A New Bar With 1970s Vibes Is Opening on East 12th
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This week, a new bar will debut in Central East Austin. Skinny's Off Track will make its premiere on 1806 East 12th Street on Friday, October 14.
The bar will feature a variety of beers and whiskeys, as well as cocktails such as pina Coladas, mint juleps, and the Orange Cooler drink created with Sunkist soda, among other things.
Off Track Bites, an on-site food truck serving comfort food, will operate. Italian bee sandwiches, potato cones, and mini-corn dogs are on the menu.
The pub will offer a $12 Daily Trifecta deal that changes weekly and includes a beer, a shot, and a food.
The bar is operated by the NoCo Hospitality group, which also owns the downtown bar Higher Ground and the yet-to-be-named South Austin nightclub.
Hotel Vegas/Volstead/LoLo co-owner Charles Ferraro and Higher Ground/Paolo Reina's Soriano are among its partners.
Skinny's is designed to evoke the atmosphere of an off-track betting parlor, which was prominent in New York City in the 1970s. Despite its name, the bar does not accept bets.
"Off-track betting locations are incredible places that harken back to another time and place in America," Ferraro writes to Eater via email.
"A little seedy and odd, an appropriate reference for this location." There is vintage decor and furnishings, as well as wood-paneled walls.
The room will include televisions that will broadcast whatever sports games are happening at the moment. Three booths are equipped with personal televisions.
There are proposals to hold football games, the World Cup, and the Kentucky Derby, among other things. On Saturday, October 15, it will broadcast the Longhorns' game versus Iowa State.
Skinny's hours are 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. Skinny's is taking over the Cajun eatery Big Easy Bar & Grill, which was extensively damaged in an April 2020 fire.
The restaurant did not return, although it did open a food truck several doors down at local bar King Bee in May. The original truck on Barton Springs Road is still operational.
Other bars on East 12th include King Bee, Full Circle, a skeeball and beer bar, and Outer Heaven Disco Club.
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