Want the inside word on Austin's most happening local spots?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp and SafeGraph, a dataset of commercial points of interest and their visitor patterns, to uncover which eateries have been most discussed this month.
To find out who made the list, we first looked at Austin businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance. Then we analyzed foot traffic data from SafeGraph to validate the trends.
Read on to see which spots are riding a trend, right now.
Devil May Care
Open since November 2019, this lounge, cocktail bar and Mediterranean spot is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Cocktail Bars" on Yelp.
Citywide, cocktail bars saw a median 1.7% increase in new reviews over the past month. Devil May Care only recently appeared on Yelp, but while many new businesses struggle to gain reviews, it has seen strong initial popularity.
It's not the only trending outlier in the cocktail bar category: Baretto has seen a 4.6% increase in reviews.
Located at 500 W. Sixth St. in downtown Austin, Devil May Care offers cocktails include De España, a martini made with with Spanish olive oil, washed gin, Manzanilla sherry and Atxa Blanco Vermouth. On the menu, expect to see items like charred octopus, vegan Brussels sprouts with chorizo falafel and Sumac honey, and a gluten-free lamb rib with cucumber yogurt, barbecue sauce and a pomegranate glaze.
Provision
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Provision, the steakhouse, gastropub and New American spot is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (New)" on Yelp saw a median 1.4% increase in new reviews over the past month, Provision bagged a 43.6% increase in new reviews within that time frame, with a slight downward trend from a 4.5-star rating a month ago to its current four stars.
There's more that's trending on Austin's New American scene: Copper Restaurant & Dessert Lounge has seen a 1.4% increase in reviews.
Open at 4200 W. Braker Lane, Suite B, since fall 2019, Provision offers gourmet sandwiches and hamburgers, salads, cheese and charcuterie boards, chicken wings and steaks. Beer, cocktails and wine are also on offer.
Provision is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Saturday and 10 a.m.–9 p.m. on Sunday.
Comedor
Downtown Austin's Comedor is also making waves. Open since spring 2019 at 501 Colorado St., the well-established Mexican spot has seen a 10.4% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.4% for all businesses tagged "Mexican" on Yelp.
There's more than one hot spot trending in Austin's Mexican category: Jardin Corona Mexican Restaurant has seen a 0.7% increase in reviews.
Comedor offers menu features bone marrow tacos, guacamole tostadas, octopus with a spicy mole sauce and a tres leches dessert. Libations include mezcal cocktails, martinis, beer and wine. Over the past month, it's maintained a convincing 4.5-star rating among Yelpers.
Comedor is open from 5–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 5–11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m.–3 p.m. and 5–10 p.m. on Sunday.
Full English
West Gate's Full English is the city's buzziest breakfast and brunch spot by the numbers.
The well-established tea room and British and breakfast and brunch spot, located at 2000 Southern Oaks Drive, increased its new review count by 1% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.4% for the Yelp category "Breakfast & Brunch." As for foot traffic, Full English saw visits double over the past month, according to SafeGraph data.
Curious to know more about the business and its specialties? Courtesy of Alice and Shadrach Smith, a husband and wife team, the business focuses on bringing a taste of London to Austin.
"We specialize in meat pies like Cornish pasties and sausage rolls, as well as our favorite sweet snacks," according to its Yelp page. "Our identity is both English and British, and we're strongly in favor of cultural mashups."
It's not the only trending outlier in the breakfast and brunch category: Bird Bird Biscuit has seen a 6% increase in reviews, and Holy Roller and Moonshine Comfort & Cocktails have seen 3.3 and 6.4% increases, respectively.
Full English offers all-day breakfast, Friday night fish and chips and high tea service with finger sandwiches, scones and sweets. Other menu offerings include lemon and sugar pancakes or the full breakfast with British-style pork sausage, bacon, eggs, mushrooms, tomato and fried bread, as well as gluten-free items.
Full English is open from 9 a.m.–5 p.m. on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, 9 a.m.–9 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m.–5 p.m. on Sunday. (It's closed on Monday and Tuesday.)
According to SafeGraph, people tend to visit Full English on Saturdays and Wednesdays, and it attracts half of its total visitors over those two days. If you’re planning your visit, you may want to try its slower periods on Thursdays.
Cyclone Anaya's Tex-Mex Cantina
North Burnett's popular Cyclone Anaya's Tex-Mex Cantina is currently on the upswing in the bar category on Yelp.
While businesses categorized as "Bars" on Yelp saw a median 1.4% increase in new reviews over the past month, this bar and Tex-Mex and Mexican spot increased its new reviews by 7.4% — and kept its rating consistent at 3.5 stars. Review counts increased by more than 580% on a month-to-month basis.
Here's more about the business from Yelp. With Rico Valencia Sr. at the helm of this family-owned and operated cantina, it's known for "serving lively cocktails, local brews and spirits, and the freshest, locally-sourced made from scratch Tex-Mex fare in Austin, TX."
Open for business at 3120 Palm Way, Suite 170, since September 2017, Cyclone Anaya's Tex-Mex Cantina offers offers rotisserie chicken, pork tamales, specialty tacos and Tex-Mex combos like the Del Rio Dinner. Drinks include bottomless brunch mimosas, a blueberry coconut mojito and margaritas.
Cyclone Anaya's Tex-Mex Cantina is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–9 p.m. on Sunday.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
