The Austin Chronicle

Kiin Di Grows Up – But Keeps the Heat • The Austin Chronicle I am starting to realize my reviews often reveal more about my personal baggage than the restaurants themselves. Case in point: Kiin Di recently left me a complete mess, but it’s a tale as old as time...

RESTAURANT REVIEW: South Lamar’s Thai favorite Kiin Di trades the trailer for a fast, fiery dining room.

Woman Who Spent 23 Years Behind Bars Is Exonerated • The Austin Chronicle Carmen Mejia, a Honduran immigrant who was sentenced to life in prison for the 2003 scalding death of an infant in her care, was formally declared innocent in an Austin courtroom on Monday.  “I’m now ...

Carmen Mejia, who spent 23 years behind bars. is exonerated.

Broadway in Austin Back for Record-Breaking 2026-27 Season • The Austin Chronicle Broadway in Austin, the annual celebration of the greatest plays and musicals on the Great White Way, is back for the 2026-27 season, and it’ll be bigger than ever, with 11 shows announced. “This seas...

Broadway in Austin is back for a record-breaking season with Elephants, the Buena Vista Social Club, and cursed children all part of the 11-show run.

First Look: Soundra Roastery & Chai • The Austin Chronicle “Chai is like a love language for the whole of India. It’s like an emotion for all the Indians and it passed through the world,” explains Ramya Patel. Her food truck, Soundra Roastery & Chai, is an od...

We take a first look at elevated food truck Soundra Roastery & Chai serving Indian street classics.

UT Landmarks Features Creatures at Public Art Spots on Campus • The Austin Chronicle As the spring semester kicks into full gear, students and working professionals alike are battling increasing stress. The University of Texas at Austin’s public art program, Landmarks, along with the ...

UT Landmarks’ fifth annual collaboration with local petting zoos brings animals and art together for community wellness.

Orville Peck, the Lumineers to Play Free SXSW Concerts • The Austin Chronicle Masked Americana outlaw Orville Peck and stomp-clap pioneers the Lumineers are making their way to Austin to perform during South by Southwest at free, limited-capacity concerts sponsored by California-based electric car company, and headlining sponsor, Rivian. Registration for both concerts is now open on a first-come, first-served basis. Auditorium Shores has its hands full with […]

Orville Peck and the Lumineers to play free SXSW concerts at 800 Congress and Moody Amphitheater. First-come first-served registration is open now.

American Art History in a Nutshell: Inside Charles Butt’s American Modernist Collection • The Austin Chronicle At the mouth of the Blanton Museum of Art, a cluster of paintings spanning technique and medium welcome you into Charles Butt’s colorful and curious tour of American modernism, currently on its first-...

Inside H-E-B CEO Charles Butt’s American Modernist collection at the Blanton through Aug. 2.

Opinion: Waiting for Sunset: What a UT Campus Iftar Looks Like • The Austin Chronicle Austin is a city built on routines. You don’t have to have one, but you’re most likely a part of someone else’s. We have our specific routes to avoid MoPac traffic and our usual spots for a quick lunc...

OPINION: Want to experience a genuine community space? Take part in a Ramadan dinner.

Coffee & a Joint • The Austin Chronicle I got this feeling inside Can’t find no balance in my mind I must be missing the point I need a coffee and a joint. When I’m feeling the way Little Stranger describes, I settle in at a table at LazyDa...

LazyDaze founder Hans Enriquez lays out his vision for the Amsterdam-style cannabis cafe.

Edwards Aquifer Nears Emergency Drought Conditions • The Austin Chronicle Austinites who have been around at least a decade may remember that back in the summers of 2015 and 2016, Barton Creek flowed from Barton Springs into South Austin, pocketed with deep green, swimmable...

Edwards Aquifer nears emergency drought conditions. First-ever stage 4 declaration would mean new restrictions and guidelines.

From the files of Mr. Smarty Pants: Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf began work on Bat Out Of Hell in 1974. The songs were originally written for a musical he had developed based on Peter Pan.

Day Trips: San Luis Pass Bridge, Galveston • The Austin Chronicle The tolls on the San Luis Pass Bridge have been discontinued after 59 years. The bridge connects the western tip of Galveston Island to Follett’s Island in Brazoria County.  The coupled FM 3005 and CR...

DAY TRIPS: San Luis Pass Bridge, where you can drive the Bluewater Highway for free.

In this week's comics, Trump makes sure history remembers his name.
Read all the Sunday funnies: austinchronicle.com/comics

A Scene in Snapshot: The 2025-2026 Austin Music Awards Celebrate All • The Austin Chronicle If you’re a time-tested Live Music Capital pro, the Austin Music Awards mean watching your favorite acts celebrate each other and collaborate onstage in one-night-only fashion. If you’re new to the ci...

Last weekend's Austin Music Awards celebrated artists of every genre and applauded another year of exceptional local music.

The Bride! Review: Frankenstein’s Riot Grrrl • The Austin Chronicle In punk cinema, you’re either a Derek Jarman or an Alex Cox. Jarman was a master of subversive control, a genius in finding beauty in ugliness and perversion in the divine. Alex Cox threw everything a...

MOVIE REVIEW: Maggie Gyllenhaal gives Mary Shelley’s legacy a third-wave feminist makeover in The Bride!.

How Christian Ramirez Went From LA Galaxy Castoff to Austin FC Hero • The Austin Chronicle Attend an Austin FC match at Q2 Stadium and you’ll observe plenty of things original to the Verde and Black experience – green rubber chickens and live armadillos come to mind. You’ll also notice a fe...

How Christian Ramirez went from LA Galaxy castoff to Austin FC hero.

Day Trips & Beyond: March Events Roundup • The Austin Chronicle Eagles have landed. The bald eagles’ nest is littered with a half-eaten fish and feathers from prior meals. Sadly, on Feb. 10, Kayleigh Bucur, executive director of the John Bunker Sands Wetland Center outside of Seagoville in North East Texas announced the death of one of the two eaglets hatched on Jan. 24 and 25. […]

The March wildflowers are beginning to pop so it must be time for a day trip. Here's our monthly roundup of out-of-town events.

Qmmunity: Might as Well Have Fun • The Austin Chronicle Reader: Things aren’t looking so hot. Recent news for transgender people continues a downward trend, with Kansas’ sudden delegitimizing of all driver’s licenses bearing a gender not matched by the own...

In this week's Qmmunity column, times are tough, but queer people are tougher and also more fun.

Texas Plans Second Execution of the Year • The Austin Chronicle Cedric Ricks spoke in his own defense at his 2013 murder trial, something most defendants accused of a terrible crime do not do. Ricks confessed that he had killed his girlfriend, Roxann Sanchez, and ...

Texas plans the second execution of the year with Cedric Ricks set to be killed on March 11.

Pflugerville Dems Cheer On Wins in Texas House District 50, U.S. House District 11 • The Austin Chronicle Some big-name musicians, when they’ve got a packed show, don’t let anyone in the club see them until it’s time to go out and play. It makes their entrance more dramatic. Maybe that’s what was going on...

Pflugerville Dems cheer on wins in Texas House District 50 and U.S. House District 11.

Council Pinches Pennies While Working to Regain Public Trust • The Austin Chronicle It was all about trust at City Hall last week. That started with City Council Member Marc Duchen getting his efficiency audits.  Council approved a new city ordinance on Feb. 26 creating the Comprehen...

Council approves series of rolling audits of the city’s 40-plus departments.

Kiin Di Grows Up – But Keeps the Heat • The Austin Chronicle I am starting to realize my reviews often reveal more about my personal baggage than the restaurants themselves. Case in point: Kiin Di recently left me a complete mess, but it’s a tale as old as time...

RESTAURANT REVIEW: South Lamar’s Thai favorite trades the trailer for a fast, fiery dining room.

Garibay and Tovo Emerge From a Crowded HD 49 • The Austin Chronicle Minutes before the first early voting results were released, in a campaign office full of neighbors and supporters on West 24th Street, we asked Kathie Tovo how she was feeling. “Well, you know, super...

Montserrat Garibay and Kathie Tovo emerge from a crowded HD 49 field and head to a runoff.

Pooja Sethi to Fill Her Predecessor’s Shoes in HD 47 • The Austin Chronicle After a long, tense day at the polls, Pooja Sethi said that she was looking forward to some much-needed rest after winning the Democratic primary in the Texas House, District 47 race. Sethi, who forme...

Pooja Sethi to fill her predecessor’s shoes in HD 47.

Texas Dems Turn Up on Election Day • The Austin Chronicle Here’s that strange feeling again – hope. After Tuesday’s primary election, you have to have at least a little. First of all, there are the voting numbers. As Tuesday dawned, the Houston Chronicle rep...

Here’s that strange feeling again – hope. After Tuesday’s primary election, you have to have at least a little.

The Week’s Biggest News in Brief: Feb. 26 - March 4 • The Austin Chronicle State Election Results: Election day, and the days leading up to it, were historic for Democrats in the state, setting record numbers for primary voter turnout. Despite both Williamson and Dallas coun...

Election results come in around the state, city mourns losses after Sixth Street shooting, and more of the week’s headlines.

West Sixth Shooting Leaves Four Dead, Shakes Austin Nightlife District • The Austin Chronicle Austin’s deadliest mass shooting in six decades tore through West Sixth Street early Sunday, killing four people, including the gunman, and injuring 13 others near Buford’s Backyard Beer Garden.  Acco...

Austin’s deadliest mass shooting in decades killed three victims and the gunman, wounded 13 others and prompted an outpouring of community response.

Vespaio: An Appreciation • The Austin Chronicle Vespaio opened one year before I started writing for The Austin Chronicle. For the first decade they were in business, Vespaio was my most frequented restaurant, and while the food and drink were alwa...

Saluting Vespaio, an Austin institution, which closed last month after 27 years.

Jack Johnson, Alanis Morissette, Gavin Newsom, Keke Palmer, and More Join SXSW ’26 Events • The Austin Chronicle South by Southwest is so close we can taste it, and to whet our appetite further, a new round of musical guests, star-studded panels, and podcast tapings were announced today. Feel-good Aughts star Ja...

Jack Johnson, Alanis Morissette, Gavin Newsom, Keke Palmer, and more join SXSW ’26 events.

Talarico Clears First Hurdle to Take Back Texas • The Austin Chronicle As the clock ticked late into election night, it was still unclear who would win the U.S. Senate race. That’s because voting results from two counties across the state – Dallas and Williamson – were d...

James Talarico clears first hurdle as he defeats Jasmine Crockett in the U.S. Senate Democratic primary.