If you've lived in Austin long enough, you know that when the Austin Chronicle drops its annual Best of Austin issue, the city collectively leans in. This year marks a milestone worth raising a Lone Star to — the 35th annual Best of Austin Awards, a celebration that has quietly become one of the most beloved traditions in a city that runs on traditions.
Think of it as Austin's own version of an Oscars night, except the nominees are the taco spots you've been hoarding from out-of-towners, the dive bars where your best nights happened, and the local legends who make this city feel genuinely irreplaceable. Year after year, the Chronicle taps into the pulse of Austin's neighborhoods, music venues, restaurants, and hidden gems to crown the places and people that define what it actually feels like to live here — not just visit.
Three and a half decades is no small thing in a city that has transformed at a pace that can feel dizzying. From the days when Sixth Street was the undisputed heartbeat of Austin's nightlife to today's sprawling constellation of creative districts and culinary corridors, the Best of Austin Awards have served as a kind of annual snapshot — a love letter written in real time to a city always in motion.
For longtime Austinites, flipping through the winners is part nostalgia, part discovery. You'll nod knowingly at the familiar favorites and dog-ear the pages featuring spots you haven't tried yet. For newer residents still learning the city's rhythms, consider this your most trustworthy guide — curated not by algorithm, but by people who eat, drink, and breathe Austin every single day.
So whether your personal Austin is a perfectly executed breakfast taco on a Saturday morning, a cold craft beer on a shaded patio, or a late-night set at a venue that smells faintly of cedar and spilled ambition, the 35th Best of Austin Awards is your reminder that this city still has so much worth celebrating. Pull up a chair. The list awaits.