Day Trip to Taylor

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Taylor Distilled into a 24 Hour Visit: We are Local Grocer, a small independent grocery store that we feel is worth a day trip from Austin, a justified trip all by itself.  We know you will love our personal touch and curated grocery selection. In case you need more convincing here are 10 other destinations that further justify your trip up from Austin for the perfect day trip.

 Doug Moss grew up in Taylor, spent 32 years as an architect in New York City, then came home and turned the old First Presbyterian fellowship hall into eleven hotel rooms, no two alike. Each room has custom wallpaper by Austin artist B. Shawn Cox, and the whole place is walking distance to every stop on this trip. Stay Friday night and give Taylor your whole Saturday with this as your homebase.

 Billy and Tasha Wiginton started out roasting beans during the pandemic and selling them at farmers markets, and now they air-roast everything in-house at their shop downtown. The whole concept draws on Billy's Mexican and Texan roots, and their slogan is "good coffee for all people." Make it your first stop the morning after the Pocket Hotel and order the Armadillo Latte.

 Leisha Dowers bakes pastry that is competitive with Bouchon, and if you arrive an hour after opening most of the case will be sold out. Don't worry, her menu of sandwiches and lunch items will still blow you away, and we recommend the Friday night bites with a cheese and charcuterie tray. If you want a pastry, be there when she unlocks the door. This is seriously a world class bakery.

 Grant Lewis runs this cocktail lounge with his wife Jennifer, a longtime mixologist, inside Old Taylor High, which was built in 1922. The real fun is finding the speakeasy hidden behind a bookcase, Edgar Allan Poe theme and all, and Dale and John behind the bar are great. Grant's margaritas have won awards two years running, and his paloma might be even better.

 Jessie and Betsy own this quirky cafe that feels like the old "Keep Austin Weird" days landed in downtown Taylor, murals and all. Come for the Flavor Bomb sandwiches and a Miso Happy Latte made with house-made miso syrup. You will know Jessie when you meet him.

Naomi Park built her menu around her grandmother's simmered soy sauce, the kind neighbors back in Korea would line up for. Her restaurant sits in the old Taylor High gymnasium, or as she puts it, "a gem in a gym." Get the bibimbap, and check her calendar before you come; once a month she fires up the charcoal for Korean BBQ day.

 Wayne Mueller is the third generation of his family to run the pits here since 1949, and the smoke-blackened walls are the proof. The James Beard Foundation calls this place an American Classic; everybody else calls it the cathedral of smoke. Order the beef rib and get there early.

 Reverend James Davis Jr. is a Taylor native and a Baptist minister, though plenty of folks will tell you his true ministry is the mesquite pits behind his little grocery. It's a small place, takeout only, so grab the pork steak or the mutton with his Come Back Juice sauce and find a picnic table. He has been at it since 1994 and there is nothing else like it.

 Mark and Kirsten stock the kind of craft beer people drive out from Austin for; when they landed one of only two area allocations of Cantillon, the line formed before open and it sold out within the hour. DIPA, TIPA, wild ales, and natural wine. Get your dank on here, hop nerds.

 Chet Bigon runs this old Conoco station turned ice house, which has been pouring for Taylor since 1977. It's the best place in town to meet Taylor locals, with no-frills beers on tap and and White Claw in cans and a homemade ranch worth the trip on its own. Just don't try to order a fancy wine here.