A Few Of Our Favorite Things: Entertainment in Austin
08 May 2010 Leave a Comment
in A Few of Our Favorite Things
The goal: Have fun in our city
The results: Must-see places when you visit ATX
Amanda’s Pick:
The Stats: Alamo Drafthouse Cinema–for dinner and a movie for 2, we usually pay around $40
Why: It’s the best way to sit back and enjoy a movie without having to go to a concession stand to get popcorn. They’ll bring it to you.
The Story: If you want to experience Austin, don’t miss the Drafthouse. You sit down for the movie, take a peek at the menu, and jot your order down on a slip of paper while watching wacky preshow shorts (such as an old Star Wars Christmas special). Then, you stick the paper in a groove in the table, the server sees the paper sticking up, and comes to bring you whatever you’ve ordered.
The Pros: I love the Drafthouse for its Austin vibe, its funky special programming, and its better-than-average movie theater food. It makes date night a bit more economical because we save the time of going to a restaurant and then to a theater.
The Cons: The lines can be long if it’s a new, popular movie, so at times we’ve waited up to an hour to score a decent seat.
One last thing: If you’ve got a little one, don’t miss Baby Day. On Baby Day, kiddos under 6 get in free and are allowed to run wild, scream and cry, and wreak whatever havoc they want during the movie (except food fights). No one asks parents to leave because of a cranky kid. (If you don’t want screaming babies during your show, try to avoid the first show of all movies at any Drafthouse on Tuesdays. Just sayin’…)
Whitney’s Pick:
The Stats: Alamo Drafthouse (movie ticket prices and menu prices vary)
Why: I love watching movies. I love eating and drinking. The two together? Bliss.
The Story: At Alamo, you watch a movie while a waiter comes to your row and delivers tasty food and drinks.
The Pros: Alamo is an 18-and-up theater unless it’s a designated kid activity, so when I go, I don’t have to worry about unsupervised kids ruining my movie. Plus, Alamo shows aren’t just regular movies. Sometimes they go all out and do funny stuff like this.
The Cons: Sometimes I rack up a hefty bill, so I reserve this theater as a special treat.
One last thing: The theaters aren’t super-sized, so if you’re headed there for a new release, go early to get in line for good seats.
