ATXGuide
Where To Eat With Your Dog In Austin
photo credit: Richard Casteel
There’s no shame in admitting you’d rather hang out with your dog than an actual human. You love your dog. Your dog loves your food (and you, probably). So it’s only natural that they’ll also love joining you for a meal. Luckily, we live in one of the most dog-friendly cities in the world. The next time your friends are too “busy” to listen to your thoughts on the latest season of Love Is Blind, just head to one of these spots with Bark Twain and Sherlock Bones instead.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Raphael Brion
The “patio” at Yard Bar is more like an enormous, fenced-in dog playground that just happens to have a bunch of picnic tables. There’s beer, wine, cocktails, and mocktails, plus a pretty big selection of small bites and entrees—including a few dog-friendly foods, like a waffle cone filled with peanut butter yogurt ice cream. There’s a lot of space, so you never really have to worry too much about it getting crowded, even when half the dogs in Austin are here to hang out.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
It’s difficult to tell where Better Half ends and its sister brewery, Hold Out, starts. And the best part is, it doesn’t really matter. Both sides offer great food, plenty of drinks, and a massive shared patio for you and the pups. By day, Better Half is more of an all-day cafe and coffee shop, but at night it transforms into a bar, with heartier bites, wine, and boozy slushies.
photo credit: Holly Dirks
The lot that houses the mostly outdoors Bouldin Acres used to be a car dealership, so that should give you an idea about how much outdoor space there is. It’s basically an adult amusement park with pickleball courts, TVs, and corn hole. The whole patio is dog-friendly, but there’s also a fenced-in dog park where you can let Skipper tire himself out.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
Loro is an indoor/outdoor restaurant on South Lamar that looks a bit like a camp dining hall—minus the mediocre cafeteria-style food and plus a large, partially covered patio where you can drink. And thanks to ample seating and all that shade, it’s usually full of dogs. Bring the pups to get some air, and try to time your visit with Happy Hour, when you can get a frozen gin and tonic for just $5.
photo credit: Holly Dirks
The Little Darlin’ in South Austin is 80% patio—though you’ll find a pretty large indoor area with pool tables and lots of seating—and across the dog-friendly lawn are long rows of picnic tables, games, and a big stage for live music. Try the fried chicken sandwich while you’re there—it’s one of our favorites in town.
Banger’s is a beer garden with one of the largest patios in the Downtown area. And with over 200 beers on draft, it also has one of the largest tap walls we’ve ever seen. The menu is made up mostly of classic German drinking food—like bratwurst, potato salad, and giant pretzels—but they also offer nearly a dozen varieties of sausage made with everything from duck and fig, to brown sugar, chicken, and apple. There’s even a “woofwurst” you can order for your dog after they’re done playing with the other pups in the large, fenced-in dog park.
photo credit: Richard Casteel
One of the unspoken requirements for calling yourself an Austinite is dabbling in vegetarianism. The other requirement is a codependent relationship with your dog. That means you’ve probably eaten at Bouldin Creek Café on South 1st Street at some point since it encourages both. The patio at this “Old Austin” institution isn’t as massive as some of the other spots on this list, but there’s no shortage of space. You might encounter a wait though if you show up on the weekends during brunch.
