Sean and Lily's wedding

For our guests who will be visiting from out of town -- or for locals who feel like using the wedding weekend as an excuse to play tourist -- below are some of our favorite attractions and eateries.

Attractions

For a more extensive list of things to do and places to eat in Austin, below are some good web sites:

1. Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau
Good resources for things to do broken down by interests

2. Austin Citysearch
Great site for restaurants. See the "Best of..." section

3. Austin Chronicle
Weekly publication. Grab one to see the week's live music acts, shows, weekly Austin events, etc.

Sixth Street

Sixth St., Austin, TX
Austin is most well-known for its live music acts. It calls itself "The Live Music Capital of the World". Sixth Street and the nearby Fourth Street ( also known as the Warehouse District) are busting with music and dance clubs.

Texas State Capitol

1100 Congress Ave, Austin, TX 78701 -- (512) 463-0063
The capitol is a really cool place to visit. The architecture is awesome. Lily's favorite thing to do is to stand on the star directly under the dome and twirl. Whew, dizziness! Guided tours begin every 15 minutes from the south entrance foyer on weekdays, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; and every 30-45 minutes on weekends from 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Free admission.

Zilker Park

2100 Barton Springs Rd., Austin TX 78746 -- (512) 478-8286 or (512) 974-6700
You can ride on a miniature train, frolick in the grass, fly a kite, or swim in Barton Springs Pool. Lily's favorite outdoor activity is going running at the hike and bike trail around the park and Lake Austin.

See the bats at sunset!

Congress Avenue Bridge, Austin TX
Congress Avenue Bridge houses the largest urban bat colony in North America. More than 1.5 million of the nocturnal creatures fly out nightly at dusk, April-October. For more info, visit Congress Avenue Bridge Bats.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

4801 La Crosse Avenue Austin, Texas 78739 -- (512)292-4200
This was one of our top 3 choices to host the wedding & reception. Open Tues.-Sun., 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Open Mondays starting March 18th Ð April 30th from 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Mount Bonnell

(512) 974-6700
Ascend all 99 steps to the top of Mount Bonnell to enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view of the city skyline, Lake Austin and the surrounding Hill Country. This is THE spot to watch a Texas-style sunset. Open daily, 5 a.m.-10 p.m. Free admission.

Eateries

BBQ

Salt Lick BBQ web site
18300 FM Rd 1826, Driftwood, TX 78619
They have expanded to other locations, but the one in Driftwood is THE place to go for BBQ. They have gravel parking lot and a sherriff directing traffic. This is right out of Dukes of Hazzard =) Wear big clothes and get the family style.

Rudy's web site
11570 Research Blvd., Austin, TX 78759-4036
If you can't make it to Salt Lick, this is a great 2nd choice. They serve by the pound and you get it on butcher's paper. Also try the cream corn - one of Lily's favorites.

Stubb's Bar-B-Q web site
801 Red River St., Austin, TX 78701
Great place to see a live music act. Sean and Lily's first concert was here - jamming to Blues Traveler.

Tex-Mex

Trudy's web site
8820 Burnet Rd., Austin, TX 78757
Just a great place to hang out and grab some tex-mex. On your way out, grab some of the mints with a chocolate center - yum! 3 locations in Austin.

Chuy's Restaurant web site
1728 Barton Springs Rd., Austin, TX 78704
Several locations throughout Austin, but this is the one to go to. See the Elvis room! Note - the wait could be over an hour if you go during prime dining time. If you want to pass the time, walk down Barton Springs and spend some time in Zilker Park.

The Oasis web site
6550 Comanche Trl., Austin, TX 78732-1213
The food is so-so, but the view is gorgeous! The time to go is right before sunset. We also like this restaurant because it's a 5 minute drive from our apartment =)

Breakfast, coffee

Chez Zee web site
5406 Balcones Dr., Austin, TX 78731
Lily's favorite restaurant in Austin. The food is so yummy! But the desserts -- oh heavenly! They also have brunch on weekends. The creme brulee french toast - no words to describe the taste!

Mozart's Coffee Roasters web site
3825 Lake Austin Blvd., Austin, TX 78703
If we need some downtime with our computer and there are too many distractions at home, we pack our laptops and head to Mozarts. The coffee shop is right next to Lake Austin and with a bottomless cup - it's caffeine heaven =)

Kirby Lane Cafe web site
3704 Kerbey Ln., Austin, TX 78731-6218
Numerous locations throughout Austin, but this is Lily's favorite location. The short stack pancake is a must!

Downtown grubs

Jazz web site
214 E 6th St., Austin, TX 78701
Great cajun place. We love to stop here for a bite before heading to Sixth Street.

B.D. Riley's Irish Pub web site
204 E. Sixth St., Austin, TX
Our favorite place for Wednesday nights - some Guiness, Irish chow, and then trivia time!

Casual, American

Threadgills web site
301 W Riverside Dr., Austin, TX 78704
Locations throughout Austin. Good down-home cooking. Lily's first introduction to fried green tomatoes.

Shady Grove web site
1624 Barton Springs Rd., Austin, TX 78704
They have a great outdoor eating area. Whenever the weather's beautiful, we like to come here and enjoy some downtime.

Hyde Park Bar & Grill web site
4206 Duval St., Austin, TX 78751-4311
Two words "french fries"!

Thundercloud Subs web site
Numerous locations throughout Austin
Casual local sub shop. Sean loves their meatball sub.