Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2009 > January > 21
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Out & About Social Schedule Jan. 21-26
OK, now that the inauguration is over… I’m trying to keep the commitments to a minimum.
6 p.m. Social Columnists Happy Hour at El Rey
(There’s also a Chinese New Year Celebration at Kenobi Restaurant and Sushi Bar that we’ll unfortunately miss because of this conflict.)
Jan. 22
11:30 a.m. Texas Medal of Arts Awards luncheon at the Austin City Limits stage
6:30 p.m. GIM Fundraiser with Patty Griffin at Gibson Guitar Showroom
Jan. 23
6:30 pm. Bass Concert Hall opening party with John Legend
10 p.m. DJ Vice with DJ Kurupt at Pangaea
Jan. 24
6 p.m. Vintage Lounge (new on Trinity Street)
8 p.m. Prohibition Party to benefit Lone Star Paralysis at the Caswell House
10 p.m. Athens vs. Sparta at the Cactus Cafe
Jan. 25
5 p.m. One World Gala with Michael McDonald
Jan. 26
7 p.m. Chinese New Year Celebration at Imperia
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Your A-List, Best New Addition to Austin’s Nightlife Scene
Giving Cissi’s a run for its money was the rooftop oasis on Congress and Fifth, Lanai. You know, the one with all the diaphanous fabric and the feel of a tropical resort, even in winter. It heated up 30 percent. Mulberry, the compact, urban wine bar in the 360 Tower, served up a respectable 4 percent, followed closely by the intriguing Beso Cantina on West Fifth Street.
Annie’s West, a spacious, classy add to West Sixth Street, tied with Rusty Spurs, the country-themed gay bar on East Seventh. Uncorked, the wine bar in a former house/restaurant on East Seventh, followed right behind with 2 percent — almost matched by the burlesque-themed Aces Lounge on East Sixth Street.
Black & Tan, a promising spot on East Seventh with a mixed pubic persona, Blu, Malaia, Taste, Mint Terrance and House Wine wound up the list. Note that five of the contenders are wine bars!
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Your A-List: Best Pick-Up Bar
We have to be careful reporting on this A-list category. The whole idea of “pick-up bars” and “pick-up artists” is patently offensive to some readers. We prefer, instead, to let people make the own social choices, if even they don’t always comport with a generalized opinion about responsible behavior.
The Belmont, Lucky Lounge, J. Black’s and Union Park all scored between 8 and 9 percent of the tally. Pangaea, Rain, Cuba Libre, Fado (reallly?), Six and Vicci filled the third tier with between 4 and 6 percent. Gruv, The Marq and Betsy’s Bar trailed with 3 percent or under.
For those who enjoy finding and being found, happy hunting!
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Obama Inauguration Day 15
The last of 10 inauguration parties that I attended on Jan. 20 might have been the best, if festivity is the litmus test. I didn’t stay until the salty end.
City Council Member Bruce McCracken, Austin Adams
The Bush Retirement Party at Antone’s proved the most partisan event of the day, with a shoe-tossing target out on the sidewalk and Democratic officeholders, past and present, thick on the floor. Travis County Democratic Chairman Andy Brown was able to pack the place — and a reportedly more elegant matching gala at the Driskill Hotel on Saturday — partly through social media. He’s learned how to energize the body politic through Facebook, etc. Oh, and he raised $50,000.
Beto Lilly, Veronica Bernal, Haya Alaxan
Democratic regulars Ann Kitchen and Nona Niland expressed wonder at all the unfamiliar faces in the crowd. Would they continue to remain engaged in politics after the bloom is off the Obama rose, they asked. The service aspect of so many of the events over the four-day weekend suggest so.
Nona Niland, Ann Kitchen
Veteran comedian and Bush impersonator Kerry Awn got in some final kicks, well-practiced from his Esther’s Follies years. Yet some partiers expressed sympathy for the ex-prez and even admiration for the way he left office. My social engagement with Inauguration Day ended with the blazing sounds of the Heartless Bastards, whose tone matched the mood of the remaining brood.
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Obama Inauguration Day 14
Union Park, like its brethren on West Sixth Street — Molotov, Annie’s West, J. Black’s, Star Bar, Little Woodrow’s, Key Bar, Opal Divine’s, Mother Egan’s — generously opens its social wonders to the street. Walking to my 10th Obama Day party, I recalled that the capacious, two-story Union Park was hosting an inaugural bash with the GeekAustin group.
James Setaro, Jenn Deering Davis
So I dropped in. By this time — 10 p.m. — this collection of people from the tech industry were well into revelry mode. The only sign of geekiness that I witnessed was a screen projected on one of the bar’s back walls with some sort of geeky controls. (I couldn’t get close enough to decipher.) Oh, that and the electronica act playing up front.
Noelle Davis, Nathan Batiste
What ambushed me as I greeted the guys and gals of GeekAustin was that everyone seemed to know who I was. They had friended me on Facebook or were following my micro-blogs on Twitter. Jenn Deering Davis, chief of community experience for Appozite, had even been following my party circuit all that Inauguration Day.
Karen Ngo, Steve Odom, Brian Smith
My conversation partners also demonstrated familiarity with Statesman writers Omar Gallaga and Addie Broyles through their online personae. One expressed mild shock that our Old Media outlet had infiltrated social media so quickly and thoroughly. My only guess: The technology fits our personalities and reporting habits.
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Obama Inauguration Day 13
Robin Jordan and Jason Williams toasted Obama Day with an extra dash of service. They raised more than $1,000 for diabetes causes by throwing a two-purpose, grassroots party at J. Black’s.
Jason Williams, Robin Jordan
You see, Jordan’s church, Gateway, distributed monetary challenges in the range of $5 to $300. Jordan was told to turn her $20 into service of some kind. Her friend, Williams, suggested a diabetes theme because he had watched Jordan struggle with it.
Cheryl Cohee, Robin Jordan, Nathan Smith, Frank Jordan
So they jumped on FaceBook and did what thousands of other Austinites — and many more Americans — are doing these days: Making a difference one small increment at a time. Their Jan. 20 event was organized around old-fashioned raffle tickets, which more than 100 guests snapped up, especially since the top prize was a signed photo of — who else? — President Barack Obama.
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