Girl Walks Into A Bar: Secret Hideaways

We explore two cocktail spots tucked away in the heart of the city.

By April Cumming

In a city where it’s becoming less simple to find a crevice to call your own, there’s an ongoing quest to discover a sense of place, preferably one that serves alcohol.

Out there, lining the streets of Austin’s burgeoning downtown, somewhere in the midst of pedicab drivers, stumbling Sixth Street dwellers and late-night dog walkers are bars that feel undiscovered. The characteristics of these tucked away spots sound a lot like old friends: humble and unpresuming on the outside yet brimming with subtle beauty, brilliance and purpose on the inside.

First impressions are important, and these two cocktail bars know how to make their mark. Situated less than a block from each other, The Townsend and Small Victory offer a sense of place to those who seek it.

The Townsend

thetownsendaustin.com

There are multiple stages of appreciation that must be met when stepping foot into The Townsend. First, look up. Located a hurried jaywalk away from the Paramount Theatre, the bar is housed in a two-story Italianate Victorian building that dates back to the 19th century. Inside, shimmering chandeliers fixate patrons as they dangle from the bar’s elevated 17-foot-high ceilings.

Second, try to steal a seat on the indigo-hued, velvet-tufted Victorian settee positioned in strategic alignment with a window looking out on Congress Avenue. You’re welcome.

Unlike other bars in town, the music selection at The Townsend is a subtle melody to be carried on secondary only to a duo’s lively conversation. In the flurry of passing glances and seamless delivery of charcuterie boards, it’s easy to overlook the recessed black screens interrupting the bookcases that line the back walls. On a night when there’s live music to be heard, the bar utilizes the screens to stream performances from its intimate and soundproof 120-person-capacity studio in the back.

For a 3,400-square-foot landmark, The Townsend masquerades effortlessly as a small speakeasy-like space, straying from the overhyped and overcrowded energy of its more mainstream cocktail bar counterparts.

What to drink: La Linea. It’s a genius mix of aquavit, mezcal, lemon and chartreuse worth coming back to once and again. Or try the Single Engine Plane, a mix of rum, lime, orgeat (a sweet syrup) and aromatic bitters.

What to eat: With the arrival of Chef Justin Huffman, who hails from Justine's and Contigo, in November, the menu at The Townsend hasn’t stopped short of serving up mouthwatering creations. For a main course, try the house-made pappardelle with fried prosciutto, English peas and truffle oil. Cap off the evening with a caramel pot de creme made with single-malt whisky and topped with candied pecans.

What to hear: Open-to-the-public performances in March include BP Fallon and The Bluebonnets March 20, and Dead Love Club March 25.

Small Victory

smallvictory.bar

Through the glass edifice of a terribly nondescript building that sits across an alley from the Inter-Continental Stephen F. Austin hotel, a door swings open, brandishing a small sticker with the letter S overlaid with the letter V. This is Small Victory.

The space’s interior shows off an architectural mix of industrial concrete beams, modern wood paneled walls and trippy black-and-white wallpaper ordained in raised flowers and fire-hydrant stencils.

The narrow 800-square-foot windowless space replaces an old dive, Mike’s Pub, and was started by Brian Stubbs and Josh Loving, who has an extensive bar background, previously serving as the beverage director of Jeffrey’s and Josephine House and operating Half Step’s ice program.

The music selection, which leans more toward the lyrical side and is characteristic of classic songs one might have played while driving a date home in the ’80s or ’90s, makes for a solid conversation starter.

Swift-moving bartenders know just the thing to offer Small Victory’s patrons, each having memorized a bevy of handcrafted concoctions inspired by passed-down cocktail recipes.

Take time to chat to the staff and you might hear about the in-house ice program or catch a glimpse of the hand-crank-operated charcuterie-carving machine imported from Italy. Glass-backed bar shelves stocked with imported wines, liquors and bitters also boast an array of Erlenmeyer flasks and beakers used by the bartenders to measure and mix cocktails.

The aroma of savory, locally sourced goat cheeses and imported, melt-in-your mouth Spanish meats fills the intimate room. Like the tea-light candles flickering in the center of every table, every patron in this bar seems to glow.

What to drink: Create your own cocktail, stick with a classic daiquiri or dry martini, or choose from an impressive selection of wines.

What to eat: Create your own charcuterie plate, which includes a selection of two meats and two cheeses paired with jelly, bread and crackers.

The Townsend photo by Sarah Reid. Small Victory photo by Robert Lerma.