Planning Dinner and a Movie in Austin

Disclaimer: Before you think this is just another blog post about the Alamo Drafthouse, guess again! Since I got to know Jette and Jenn through sitting through dozens of films at Fantastic Fest, I do find it challenging not to blog frequently about the Drafthouse. With that said, some moviegoers are not comfortable with food service during a film and find it distracting to have servers moving about or their neighbor scraping the bottom of the salad bowl (hey, the garlic ranch is tasty!). You have other options when it comes to a good dinner-and-movie experience in Austin.

Here are some of my personal recommendations:

• Dinner at Manuel's on Jollyville Road and Regal Arbor at Great Hills Cinema combo
• Dim sum at Shanghai followed by a matinee at Galaxy Highland 10 Theatres
• Dinner at North by Northwest Restaurant and Brewery and a movie at Regal Gateway 16
• Dinner at Thai Passion and a classic movie at the Paramount Summer Film Series

My strategy involves either buying tickets online in advance through Fandango, or arriving to the theater well in advance to buy tickets. We then walk to a nearby location for a meal. A good place to check on an unfamiliar place is either Yelp Austin or, for a particular dish, the Dishola Web site.

Other times I just like being spontaneous. Last weekend I arrived to the Arbor around 8:30 pm, found that "Away We Go" was screening at 9:25 pm. After purchasing my tickets, I walked over to Manuel's and enjoyed a nice cocktail and mushroom quesadillas at the bar. I was able to get back to the theater in plenty of time to get a good seat and enjoy the movie.

Of course, if you can't get enough of the Drafthouse, then be sure to vote for the theater as the "Best Place for a Parent Date Night". More info at their blog.

[Photo credit: "Shanghai" by Kent Wang. Found on Flickr, used under Creative Commons license.]