Travis Heights - Austin, TX Area Guide

Greater South River City provides locations to experience the embodied history of the entire Austin area. The Greater South River City plan began in 2003 and finished under the City of Austin's Neighborhood Planning Program as part of the Austin Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan in September 2005. With final updates to the map in 2007, Greater South River City defined a majority of property in this area of Austin as residential and open space with limited commercial and office space laid out.

Throughout Austin, many annual festivals of food, beer and fun make for eventful living in the city. In South Austin, the annual Carnival Brasileiro creates a feisty atmosphere of music, dancing and drinks. In addition to local brewery and food festivals, the event lineup includes the Zilker Park Kite Festival, a family-fun event of picnicking, sunbathing and watching creative kites fly through the sky.

Several restaurants in the area consistently receive amazing reviews from locals and visitors alike. Reviewers note that many of the area restaurant's dishes build on international tastes and flavors. With several options in South Austin for the taste of your life, you can eat in at a local pub or even order from a red roadside truck. Pubs and bars also put on innovative drink specials, and many have daily happy hours all week long for the pleasure of the entire neighborhood.

Hey You Gonna Eat or What? is a roadside vendor that operates from various spots around South Austin. Locals know it for its Monte Cristo and the homemade chips served with its inventive sandwiches.

Little Barrel and Brown on South Congress Avenue at the north end of Greater South River City also maintains several unique menu items, such as the creative and tasty cornbread sundae with bourbon ice cream. The local favorite also provides food and drink specialties during weeklong happy hours and weekend brunches.

The Porter Ale House & Gastropub maintains an innovative selection of dishes. Its most notable selections include beer cheese fondue and a lamb burger, and both receive high praise from locals and visitors alike.

In addition to the many local restaurants available to the residents of Greater South River City, there are plenty of pubs and bars nearby with happy hours and evening entertainment. On South Congress Avenue, both the Hotel San Jose and the Continental Club provide for a night's entertainments. Head to the hotel for cool drinks and tasty little dishes, or visit the club to enjoy an intimate setting with drink specials and popular Austin bands.

With a convenient commute across the Colorado River into downtown Austin, a quick trip provides for work or easy fun, but residents don't need to travel outside the Greater South River City area for all of their entertaining adventures.

Public Transportation includes the Capital Metro Bus and the Commuter Rail along with many other public transportation services around town that run about $1 to $1.50 per trip. Many have monthly and commuter pass options available. Given the various neighborhoods around the Greater South River City, sidewalks line the streets in the residential areas, and bikers enjoy bike lanes throughout all of Austin. Local businesses have their own private parking lots in Greater South River City, so drivers don't need to worry about parking fees when taking an evening out close to home.

With all of the open space available in Greater South River City, several small local parks with picnic and event areas provide activity space for the whole family. On Barton Springs Road, the Barton Creek Greenbelt makes various hiking and mountain biking trails available, and rock climbing and swimming holes along the paths make for fun-filled outdoor days.

Also in Barton Hills, Zilker Metropolitan Park provides plenty of open space for your own games as well as a disc golf course and kayak or canoe rentals. Zilker also serves as the location of the annual kite festival and has plenty of open space as your local dog park, ensuring that the entire family can easily attend a day out in the park.

The overall cost of living index in Greater South River City matches up with the costs in Austin in most areas, with the exception of housing at a rate of about 51 percent higher than in downtown, which brings the overall rate to about 15 percent above Austin's downtown cost of living. Included in this is the mean one-bedroom apartment rental rate of $1,458, but residents have access to a wide variety of housing options.

In Austin, gasoline prices in Greater South River City run at the same rate as the surrounding area, but it runs 22 percent less than the national average. Also, with plenty of bar and pub locations in Greater South River City, residents enjoy both local beers and brewery drafts for as low as $3, and many daily happy hour specials make for even better pricing.

Although Austin has many large grocery stores and other malls and shopping locations, several boutiques and independent retailers are available right in and around Greater South River City. Parts & Labour distinguishes itself as a local venue known for its variety of handmade objects by local artists, with clothing and jewelry in addition to artwork. Another store, Uncommon Objects, provides a vintage antique selection of innovative and eclectic pieces that hold the attention of all those who enter.

Although the large H-E-B grocery stores maintain a presence throughout the Austin area for grocery and pharmaceutical needs, many small markets are available within Greater South River City, including the River City Market, a store known for its specialty food and beverage options. There are also several other well-known small stores such as the Indian grocery and bar, Whip In, where music and happy hour specials complement its local specialty foods.