Austin is known as the “Tex-Mex capital” of the United States, so if you happen to live there, you are in an ideal location to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. This year, Cinco de Mayo falls on a Wednesday. “Hump day” is the ideal day of the week for an after-hour cocktail. Here are just a few places in Austin that will be toasting Mexican culture on or around May 5 with drink specials, tasty food and other Mexican-themed goodies.
Image: Thetruthabout (flickr)
La Condesa
400 W 2nd St
Austin, TX 78701
Make sure you make a reservation on May 5. This hip, modern Mexican restaurant is popular on any night of the week, but Cinco de Mayo is especially busy. Conveniently located downtown, La Condesa offers a modern, eclectic atmosphere with contemporary Mexican dishes inspired by the hip, bohemian Condesa neighborhood of Mexico City. This is a good place to go if you are in the mood for posh dinner on Cinco de Mayo.
El Chile Café Y Cantina
1809 Manor Rd
Austin, TX 78722
Get there early to get a seat on the patio. El Chile Café Y Cantina serves up Tex-Mex food with rich, decadent sauces. Try the Oaxacan red mole that Critics rave about on El Chile’s roasted pork enchiladas. The smokey salsa is so good, they sell it by the jar. Happy hour is from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. You can get half price appetizers and $1 off all drinks.
El Taquito
1713 E Riverside Dr
Austin, TX 78741
No alcohol is served here, but that may not matter if you are in the mood for a good greasy spoon place to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. If that is the case, head down to El Taquito for some rather authentic greasy Mexican food. Beware, though, that this place caters to those who like the real deal – the kind of food you might find on the streets of Mexico City. There is no orange cheese here, and the tacos are made from corn tortillas – not flour or wheat. Ask for a jarisco drink or have a Mexican coke.
Fonda San Miguel
2330 W North Loop Blvd
Austin, TX 78756
On the classy end of Mexican restaurants in Austin, perhaps Fonda San Miguel takes the cake. The heavy doors and elaborate paintings on the wall will make you feel like you’ve been invited to a wealthy drug lord’s estate for dinner. Fonda San Miguel is a great place to impress a date for a Cinco de Mayo dinner. The hacienda style building is surrounded by great landscaping, mood lighting in the trees and you are greeted by valets as you pull up. The menu and drink selection are equally impressive. Make sure you make reservations.
Curra’s Grill
614 E Oltorf St
Austin, TX 78704
Curra’s Grill is a relaxed environment to grab some really good food and reasonably priced drinks. This place is very popular among locals, but it also has gained respect and notoriety in several restaurant reviews. It was voted “Best Interior Mexican Food” by the Austin Chronicle and “One of the Best Mexican Restaurants in Texas” by the Texas Monthly. Their hot sauce alone was voted “Best Red Sauce” in the 1998 Austin Hot Sauce Contest. Get there early to get one of the coveted patio seats.
April Lentini writes for Apartment Guide in Austin
