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How I miss my burnt orange college days when I lived across the street from C&A... but this place is so great that I regularly make the trek up to campus to visit my dear old friend for a pint or two.
The list of pros is long, the list of cons is relatively nonexistent...
PROS:
- Super chill/friendly bartenders. I went yesterday and asked the guy about a couple of IPAs I had never tried before and he poured me two samples to solidify my decision
- Darts Darts Darts! And quality equipment, to boot
- I gotta say they serve up my favorite burgers in town. So juicy (not greasy), so delicious plus fries for super cheap
- Good crowd. Some how this place manages to keep away many of the annoying undergrad kids... apparently it's family friendly too since I saw a bunch of kiddos there with their rents on a Sunday afternoon (who am I to judge?)
- Decent music, but I will admit I often times enjoy what I hear coming out of the kitchen more...
- INCREDIBLE local & imported beer selection and awesome daily specials
CONS:
- UT game days, but you can't really do anything about that in Austin...
- Cheesy nautical decor, it is called Crown and Anchor after all
Cheers, friends!
I think the big appeal of this place for most is the nestalga from thier college years.
It has cheap beer and good service, but nothing really stood out enough to make the place special to someone who didn't go to UT. Also, I wouldn't recommend eating here.
When I go to a bar, it's for live music, so I've driven past this place dozens of times without acknowledging it's existence. But I'm glad to have hung out for a couple hours last night - definitely not what I expected when I heard it was a college hangout. Back when I was in college we would have called this place a "townie" hangout. Seems like the Austin I moved here for back before the high-rise condos.
Anyway, great selection of affordable(!) beers on tap and in bottles, no wait for pool, no attitude. Nice.
I'm taking away a star. I still like the general ambiance, cheapish drinks, and picnic tables, but the staff are just rude. I was with a group last night and one of our professors stopped by around maybe 8 or 9 o'clock to say hi. He was on his way to a nearby restaurant and had his two kids with him, both of whom are in elementary school. Well, the server promptly goes up to him and says that the kids can't be there. While I find this pretty unreasonable (and sooo classicly conservative American), the main issue is the way that guy did it. He was so rude - basically told them they had to get out - and it made the kids understandably uncomfortable. Completely unnecessary. Any person or establishment who upsets children is not cool in my book, and Crown and Anchor is pretty known for being rude in such situations. Might be time to find a new local...
This is definitely going to be one of my grad school bars. Everyone's friendly, the beer is… Read more »
Close by, accessible, good selection of beer. I hear their burgers are good too, but I haven't tried one yet. The only drawback is that it gets really crowded so you might have to stand.
I bumped it up a star because it's summer and none of the students are there. The bartender's are always on top of things, play great music, and change the tv if you ask them to.
Darts are the reason I come here. Bye bye until next summer!
My first few experiences with this place were exemplary, mostly because of the music. There is no… Read more »
This is the unofficial pub of UT Law = lots o law students. I'm personally not a fan of law students, (I'm one myself), so, unfortunately I've frequented this place less often over the years. My decreased liking of Crown might also have to do with the fact that I associate it with law school and always will... I have memories that range from first year meet and greets to skipping class to get a beer to drowning the pain and anguish after being raped and pillaged by an exam in a pitcher...
That being said, they have a great selection of beers and the food is piping hot, greasy and plentiful - just how I like it. My personal favorite is the mushroom burger in all its glory accompanied by a heaping side of french fries - mmmm....
When this place isn't crowded with students it's nice and relaxing. I usually grab a pitcher of Dos with Jake G. and we sit outside for a hour or two (during hotter weather try to get a shady area).
The prices are reasonable, the bartenders are friendly and patient (I've been here with throngs of first year law students and trust me, patience is indeed a virtue) and they have great bar food.
Any bar that is within walking distance from the frat house is a thumbs up in my book.
I never made it to this bar while I was going to school here, but my husband suggested it while we were driving around Austin Saturday afternoon trying to think of a good place to have a couple or a few beers.
There was a much better beer selection here than what you would expect to find in a near-campus place. The DH had a couple of different porters and I had the (512) IPA, a good local beer.
Overall, it was very relaxed and there was good music playing (a few Old 97's songs came on while we were there - a big plus). This place also seems to be dog friendly, which I will keep in mind if our dog ever makes the trip in with us.
Crown and Anchor has a great selection of beer on tap and a kitchen that serves up some great food. If you want a good, not too greasy, thin patty cheeseburger on top of a large serving of fries paired with a great draft beer for all under $9 then you will love it here.
The bartenders here are also very friendly and hard working so tip them well.
Maybe its just my nostalgia talking, but I must say that this place is still one of my favorites. First and foremost, they have a good selection of beer-drinking activities on hand including pool, darts and dominoes. The beer selection on tap is decent and also cheep. The bottled beer selection is excellent and affordable. The bartenders are super friendly... as long as you are good and legal. On top of everything, their burgers are super cheep and as greasy as they come. I am a vegetarian... except for when I go to Crown and Anchor. I truly miss this place!
Pure heaven = sitting on the patio, my pup under my feet, drinking a Fireman's #4 at about 3 in the afternoon on a Saturday. The veggie burger with swiss and mushrooms is just icing on the cake.
I have been coming her since about 1993, before I was even able to legally purchase alcohol. I used to work at the UT School of Pharmacy, and we often walked over for lunch, or started Friday happy hour(s) there...usually followed by music at Hole in the Wall. This place has hardly changed (except for the fries!), and there's no reason for it to EVER change.
The thing I find most comforting about this bar is the fact that the staff is full of "lifetimers". I've been seeing Terry, Mook and the others for years and years now. I've seen babies growing up on the walls and the tip jar. It's like your uncle's bar but with better beer.
The only thing that would make it better is an off-leash dog park, but I think everything would be better with a dog park!
Crown remains my favorite bar in Austin, and that's only partly because I lived within walking distance. It's a beer drinker's bar, for the most part, although they have a couple of non-beer things. Cider and wine are about it--no hard alcohol at all here. And it has quite a selection of beer, much of it local or microbrewery, many of them on tap.
The music is eclectic. The crowd is even more eclectic, but more grad students and law students than undergrads. Pretty big age range among the regulars. There are two dart boards and a lot of darts players hang out here. (The bar has a team that plays in a city league as well as a Wednesday night tournament.)
The food is terrible for you but excellent. Burgers, dogs, nachos, and grilled cheese all at prices so low that you may be somewhat alarmed. Fear not. They have great food and some of the best fries in Austin. The salads are surprisingly good. Not fancy, but better than I would have expected. Vegetarians also report that the veggie burgers are good.
The outdoor area is what makes this place. There is a covered patio and a deck area, both of which allow dogs. This is my ex's dog's favorite place in Austin, definitely ahead of any of the parks or trails in her book, as she could always convince new friends to pet her. (If your dog is not dog friendly, that will be an issue. There are always about half a dozen when it's busy.)
The covered area is surprisingly pleasant when it's hotter than hell. I used to study here and do work here. There's wifi and plugs outside.
This is just the kind of place you could spend a long Friday afternoon just sitting, drinking, people watching and occasionally checking work email to make sure you don't miss anything important. This pub has a very eclectic mix of patrons that seems to change with the hour of the day. UT Students make up the bulk of the crowd most days which is by no means a bad thing. The people that work there are friendly and are always quick to point out a new beer that I may like. Maybe I go there too much. Burgers and fries are great here but I've been on their beef tacos lately and can't seem to get off them. In the Spring and Fall there is no better patio to hang out on than the C&A patio. The tables are shareable and you will always meet interesting people there. The outer patio can be brutal on a hot day which reminds me of the time when a guy was sitting out there reading a book and decided to take his shirt off. This dude did not have a "shirt off" kind of body but he didn't care. The other guy sharing the table with him quickly moved inside. The beer here is very reasonably priced as is the food.
Ah, crown, how I love thee. Even when you haven't got a single spot for me to sit or lean, I'll stick around, drinking and eating to my heart's content.
This place rocks my socks. GREAT beer, awesome prices, and a really solid vibe. Every type of person is there, from your tattoed drag-rat-looking people to the granola 50 year olds, power suited businessmen, and every type of UT student you can think of. Want to sit down on a friday or saturday night? Better get there before 8. And on a game night? get there right after work, everyone and their mom goes there to see the games.
This is one of the only bars that doesn't make me feel bad about going out night after night, because it's so wonderfully priced (granted I omit the comparison to grocery store prices), but in the scheme of bars, Crown hits the spot). The food is good, above average I'd say, and the portions are generous. I can always count on crown to have a local brewery beer (support the locals!) but also the good bottled stuff that I never crave until I'm out drinking.
One day I'll learn to study there and not drink there, but right now, it just feels wrong. Prosit!
I spent Election Night '08 at the Crown & Anchor, and finally ordered one of its famous burgers.
HOLY CRAP!
A delicious cheeseburger AND a ton of great fries . . . for $4.50!?!?!?!
Someone pinch me . . . This place is Heaven.
This is such a great little neighborhood bar. I went there again last night with a big group of… Read more »
This is one of my favorite places to go before Football games. Drinks are affordable, but you better like beer because they don't have liquor. Food is a gamble- sometimes I'm really pleased and sometimes I'm disappointed, but it's definitely inexpensive. Seating can sometimes be a pain, especially if you're trying to sit where you can see a TV. Always a good atmosphere and always a good time.
I really didn't expect a crowd like this at Crown and Anchor. I expected a UT Frat party type situation. Not at all. This place just has charm. And if you want to break into the competitive darts scene, this is where its at. It also seemed as if they had my iPod playing on the jukebox. I almost never find music anywhere in public appealing, but how can you go wrong with the Buzzcocks and DK??
I had the pyramid apricot, which is a very nice $3, and rare that a place even carries my fave beer. My friend had a burger for $4.25 and I shared nachos for ~$5. Both were good for that price.
This place gets crazy crowded on UT game nights. If that's your scene go for it. If it's not... show up any other night for a one of my favorite pubs in Austin.
The staff rocks, really nice beer selection, good darn food, and nice taste in tunes.
Sports on the TVs isn't uncommon in a place, but they'll actually show soccer and what not (provided a UT game isn't on of course)
Patio is a great place just to hang and can even accommodate your smoker friends :)
I love the Crown, you will too.
I think it's difficult to separate yourself from a really great experience at some places, and for Crown and Anchor, the Fourth of July this year set the bar for me. This year I woke up, played a round of golf with some friends, and got off the course just about the time that it was becoming unbearably hot outside. So we were famished, and headed over to the Crown and Anchor for lunch, where we sat over a cold one (I'm going through a Dunkelweiss stage) and ate what felt like at the time the first and only burger I've ever had in my life.
Couple this with the fact that the Nathan's hot dog eating competition was firing up on ESPN, that ownership was friendly but not detached, that the A/C was cranked and the company good, and there was plenty to like. I always remember that I need to keep this spot in my regular rotation, and a day like the Fourth just might have cemented it. Thanks, Crown and Anchor, for a great afternoon. And that burger wasn't half bad either.
Austin loves a good, divey escape. I don't know what it is that tends to be so inviting about any… Read more »
I brought a bunch of people from the lab here for lunch yesterday (Friday). First of all, it's cheap. The tab for 8 of us was around $50, but then again I think only one person had a beer; the rest soft drinks.
Secondly, the food is pretty good. Most had burgers, some grilled chicken sandwiches. I had their fancy nachos with beef and it was quite tasty.
Thirdly, they have nice big tables so it's easy for a large group to find seating. Lot of fans, so it was comfortable even in the middle of a hot Austin summer day.
And finally, the staff is great. The guy taking orders at the cash register was polite and funny, and had no problems understanding the orders of our non-native-English speakers. The runners bringing the food out were fast and efficient and the tables were cleared and cleaned immediately when people left.
I have a bad habit of looking around when at pubs or restaurants and mentally making a "to-do" list for them. I'd really like to take a pressure washer to their covered outdoor area, but that's just the compulsive side of me talking.
I washed away the memories of quite a few 8 AM finals by staggering into Crown afterwards. Burgers and fries are pretty much what you'd expect--actually, a little better than you might expect. Beer selection is excellent, and prices are reasonable.
I'm not a big fan of the trough style of urinating, though, and since this is a bar, that's a feature you can't really ignore (pardon the indelicacy, ladies). On the plus side, I am always inspired by the writing next to the trough, which reminds me with every visit that "the urge to destroy is a creative urge." I'm not sure, though, as far as bathroom-wall erudition goes, that it beats the old above-urinal writing at Washington, D.C.'s Sign of the Whale: "Restore the Hapsburgs"--who wouldn't think to write that while relieving himself?
I'm sure Crown and Anchor Pub is a really awesome place to hang out. I liked the atmosphere, huge dog-friendly patio, and overall laid-back vibe. They seemed to have a large variety of beers to choose from, and one of my favs, Pyramid Hefe, was on special the night I went.
Unfortunately my first and only time going to Crown and Anchor was on the night of The Worst Date of My Entire Life - a blind date, of course. So completely terrible and awkward that I ended it after about 20 minutes, and I'm a very open-minded person when it comes to dating, mind you. Just as an example, the guy even spilled the entirety of my (delicious!) beer all over my lap and didn't once get up to help or offer me any napkins. Who does that!?
So aside from the fact that it's way out of the way for anyone who is unfortunate enough to live up north (me) and the fact that I have a bad memory attached to the place, it's probably actually a really awesome place to hang out and you should definitely go if you live central. Just don't go on a blind date... Ever, really.
Yessir, I liked this place. Watched my mom and uncle get into a heated pool series, drank Descheutes porter (love this beer, especially on tap) and just generally lounged out. Shit, I'm drunk as I write this review! I tells no lies Sampson!
(bonus points to anyone who can reference the name in the last sentence)
I have so many good memories of Crown and Anchor and most of them revolve around a pitcher of beer and tables full of friends. The atmosphere is great, you can play darts, drink exceptional beer, and make friends with the crowds of people who often drop in and out all night. There is good food as far as bar food goes and the burgers and fries are worth a shot.
Its also in nice proximity to several other bars just down the street, so if you get bored you can always mosey on over to posse east or sao paolo. Either way its a great place to sit, chill, and have a cold one. Parking isn't all that wonderful in this part of town but you can usually find something nearby.
Crown has everything I like in a bar. They have a huge beer selection and everything is very reasonably priced. All the beers are listed on a big chalk board behind the bar. Everything is split up into three price tiers and they have pint and pitcher prices listed for each. This may sound trivial, but I love how legible and organized the beer menu is. Similar bars like Gingerman, Draught House, and Dog and Duck don't have all their beers listed in one place like this and I usually find myself ordering based on which tap looks the coolest without having any idea how much it costs.
The crowd is younger but not too college-y and everyone always seems to be having a good time. Pool and darts are always fun too. My only complaint is that there can be a bit of a seating shortage on weekend nights, but most people don't mind if you share a table with them.
Any beer fan with a few beer fan friends will undoubtedly love this place.
I've been making an almost once a week trip to the Crown and Anchor for the past couple of years. The atmosphere is almost non-existent but is very comfortable. They have a great mix of customers from business men, students, animal lovers, to the sit and drink all day barflies. Great people watching! The staff is an eclectic but efficient bunch.
I read some of the more recent reviews and they are totally underselling how good the hamburgers are. They are consistently great. My favorite is the bacon cheeseburger with jalapenos. Yum Yum! This is one of my favorite place in town for a burger. The fact that they are cheap doesn't hurt my feelings at all! The fries are included and go perfectly with the burgers.
The selection of beer is great and they are more than happy to let you sample a few if you are looking to try something new.
Hope you like meeting new people because you may have to share your table. There isn't much parking and I've had trouble getting a table the one or two evenings I've tried to stop in. For a delicious lunch or an afternoon enjoying a beer or two the Crown and Anchor is hard to beat.
4 stars is for a couple of reasons here.
I'm addicted to this place.
I think it started when I worked down the street at Trudy's (evil hellhole that it is), and came here many times per week. Ah, the younger days of playing pool, drinking beer, and eating jalapeno cheese burgers (I asked for grilled onions on that..mmmm).
No, they're not always the best. It depends on who is cooking and what mood they're in.
Thing is about this place, these aren't your nouveau giant meaty crazy topping burgers. These are the ones you used to get down at the diner. Thin patties. All the usual fixins. A couple of variations. Diner style.
Fries used to be better, but now they're more consistent, so that's good.
Nowadays, I go for a couple of things.
Standby: The Veggie Burger. There's just something about a deep fried veggie patty that gets me all emotional. If you get it, ask them to toss it in teriyaki and Cholula. Definitely makes it better.
Alternative: Chicken tacos. They used to be the best in town. Since someone complained about the teriyaki and Cholula in them, they started making them plain and that sucks. Thanks to ME, you can ask them to put it back in. Seriously, I bought T-Rex my very own bottle so I could have it my way. The way it should be. You're welcome, Austin.
Guilty pleasure: Nachos. I get black bean and cheese, add on lettuce, tomatoes and onions. Extra Jalapenos. I likes it spicy!
If I could get away, I would. But I can't. They all know me. If I don't show up, they'll get worried. I have an obligation, see?
Plus, the prices can't be beat.
Well I finally made it here!! It took me several years to make my way to the pub. I went here on Saturday after the Farmer's Market for a refreshment! It was crowded and I didn't feel bad that I was the only one drinking Live Oak before 3p on a weekend.
I didn't check out there food menu but everyone that had food looked as if they enjoyed it.
They have pool, darts, and a few video games. The dudes that work here seem to enjoy their jobs and are pretty cool.
This is a great place to people watch. I don't think it would be as fun during the school season but it was great for summer!
Crown and Anchor is truly a University of Texas establishment. It's walking distance from campus, so every afternoon you can reliably finds groups of students, UT staff, even some professors of the laid-back persuasion. Crown and Anchor has a decent beer selection, especially for a small pub, and the prices are great, especially for a place so close to campus. They also have a small but reliable selection of good ol' greasy pub food, making them a fun lunch spot for my buddies and I. (Mushroom swiss burger + Blue Moon = best lunch ever? Perhaps?) They have a screened-in porch/deck setup, true outdoor seating, plus some indoor seating. The outdoor and porch areas are doggie friendly, and the deck is shady enough to be comfortable. The deck also has a TV, usually tuned to a relevant athletic event, and there are more TVs inside. Also inside is a dart board, pool tables, a juke box, spacious booths, and seating at the bar. The bar staff are always really sweet and happy to suggest a new beer based on what you've been ordering. A great place to chill with a beer and friends.
Crown has been my favorite bar for almost 10 years.
Pros:
- Crazy cheap (If you drink domestics, $8.25 actual glass pitchers! STOP paying $13 for small plastic pitchers at other places.)
- Great cheap food (The bacon cheese burgers are the best in Austin and are like $5.50)
- Staff is great and very knowledgeable
- Great Music (you get the stuff you yourself actually listen to, not what's on 101X, although 101X does do spots there ironically.)
- Super Dog Friendly
- Great Outdoor Seating
- Adequate Parking Near Campus
- Amazing Beer Selection (if you don't do the cheap stuff like me, they have dozens on tap and probably close to a hundred in bottles.)
- Adequate TVs to catch a game but not attract sports fans.
- Great Austiny crowd (although it is getting Frat-ier.)
- Super laid back atmosphere (Don't worry about how you look or what you're wearing.)
- Beer and wine only (The reason this is good is that it controls the kind of people that go there. You avoid the hopped-up jack-ass clubbing people that are out trying to score or get into a fight and you get calm, slightly older locals that just want a cool place to grab a beer.)
- Up to date Golden Tee machine
Cons:
- The line can get wayyyyyy too long during busy times and the seating can get scarce. (But I see this as Crown being a victim of its own success. Not much you can do about that.)
- The parking lot is not very organized and so getting my truck out of there after everyone has pulled in around me can be tricky. One time, they had to make an announcement and get someone to move their car. (How embarrassing.)
i'm adding an update that i wasn't aware of until i went there last night. they have water bowls for the dogs. the door guy was really sweet. he fetched my dog george a pale of water. awesome, awesome, awesome. thanks crown!
a dog gone good place to have a beer at with your dog. you can sit outside on the deck with your… Read more »
This place is quickly becoming one of my favorite lunch spots. They have cheap burgers (which are actually pretty damn good), cheap beer (plus a good selection on tap), and they are with-in biking distance from my office. I find myself here 1-3 times a week using their wi-fi, having some lunch, and watching a soccer game. Their porch is great if you enjoy a super cold beer in the shade on a hot Texas summer afternoon. It is also good for people watching because the crowd tends to be a bit more geared towards grad-students, which means that there are fewer annoying newly 21-year-old-frat kids roaming around.
It's nothing fancy around here but that is exactly what I like.
I have been here many many times but it wasn't until my most recent trip that I ordered a hamburger...a jalapeno cheeseburger to be exact...and OMG!!! Why did I not know about these burgers earlier??!!! This may be my new favorite burger in town -- I can't wait for more visits to confirm! Not to mention it is CHEAP - my burger and fries was about five bucks. Can't beat that unless you are going for fast food!
Crown & Anchor is not a huge place -- a smallish indoor area with some dart boards and a pool table...another smallish area with big communal tables that is technically outside but becomes enclosed when weather is bad, and another smallish patio completely outside. Great place to be when the weather is nice. Seems to be dog friendly. Can get crowded fast during Happy Hour (especially on Fridays).
Four stars instead of five because sometimes I wish it had more room and sometimes I wish it wasn't beer only.
But...burgers are awesome. Fries are very good. Beer only (but a large selection). Crown & Anchor has become a favorite for Happy Hour and burgers...but if you're not a beer drinker or a burger lover (who are you?!), this might not be the place for you.
The gruff redheaded bartender is actually a really awesome guy who will warm up to you if you become a regular. His name is Gabe and he vouched for me once when another bartender tried to cut me off.
The angry, short, goatteed guy who delivers the food is what he is....a douche who won't thank you for holding the door for him.
Went for the first time tonight and blown away! The burgers... $4 for burger and fries- cheaper than McDonalds and absolutely amazing. The fries are crisp and the meat is good, the buns are sweet, the veggies, A+ for the food!
The beer selection was good, pitchers cheap and staff very friendly. The Sunset Wheat comes with a ton of orange slices. Smoking is a plus, and I saw the cutest dogs. The crowd was dude-bro free and very chill.
EDIT: this has become my favorite neighborhood hangout since my first time. 5 stars!
I've been coming here for years. Getting to be a regular is easy because the staff is engaging and in general have really good memories for names and faces. The burgers and other pub grub are best prepared by T-rex during the weekday shifts, but they are always good and always inexpensive. The beer is about as cheep as it gets in Austin, and pool and darts are available. All in all, a great place to get drunk.
I first started tinkering with Cholula and ketchup mixing at Crown and Anchor. I give 5 stars for starting that love affair that has lasted a lifetime. Damn. Their fries are perfect for it. I wonder if their kitchen is still open? I wonder what I have in my fridge that needs some Choluchup?
Mock it now. Try it later in the safety of your own home. Know that I am right.
They might have the best burgers in town. I know. I know. Casino el Camino. Billy's. Hut's. I'd put Crown up against any of them. Also, pretty cheap, for the quality you're getting.
Also, super dog friendly. Radley loves the Crown.
Dear Crown,
Please don't ever change your fryer oil. The fries are better that way.
The burgers are great too. Where else besides a fast-food joint can you get both for less than five bucks?
But who am I kidding? The scads of local and regional beers on tap and daily specials are why I go.
See you Thursday.
Oh to live on Duval and 32nd Street again! Coming here almost brings tears to my eyes, I love this bar so much. I have so many memories of cheap burgers, hanging out with old friends and pitchers upon pitchers of delicious beer at Crown and Anchor. If you order a Hefeweizen they even give you orange slices. How right. Some of my more adventursome friends might say that I should take off a star because they only sell brew but that's a good reason to add another star for me. 6 Stars to the Crown and Anchor! Hurrah!
-1 star for the clusterfudge parking in the back.
Neighborhood: University of Texas
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: University of Texas
Category: Bars
Neighborhood: University of Texas
Category: Pubs
Neighborhood: University of Texas
Category: Nightlife
Neighborhood: University of Texas
Category: Tex-Mex
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