Maybe your flight got in late and even the restaurants at the airport were already closed. Maybe your job requires you to work odd hours and you can’t handle another night of PB&Js. Or maybe you just left East Sixth Street and need to inject some calories into your body other than gin and tonics. Austin isn’t exactly a destination for late-night dining, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck eating drive-thru Whataburger. While lots of restaurants and food trucks will stay open late on Friday and Saturday nights, these are a few spots where you can grab a bite after midnight (almost) any night of the week.
THE LATE-NIGHT SPOTS
The burger at Frazier’s is basically a McDonald’s cheeseburger that went to culinary school. Think smashed patties and steamed potato buns, plus all the usual fixings. It’s small enough that you can probably put down a couple, though we’d advise you to save some room for a side of frizzle fries—basically the lovechild of a curly fry and a potato wedge. And at just over $3 a burger, it’s hard not to find yourself wishing you were at Frazier’s instead of the drive-thru.
Kitchen open until 2am nightly
We’ve said some great things about the loaded fries, fried chicken sandwiches, and burgers at Golden Tiger, and yet the best thing about them is they stay open until 1:30am every night. It also doesn’t hurt that it’s conveniently parked at Whisler’s—East Austin’s original warehouse-turned-cocktail bar—in case you want an Old Fashioned to go with your meal.
Open until 1:30am nightly
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If you’ve ever driven by Rundberg and Lamar after dark, you’ve probably noticed a parking lot that’s almost packed to capacity. And part of that is the line of cars in the drive-thru line at El Tacorrido, another spot on this guide. But the rest of the crowd is here for Tacos El Charly, a cash-only taco trailer that doesn’t even open its doors (windows?) until 7pm. All the classic fillings are covered here, but the al pastor—cooked on a trompo—is the reason to keep coming back. Grab a seat at one of the folding tables in the parking lot after making it through the inevitable line (it moves very fast) and get comfortable. There’s live music most nights, and occasionally other vendors sell desserts.
Open from 7pm-1am Mon-Thu, 7pm-3am Fri-Sat, 7pm-2:30am Sun. Sometimes later.
Yellow Jacket is a dive bar, through and through. But their kitchen seems to have missed the memo, which means that in addition to cheap drinks, you’ll also be able to order things like mezze boards, roasted sweet potatoes with curry masala mayo, and a ham and gruyere sandwich that will probably creep into your dreams somehow. And all of it is available until 2am every night, so you’ll be able to grab something whether you’re midway through an East Side bar crawl, or wrapping up the night.
Kitchen open until 2am nightly
Casino El Camino is essentially a dive bar that slings excellent burgers, hot dogs, and wings. It’s that good kind of dark in here—your eyes might take a few minutes to adjust. You’ll probably spend that time waiting in line to order anyway because the “secret” that is Casino El Camino’s thick, char-grilled burgers is out. When you inevitably find yourself on Dirty 6th Street in downtown Austin, duck away here for some sustenance.
Kitchen open until 1:30am nightly
The fried chicken sandwich at The Little Darlin’ off William Cannon and South Congress is a classic done right—pairing a crispy fried chicken thigh with a bit of Duke’s mayo, a few slices of housemade pickles, and a small mound of sweet and sour coleslaw that adds some great texture and crunch to each bite. Of course, there’s also a full menu of burgers, sliders, salads, and more that we like to rotate into our orders every now and then. Or just make a night of it. The kitchen’s open until 2am nightly, so there’s plenty of time to work your way through a few different items.
Kitchen open until 2am nightly
You might get some confused looks if you announce you’re ordering from Delray Cafe, but just say “the food truck behind Nickel City” and eyes will light up. They’re background characters that deserve a more prominent role, with a menu made up of bar food classics like sliders, wings, coney dogs, and tater tots that all arrive looking like textbook-ready versions of themselves. Wings here are sold by the pound—if, like us, you’re not much of a chicken mathematician, that’s about six wings per pound. And all of it is available inside or outside of the bar until 2am every night.
Kitchen open until 2am nightly
Operating out of a little window in the Red River District, Hoboken Pie is a fast, reliable spot for a slice of pizza after a show. There are a few different slices, plus a large menu of specialty pies, cheesy breads, and salads, all available until 2:30am daily. That means you have exactly 30 minutes after the bars close to navigate through the crowds, load up on garlic knots, and end your night on a surprise with a slice of “pie maker’s choice.”
Open until 2:30am nightly
Located in a massive parking lot on North Lamar, Taqueria 7 Estrellas is where to go when you need some late-night tacos but are not quite done partying yet. On weekends, you'll find lively music and a line of people waiting for their turn to snag some excellent al pastor, bistec, and suadero tacos. Grab an agua fresca and as many tacos as you can take down (they’re pretty small), then find a spot at one of the long rows of plastic tables in front. The hours can be a bit wonky here and feel more like general guidelines than hours of operation, but most nights it’s open until 4am or later.
Open from about 6pm-4:30am Wed-Mon
There are very few foods that satisfy a drunken and/or late-night palate like a gyro, and the best spot on Rainey Street for some spit-roasted meat is Fresh Gyro Halal, a tiny food trailer with a footprint about the size of a small vending machine. But instead of dispensing an old bag of potato chips, here you’ll be leaving with a heaping mound of savory gyro meat in a pita, covered in spicy chili and cooling white sauce. You can also get it over rice and eat it with a fork if you want to, but that’s not nearly as much fun.
Open until 2am Tues-Thu, 3am Fri-Sat
While Stars probably won’t be winning any awards for its food anytime soon, it does take the coveted niche spot for “Best 24/7 Restaurant Near Campus” by default. This diner in a Days Inn parking lot has been feeding students pulling all-nighters and post-bar goers since the 1960s, previously as Star Seeds, before a change of ownership in late 2019. Expect to find classic diner dishes like breakfast plates, chicken fried steak, burgers, and quesadillas, plus a menu of sweet cocktails that you can order in 60 oz fishbowls.
Open 24/7
El Tacorrido has multiple locations around town, and more likely than not there will be a line of cars backed up in the drive-thru waiting to get their hands on excellent tacos, tortas, and gorditas. Options include just about every classic filling you can imagine inside of a tortilla (or bolillo), but pork is where El Tacorrido shines. We usually gravitate towards the revuelta—a mix of pork shoulder, skin, and stomach that’s everything craveable during the late hours of the night. And if you’re not ready to call it a night yet, you can also get breakfast tacos here all day long.
Open until 2am Mon-Thu, 3am Fri-Sun. Other locations may vary.
Tucked away in a fairly nondescript strip mall off Burnet Road, Nosh and Bevvy is a pretty classic British pub that feels like it could blend in perfectly in any small English town—red phone booths and all. Grab an order of fish and chips to see just how crispy fried fish can get, or try one of the many Indian curries offered nightly. Then, get comfortable in one of the many seating areas. This is very much a neighborhood bar that you’ll want to relax and unwind in for a bit.
Kitchen open until 2am nightly
Austin doesn’t have a ton of Korean pubs, but we do have Pocha Is Back, a late-night spot for fried chicken, soju, and volcano kimchi fried rice with cheese. Show up early in the night if you’re just coming in for a chill dinner—the later the night gets, the rowdier and busier the space gets inside. The prices are a little on the high end here, but the dining room is pretty small so consider it just the price of semi-exclusive admission. And if you want to keep the party going after Pocha Is Back closes, head next door to Austin Karaoke, usually open an hour or two later.
Open until 1am Mon-Fri, 2am Sat
Sap's is probably the only spot in Austin where you can find pad see ew, kao soi, and crab fried rice when the craving strikes at two in the morning. The menu is massive here, and covers just about every Thai dish we can think of, but if you’re unsure where to start, we’re big fans of the noodle soups and stir-fried noodles here. At the end, make sure to order some homemade ice cream—there’s a roasted peanut flavor that you won’t find anywhere else in town.
Open until 3am nightly
