Mention 6th Street to an Austinite, and you'll bring up visions of bars, music, Halloween and New Year's. What you may not know is that there's another side to 6th Street: the west side - and it's just as cool as east 6th Street in its own way.
After a dry summer, we're now house-bound with more rain than we've seen in months. It's sort of a reverse cabin fever: you don't want to venture out because of the heat or the rain. But after a while you just start to go stir crazy, and west Sixth Street may just be the answer to your prayers. Here you'll find good eats, good reads and good buys - nice restaurants and Whole Foods, Book People and lots of interesting shopping.
Parking on West 6th Street is scarce, so I usually park in the Whole Foods parking lot on the corner of 6th and Lamar. I always make sure to buy something at Whole Foods, too, so I won't feel guilty for parking there. If you enjoy eating healthy, you're sure to find something to please you at Whole Foods, whether it's the organic produce, free range chicken, wide selection of herbs and vitamins, or delicious treats from the bakery.
Next door to Whole Foods is Book People, "the largest bookstore in Texas". You'll find stationery, journals and arts and crafts at Book People, too.
Across the street from Whole Foods is the Waterloo IceHouse; across the street from the Ice House is a building housing several interesting shops. I chose to head on down 6th Street, however. Within a few buildings you'll come to an Amy's Ice Cream; very welcome on a hot summer's day. What really impressed me at Amy's was the staff's service with a smile.
Keep heading west on 6th Street to get to more shops. You may want to take a side trip to visit Treaty Oak. Turn down Baylor street (it's one of those funky split streets) Treaty Oak is on the left hand side of the street, behind the antique store.
Before you hit the stores, you'll come to Z Tejas, a Southwestern restaurant. Keep going and you'll come to a row of eclectic shops:
• Positive Images
An art gallery with wonderful handmade journals and other objects d'arte.
• Fortney's
"Artful Home Furnishings". Antiques and knicknacks, predominantly new or "fake old", but fascinating browsing.
• Pecan Square Emporium
Christmas themed gifts, sparkly jewelry, animal sculptures, cards and much more.
West 6th Street is also home to Austin Galleries, which unfortunately was closed at the time of my visit.
If you've worked up an appetite shopping, stop in at the Sweetish Hill Bakery for a sandwich, salad, or some sweets. I've heard that Tommy Lee Jones likes to hang out here, although I haven't seen him there personally. If you're looking for something a little more substantial, continue down the street to Cafe Josie.
If you do decide to do some holiday shopping on West 6th, just keep in mind that the shops close at 4 pm on Sundays.
