Home > The M.O. > Archives > 2008 > February > 20 > Entry
Your A-List: Best Neighborhood Hangout
With 12 percent of the vote, the Mean Eyed Cat narrowly edged out a slew of others, including Pluckers, Spiderhouse, and Crown and Anchor. Even the write-ins made some noise in this category, with eastside lounging spot Rio Rita placing in the top 10 thanks to a write-in campaign.
The rustic shack situated on West Fifth Street was the dream of Chris Marsh, a seasoned veteran of the Austin restaurant scene, having worked at Maudie’s for a decade. As any Johnny Cash devotee worth his or her salt could tell you, the bar’s name is a reference to one of the Man in Black’s early Sun Records recordings. Marsh was introduced to the rebel musings of the American legend by his beloved father, and the bar is not just a shrine to Cash but a tribute to the man who initiated Nash into the life and music of the outlaw artist.
With a backyard built for hanging out on hot summer days and starry evenings with a cold (and relatively cheap) bottle (or can) of beer, a cozy inside bar with an excellent jukebox — which features not just music by Cash — and live music almost every night of the week, the Mean Eyed Cat may have been born in 2004, but it has a soul that dates back to the 50s.
Even amid all the development occurring downtown and just west of downtown, the Mean Eyed Cat has found a way to survive. Last year, Dallas-based Direct Development announced they would be building condos on the adjacent lot, but instead of running the Cat off the porch, the plan has been to allow the Mean Eyed Cat to stay where it is, a built-in drinking hole for residents, it seems. Looks like those hanging out at the Cat just got a little more company. And that’s probably just fine by the friendly Marsh, who is known for being a welcoming host to all comers.
Mean Eyed Cat [site]
1621 W. Fifth St.
472.6326
Others receiving votes
- Pluckers, 10 percent
- Spiderhouse, 9 percent
- Crown and Anchor, 8 percent
- Hotel San Jose, 8 percent
- Doc’s, 8 percent
- Deep Eddy Cabaret, 7 percent
- Rio Rita (write-in), 6 percent
- Billy’s on Burnet, 6 percent
- Horseshoe Lounge, 5 percent
- Jo’s, 4 percent
- Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse, 3 percent
- Posse East, 3 percent
- Cain and Abel’s, 2 percent
- Longbranch Inn, 2 percent
- Flipnotics, 2percent
- Quack’s, 1 percent
- Progress Coffee, 1 percent
- Joe’s Bar and Grill, < 1 percent
- Peacock, < 1 percent
- Red’s Scoot Inn, < 1 percent
Write-ins: Barfly’s, Buster’s Barbecue, Dry Creek Cafe, Draught House, Flight Path, Hot Mama’s, Nau’s Pharmacy, Parmer Lane Tavern, Poodie’s, Sao Paulo and Upper Crust
Photo of Mean Eyed Cat by Jay Janner/AMERICAN-STATESMAN
Permalink | Comments (2) | Categories: Your A-List
Comments
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By Sammy
February 21, 2008 9:50 AM | Link to this
srsly? Pluckers? Pshaw.
By adi
February 27, 2008 12:36 PM | Link to this
darn it, no Parlor mention! i am always late to these!