few fast facts about the coffee chain from up north:
  • Only three people in the world know how to brew the restaurant’s signature coffees.
  • The chain was opened by former hockey player Miles “Tim” Gilbert Horton, who won four Stanley Cups with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
  • Tim Horton’s is responsible for 80% of all coffee cups sold in Canada.
  • The first two Texan Tim Hortons opened in Katy and Houston in 2022.
Have you tried Tim Horton’s? Let us know what to expect.
THE WRAP

Today’s issue was written by London.

Editor’s pick: I had a delicious, plant-based meal this weekend at Fonda San Miguel. The restaurant’s “De la Tierra” menu consists entirely of plant-based, vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free dishes — and my tostadas de ceviche de palmito were excellent.

Where do you like to eat plant-based food in Austin?

Missed yesterday’s newsletter? Send us your 23 questions for 2023.
Connect with us.

Editorial: Laura Figi, London Gibson, Britt Thorson, Emily Shea, Jessalin Heins-Nagamoto, Dayten Rose, Sarah Leonhardt, Katie Smith | Send us a scoop, question, or feedback.

Sales: Camille McLeod | Advertise with us.

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