Neighborhood campus old dive bar. Good music. Awesome pricing. Friendly staff. Parking is sub par.. because it's on campus on the drag so you have to find what you can nearby. read more

See all

Flew in from CA to see one our favorite bands perform here! Walking in, we were IDed and then immediately headed to the bar. They had numerous beers. Decent pricing. There was a Photo Booth, a vending machine for smokes, indoor stage, and outdoor patio. Not much to say since we were there for a few hours listening to music. Loved every second of it. Loved the graffiti and enjoyed the aesthetics of the place. Would love to come back for more performances! Thanks for having us! read more

Hole in the Wall - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

See all

Hole in one! A Hole lotta fun... This bar seems to be the place Bob Dylan comes to hang out at when he's in town. There's a mural dedicated to him out in the alley. This iconic bar has been around forever! You can tell that it's seen its fill of celebrities. There's a stage upfront and one in the back. There's a beer garden area, and an outdoor smoking patio. All, in all, it's a nice bar! The drinks were cold, and cheap! They offer Lone Star Beer, of course. There's large screen televisions, which are convenient to watch the game. The staff was friendly enough. They brought out the beers quickly, and opened them up. Every time I've been in this place, they've had a live band jamming out. Sometimes there's a cover late night. Parking can be a challenge along the Drag. Plan accordingly. read more

Come, enjoy by hanging a sip of non spirits along with a tumbler later on. If I were in my twenties again, I would be a Jefe every week. Live music, a slot of fun and an ambiance that will set you at ease. How do you unwind, spend in evening with Gnarly Sacs, Ivy Wilkinson and others. read more

Hole in the Wall - For the love of being audiophile! - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

The Hole In The Wall is a legendary venue in Austin. My band just played there on Thurs. Oct. 23rd. Great crowd, great bar. Would recommend it. read more

The system was down the whole time I was there and I could not order a drink. Does not function as a bar.

One of old Austin's original live music hotspots. Great service and friendly crowd. Their kitchen was not open, but we enjoyed the live music venue. Great amount of parking within walking distance (garages, paytopark) or bus stops. There's more room and stages inside than expected. read more

Hole in the Wall - porch stage - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

Solid pours Dingy Sticky bar Okay music Dive bar Friendly bartender Nice musicians Fun afternoon with open mic read more

We went to Hole in the Wall before going to a show at Mohawk. The bartender, Darrell, is so freaking cool. He's our friend now, whether he knows it or not. Hole in the Wall has never been busy the few times we've been. It's one of the coolest spots to stop in for a pre-show drink. Highly recommend saying hi and talking to Darrell! read more

See all

Great dive bar. And when I say dive it is just that. Cheap beer and questionable cocktails. Awesome music and a weird vibe. One of the last great bars in Austin. read more

Hole in the Wall - Great dive bar. - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

I was a regular patron 1976 to 1979. Really enjoyed the music and food. There used to be a killer chicken fried steak sandwich, I think it was called an Elpha Gator? Something like that. Anyway it is great to know the place is still around. read more

A cute and fun venue that is appropriately named. Decent bar service and loved the little photo booth. Would definitely come back if I'm in Austin again. read more

Hole in the Wall - From Indian Lakes performance - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

My first review was to gate keep this place. Great music. Shit drinks. Cool bartenders. Everything you could need from a hometown-run down bar. read more

Hole in the Wall - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

See all

KARAOKE is BACK 6 nights a week starting at 10pm... The staff is kind, the KJs are top notch. And the place is not too crowded so you can get in plenty of songs Tuesday through Sunday. Piper is the best bartender and Travis the KJ has an awesome voice. Check them out! read more

Ok this place is the best!! Some of the best live music in ATX! If I lived here it would be my regular spot. Great layout with two rooms. Amazingly friendly staff who genuinely welcome you into their home that is Hope in the Wall! Drinks are cheap and good. Awesome beer selection. Perfection. read more

See all

Good dive bar. Always a live show going on during weekdays plus karaoke on weekends. Check in advance whos playing and if theres a cover. The bar is pretty big and has 4 main areas. There are two bars in the front each with a stage. Then there is an outdoor patio and a bar in the back. The bars in the front have a better selection of drinks. The patio is the best place to have a conversation. Usually theyll have karaoke and a band going on simultaneously. In terms of food, buffalo cauliflower and burgers are good. Its pretty standard bar food though. They have good week night specials in terms of drinks. read more

Hole in the Wall - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

Love the Hole. Started going here 35 years ago and recommend it to everyone in town on business or for fun. Great music, cold beer and lots of pool tables. read more

Located on Guadalupe across from the university this place is the best place to get away from he summer heat for a cool brew that will give you time away from all the tourists or locals . in fact it was not over crowded for happy hour 3-8 pm i believe and the music was amazing . Doesn't conform to today's standards of posh . More how a band would frequent to allow creative juices to flow for lyrics. Great venue for bands too! Wish it had more choice beers on tap though ! read more

Hole in the Wall - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

My favorite music venue in Austin Tx. The legends have played here and one of the pieces of Austin we still get to savor despite the profession and gentrification read more

Sorry, Hole in the Wall. I gave you honest feedback and left you 2* explaining it just wasn't my kind of place. I thought I was pretty diplomatic and explained why I didn't like it. This is Yelp, I'm entitled to my opinion. BUT one of your bartenders, Cam, decided to take it personally and leave me a Yelp comment saying that "perhaps Austin isn't the place for you" if I can't support local musicians. I'm happy to support local musicians, and if a bar wants to charge a cover fee for a concert, they're welcome to and I'll make my decision to go in or not go in based on that. But if you have no cover, you shouldn't try to shake down your patrons for donations. Ask for donations, by all means, but don't give a customer a guilt trip. That's part of the reason you got a 2* review. Perhaps learn from the feedback and educate your door staff to not be so pushy? I never called out a staff member by name or disparaged anyone. Cam, why are you taking it upon yourself to respond to Yelp reviews? Are you also the bar's marketing manager? If so, I recommend rather than trying to run bad reviewers out of Austin, how about responding with something like, "Sorry you didn't have a great time at our bar. We have a lot of different bands play here, next time you're in town come back around and check out the talent and say hi to me at the bar, maybe it'll be more your speed!" read more

What makes Hole in the Wall special is not the state of the bathrooms (rough) or the weird back-bar which you enter through a broken fire door, or that the drinks are a little expensive for a dive. What's special is that Hole in the Wall has the highest amount of character a dive bar can possibly attain. It has reached the peak. The bartenders are (with one or two unpleasant exceptions) friendly. They all know how to make a cocktail (without any exceptions) and the food you can get at the back-bar is better than any bar food has a right to be. If you don't like dives, avoid it. But if you do, you can't get much better. read more

We were staying in Austin and wanted to check out some music. After looking up bands playing, the one at Hole In the Wall seemed perfect for our taste. We arrived a tad early and a small group was there so we sat at the bar. The bartenders were extremely friendly and recommended great choices in drinks. The band started quite late past the posted start time but their set was great. Parking was easy to find on the street a block away Prices were good - it was a small cover for the band Go for the music, stay for the friendly bar atmosphere read more

Great music. Great food. Great drinks. And did you know about Liquid Death? Great water bro. read more

See all

Dear Hole in the Wall, I strive to be a fair man. Although you aren't likely to ever be my favorite place, I did complain in my original review about the shitty food options and the sun-scorched patio with no real means of shade, and you've since added those triangular sun shades that all the kids are into these days and I totally dig the new Japanese street food place so much more than the salty ramen nastiness and high prices of East Side Kings. So, if you can change, Hole, so can I, at least into a three-star reviewer. read more

I've had a long on-going love/hate relationship with The Hole. Some smart guy once said, ""The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function." Well I must be pretty intelligent then, because when I think of the Hole in the Wall I think two things at the same time: 1. I hate the Hole in the Wall 2. I love the Hole in the Wall Let me try to explain. I used to get paid at The Hole. I was working for a masonry company as a hodman, and if we got paid on time, it was in cash at my boss's regular Friday table at The Hole. So here I am a 20 year old college drop out, getting paid weekly in cash at a bar. To top that, there were these evil women there that adored my Adonis looking co-worker, and knew very well that he/we got paid in cash every Friday. So after a few months (yeah months, I never said I was a smart man) of blowing a week's worth of work, Fridays at The Hole, my goal became getting the hell out of The hole as quickly as possible. But I would always return, some time later in the week. The music was just too good. The drinks just too cheap. There used to be great words of wisdom written on the bathroom walls. "No matter how good looking she is, someone somewhere is sick of her shit." Plus my favorite written on the condom machine, "This gum tastes like rubber." "Go home dad your drunk," written under "Your Mom sucks blankty blank!" Hey they are cliches now, but you have to read them somewhere first for them to become cliches. I read them first at The Hole. For the most part, even through multiple owners, some great, some not so good, it has always been about the music at the Hole in the Wall. I cannot count the number of bands I've seen there, some great, some not so good. Some, however, were just wonderful, and constitute some of my favorite musical memories. Way back in Aught-one, I went back to school at UT, to finish my degree. I would pop over after class and work and sit in the window at The Hole and study. Ole Brooks, would mix me a mean Gin and Tonic in the summer, and even nicer whiskey and nothing in the winter. I would just read and watch the people go by on the drag. When the music started around 7pm at the Hole, I'd wander down to the Showdown and finish reading. The tiny kitchen behind the bar used to make this wonderful sandwich, "The Reality." It was a chicken fried steak sandwich with Jalapenos. It was wonderful. They used to have "STUDENT TOWNIE MIXERS" hysterical. I met one of my all time favorite people there, "C" who was a waitress at The Hole, and later a bartender, then a bartender at my Showdown. She's good people. So was "N" who I miss. The Hole went through some tough times, changes in ownership, a period when it was closed, a pizza period. I'm glad it has stayed around though. I don't make it there much anymore, usually we just pop up from the Showdown for little drinks. To quote from a friend and a Hole institurion: "The stress of life and love that I want to leave behind The little things in life are what I do enjoy The problem is that to take them I must stay employed Little Drinks, Oh Little Drinks How I love you so" The Hole has a little edge, it may not be for everyone, and people are there to drink. There can be an unsavory crowd at times as well, and when unsavory people drink, unsavory things can happen, and have. Not really to me, but to some of my friends. Hence some of the hate. I think under this relatively new management, the Hole may survive. I hope it does, it is an Austin, and a Live Music institution. Go see it soon. (They have food until midnight, and parking is hard - it is near campus, so take the bus or a cab, probably better anyways.) read more

On one of my many trips to Austin, I came here to meet up with my friend Simon who flew all the way from Australia/New Zealand to catch up! It was so nice to see and hear a familiar face and accent! We decided to meet up here to start our Monday night off in Austin, yes; Monday night. Who goes out drinking till 2am on Monday you say? We Kiwis sure did. I arrived way before my friend did, so I sat at the bar, ordered a glass of water and it wasn't long until I had company from the bartender and the locals; free drinks! They were so friendly and got to talking about where I'm from. 1 hour later, my friend Simon decides to join and we sat at the back outside area where fairy lights lit the place up. We stayed here for awhile and caught up with each other and our travels around the USA/world. While we caught up, we both had an epiphany where we both took deep breaths and soaked in the fact that 3/4years ago we were sat next to each other in our Economics class at University or 1 year ago we were at some pretentious bar/club in Britomart dancing the night away... and at present, there we were in Austin, TEXAS, of all places, halfway around the world having a drink at a dingy bar. It was nice. We stayed at Hole in the Wall for awhile before heading to Dirty Six as the drinks were stinking cheap, especially on a Monday! If you've ever gone for a night out in Auckland, you'd find that you'd pay around $16-$18 for a cocktail... at Hole in the Wall; we ordered 1 beer, 1 gin & tonic and 2 shots for a measly $15! What a great time! We loved it! read more

Hole in the Wall - Simon and I at Hole in the Wall, Austin. - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

Nostalgia is what comes to mind when Mr. Smidgens thinks of the Hole in The Wall! I used come here in my younger days. Meeting up with friends and making new ones. Funny thing is, I do that to this day. Talking to strangers, especially if they have candy! *WINK* Happy Hour is 4 to 7pm during the week and they have local artists playing the front stage whilst you drink your poison of choice. You can hang out in the back and catch evening bands starting at 8pm. You can even get some tasty fried beets from East Side King who are housed inside! ! Yummers!!!! I just blew your mind I know. So, head on down to the Hole and you just might have a Mr. Smidgens sighting! I'll see you in your dreams. .. read more

Hole in the Wall - Happy Friday! - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

I am not a vegan. That being said, I was fully prepared to hate this place on sheer principal, but damn it, it was pretty darn tasty. I got the faux chicken tacos, which more or less had a similar consistency of egg or soft ground chicken. The taco it self was built like a fish taco with a spicy mayo, and a slaw of lettuce with lots of vegetables. Whatever, it was good, it gets 5 stars because I was very surprised that I didn't hate it as I do with most vegan faux meats and cheeses. Would a regular meat taco be better? Yes of course, however, I have had worse real tacos. If you are at Hole in the Wall, it is worth getting. The tater tots are on point. read more

Maybe it's more that this just isn't my kind of place, but I didn't really have that great of a time here for a few reasons. Indications online are that the cover charge would be $2-3 and I didn't see anything prominent on their site saying otherwise. When we got there it ended up being $5/each to get in. I understand it's "for the bands" and whatever, but it's not really conducive to checking a place out. The main issue I had was with one particular bartender who didn't seem to want to be there at all and I doubt had any prior bartending experience. I ordered a whiskey on the rocks for me and a cherry vodka sour for my girlfriend, and we somehow ended up with two beers. Then after he "fixed" it I ended up with a half glass of whiskey, and she ended up with something resembling a vodka tonic (we had to get another bartender to add some grenadine). Luckily the drinks are cheap ($3 for the well whiskey and about $4.50 for the fake CVS). The only band we really saw was Shaolin Death Squad, which was pretty interesting. They were pretty okay and we stayed to watch for a little while. Overall visit: worth $19 for a meh drink and 15 minutes of band? Probably not. YMMV. read more

Maybe it's just urban legend at this point, but when Britt Daniel starts into the Spoon song "Anything You Want", he tells his former lady to "come on back, cause it's all still here -- I'll be in the back room drinking my half of the beer", you can be pretty damn sure he means the back room of the Hole In The Wall. (*) The recent smoking laws meant that this already amazing bar has actually improved itself with an outdoor patio, a huge shuffleboard table, and a much more enticing feel. There's rarely a cover (except for big shows and benefits) and drinks are cheap. Its scary facade used to keep away the frat boys, but the word seems to be out among the hipster crowd. Still has some good western and old Austin flavor, though, especially for a bar so close to the UT campus. (*) Austin Local Lore disclaimer: there was also a good time to be had at the Back Room, out on Riverside, but I'm still betting that the Hole in the Wall factored in, along with waiting on a light on the corner by Sound Exchange. read more

Hole in the Wall - Music Venues Near Me - Austin, Texas

The Hole is one of the few pre-boom Austin bars that's still alive and living in the same place where it was born in 1974, right across from the UT College of Communications on the Drag. And yes, it's a dive bar and has never been updated. This is part of its charm. Some people have been coming here for years, because we're UT alums. It looks tiny from the outside, but actually only the front bar area is small. They put bands in the window during Happy Hour (4-7), which can also be misleading, and it's always loud unless they're acoustic. There are plenty of tables in the front area. Happy hour specials are limited, but drinks are fairly cheap anyway, so I never go with the specials. The back room is much larger and has its own bar, and shows back there start at 8. Bring earplugs. There's room to stand or dance. Since Austin doesn't allow smoking indoors, smokers will duck out back onto the patio. That pretty much ruins the fresh air experience you may have been expecting. If you continue farther though, past the smoking area, you'll come to East Side King restaurant. The bar area allows food back inside, so you can grab something to eat and return if you want. We usually go back and forth regularly. If you paid a cover, make sure your hand is stamped before you go out, because people try to sneak in through the back entrance, and they'll check. Bathrooms are a bit dicey and so is parking, but that's to be expected in this area. There's a tiny parking lot in back but there are towing signs and I'm never exactly sure what the rules are, so we just hunt on the nearby streets until we find an open space without a parking restriction. Read nearby signs carefully to avoid tickets. Shows at the Hole are advertised on the marquis and chalkboard outside, but also on the Calendar page on their website. You can also read about some of their history on the "Inside the Hole link," which is fairly entertaining. Happy 40th to the Hole this year. Here's to 40 more. read more

So I ended up coming here on my 30th birthday in the hopes of meeting a tinder date for karaoke. Well, I got stood up, and still ended up having one of the best nights out solo I've ever had. There was a group sitting in the corner that sang German wwii propaganda songs, the KJ was singing hilarious bangers. Campbell, one of the bartenders, made my night. He served up drinks, cracked some jokes, showed some sympathy, sang some tunes, and just ended up making my night great. This is my new favorite karaoke spot, and I'm excited to start coming here on the regular. read more

I would like to add that it's been four months since I posted my review and NOT ONE response from the company. I did however get a snarky response from the bartender in question, Campbell. I wonder if the company is just that clueless? Maybe they just have that much of an ego that they don't mind losing business? Wow, can't wait to keep avoiding this place. read more

Good vibes and good live music. Cool little outdoor area too with a pool table. Super chill spot

This place is soooo much fun! The Karaoke part is the best. Go here for fun and cheap drinks

My friend and I went to Hole In the Wall groups were performing at Austin over the weekend and it was amazing! We wondered why we haven't been to a show here before and while there went on their site to look at upcoming shows, and booked another one! We went early so we could also try the food. If you go to a 7pm show, they open the doors at 5pm so you can go in and hang out at your seat, having some eats & drinks. No draft beer, but they had a good selection of bottled & canned craft beers for $7 a pop...Founders Dirty Bastard, Warpigs Lazurite IPA, FFF Alpha King, Epic Tart N Juicy Sour, Spiteful Working for the Weekend - just to name a few. Our server was always there when we needed to order something, well informed and decently friendly making for a good eat in experience. The Burrata was excellent! We ended our feast with the Salted Candy Bar dessert that had milk chocolate ganache, salted pretzel croquant, black fudge sauce, almond nougat and fudge cake. Indulgent and enjoyable with allthe chocolate goodness melding quite well together. All in all food wise, loved the burrata, enjoyed the dessert, but I'd probably skip having a full meal here pre-show in the future. Now seeing a show here? It's ideal. Amazing sound and there's no bad seat in the house but seeing an artist you like in the front seats is UNREAL! It's such an intimate venue so I just fell in love with it. As I mentioned, we've already booked tickets to go back! read more

Yo! This place will rock yo face off! It's exactly what it needs to be and has been for about one million years!

Front bar: awesome. Middle bar: great music and bar Back (karaoke) bar: utter disappointment I moved here a few months ago and my coworkers told me this was THE place to go for karaoke. We planned our evening a week in advance and all we wanted to do was sing. The place was dead on a Friday night. Including the three of us, there were maybe 10-12 people including bartender and Dj. We put our names on the list with 4 people ahead of us. An hour and 15 min go by and I'm watching the same 5-6 people doing drunken versions of their favorites but never hear any of our names. I ask the Dj, after seeing a new list of three people without our names anywhere, and he tells me that if we wanna song we should have tipped him a $20 like all the people that went ahead of us. He tells us that tips are the only money he makes there, and if we don't tip, we don't sing. He then assured us we will go on next, this time, but in the future we have to pay per song if we don't wanna be skipped. Three songs later and of course, no mention of our names. I ask the bartender what the deal is and he tells me that's just how it is. So, instead of staying and spending more money on drinks, we left. I will never go back there. Completely ridiculous and disappointing for all of us. So much for the best karaoke in Austin. read more

The hole in the wall can be anything you want it to be. Music, karaoke, good times, they have it all. They should get tipped way more!

Your typical grunge bar; photo booth is fun and the two guys playing guitar there were very talented. I wore my coat the whole time because the door was open and it was freezing out. Some college chicks were in the corner stacking up their shot glasses and taking pictures and the bartender kept yelling at people "no politics at the bar." read more