Burnet Rd, Wooten

Most people either don't know where Burnet is or write off the entire town north of UT campus as uncool. When I first moved to the Burnet area, I was really surprised by how many cool things there are up and down the street. There has to be at least 10 thrift and vintage shops within a mile of each other, ranging from high end to run of the mill. Cool eateries like the Omlettry and Wok N Roll have tons of street cred at a reasonable price. Just off the road is a public library that used to be an old movie theater. The Burnet Road Self Storage used to be a drive-in movie theater. Lots of 1950's kitsch chic. Although when I first moved here, it was super cheap, it has recently gotten more expensive as developers have moved in and flipped houses.

South Congress tends to get all the credit for keeping Austin weird, but if you like Austin weirdness without the taint of gentrification, Burnet Road is your spot. Driving up and down this street will give you a taste of what makes Austin great - garish signs, funky second hand stores, and lots of nondescript dive bars with decades of stories locked within their smoky walls.

My favorite thing about this street is when you head north up it, many of the stores have giant novelty items atop them: for example, a light bulb and a trophy for stores selling those items. I wanted to take photos of all of them, but never got around to it. There are many interesting resale/vintage stores along this stretch, and also some good restaurants, too. This road, however, does have a lot of traffic on it, and it's a little run down. But it's oh so Austin!