As Austin commercial real estate values—particularly in the city center—continue to soar, the demise of beloved local businesses has become a sad but familiar happening. This is especially true in the restaurant business, as establishments that may be popular but operate on thin profit margins are unable to keep pace with skyrocketing rents and demands from property owners tempted by offers from developers.
Summer 2018 saw the closing of The Frisco, the last outpost of the historic Night Hawk diner chain. Founded in 1932 by Harry Akin (who also served as Austin’s mayor in the late ’60s) and located at the corner of Congress Avenue and Riverside Drive, the original Night Hawk proved popular enough for Akin to eventually open seven restaurants in Austin, San Antonio and Houston, as well as launch a line of frozen dinners. Akin was also known for his pioneering efforts to break racial segregation and gender discrimination barriers by hiring minorities and women, and in 1959, by integrating his clientele by welcoming black customers. The Frisco opened at the corner of Burnet Road and Koenig Lane in 1953, where it remained until 2008 when it moved nearby to 6801 Burnet before ending its 65-year run this past July.
South Austin home cooking staple Hill’s Café (located at 4700 South Congress) opened in 1947 and remained a favorite spot for chicken fried steak until shutting its doors in 1989, only to be resurrected in 2001. But earlier in September, Hill’s closed down again. The site of the restaurant is slated for a new mixed-use development, although there are reports that the restaurant will reopen at another location nearby as part of a different mixed-use project.
Most recently, Threadgill’s owner Eddie Wilson announced that the beloved South Austin location at 301 West Riverside will close some time after Thanksgiving. Though Wilson had been fighting to keep the location open for several years, the combination of rising rents, insurance and property taxes made it no longer feasible. With the lot across the street (where Hooter’s is located) planned to be the site of a new high-rise, it’s expected that something similar will happen on the current Threadgill’s site.
The original Threadgill’s, located at 6416 North Lamar Blvd, will remain open and preserve the legacy of its namesake, Kenneth Threadgill. That location began as a gas station and beer joint in 1933 until Threadgill turned it into a music venue that welcomed, among others, a young UT student named Janis Joplin. Wilson took over in 1981 and expanded the business into a restaurant with a theme that celebrates Austin between the 1930s and ’60s.
In 1996, Wilson opened the south location, which is on the site of the former Armadillo World Headquarters, the legendary music venue that Wilson ran during the 1970s and that holds a fabled spot in the city’s live music legacy. The Armadillo was renowned as the birthplace of the so-called “cosmic cowboy” style embodied by Willie Nelson, but it hosted everything from psychedelic bands to blues legends to punk bands.
With the closing of Threadgill’s World Headquarters scheduled for November 30, South Austin not only loses a favored eating spot, but also a notable live music hub and home to an expansive collection of memorabilia from the Armadillo. Be sure to stop by for (at least) one last dinner at this iconic Austin restaurant.
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