"Get a table by the balcony at sunset and watch the bats."
(in 7 reviews)
"it was the wasabi nuts and chocolate martinis."
(in 4 reviews)
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The Lobby Lounge at the Four Seasons
Rating Details »
Inside Four Seasons Hotel
98 San Jacinto Blvd
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 478-4500
98 San Jacinto Blvd
Austin, TX 78701
(512) 478-4500
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Garage, Valet
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Best Nights:
- Mon
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- Outdoor Area/ Patio Only
17 reviews for The Lobby Lounge at the Four Seasons
Review Highlights
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So the Four Seasons is not usually my first choice for a couple of reasons. First of all, living in Austin precludes me from really needing a Hotel room (but, never say never). Second of all, the four seasons aint exactly known for being a student population type of bar/restaurant venue, they cater to a higher income bracket than I am currently a part of. And that's fine, they do what they do really, really well.
After walking through massive doors opened by the valet/baggage help, you have to maneuver your way through the foyer, which more often than not has some sort of seasonally themed artwork. Be it a 20 square foot Gingerbread village or an extravagant flower arrangement by a local business. From my personal experience, there's usually a local business showcased right as you go in, which is awesome in and of itself.
Once you make it past the display and the reception desk, you walk into the bar area, which is just down right classy. Ultra comfortable but chic furniture, well dressed bartenders, perfect lighting that casts just enough of a gleam onto you and your party of 2 or 10 that you can engage in conversation intimately but not want to pass out. The Bartenders know their stuff when it comes to cocktails, Scotch, Vodka, EVERYTHING. Believe me, I've tried to stump them...after spending an embarrassing amount of time at home reading up on Single Malt Scotches, I got absolutely schooled on my visit that same night. Happily so, of course.
The lounge is served by waiters, and from what I recall is open until 12 midnight, although if you're clearly still in the middle of things, they won't kick your butt out.
Ornate cocktails, solid scotch list, and everything else you'd like is available down here. Excellent place for pre-date drinks our meeting with some friends from out of town before heading for the warehouse district.
Did you know that on Monday nights they have half price bottles of wine? It's quite a good deal for such a fancy place.
As Kevin N. said in his previous review, "Absolutely some of the best people watching and best service in town, bar none, and pardon the pun." I completely agree. I couldn't say it better myself.
They have nice, spacious balconies for you to go out and spend some time bat watching. Four of us fit out there easily. There is no alcohol or smoking out there though. But the view is phenomenal.
We spent about an hour and a half leisurely drinking half price bottles of wine and getting up to watch the bats every so often. Our server was very good at alerting us when they would begin to take off again.
Next time I have more out of town guest visiting, I know exactly where to take them to watch the bats.
Wow! Just read David C's review, and it was really bad! We took care of those bastard homophobes for you, kiddo.
First of all, shame on the Four Seasons for treating you and your friends the way they did. Any self-respecting Ausinite would pale at the thought of disregarding someone else's existence in the world. And that woman called you "trash?" Are you sure you were not in New York or Dallas?
OK. So how did we get back at them? Did we sue them? No -- too lengthy of a process...too much bad karma.
Did we kill them? No. Too messy.
Did we spit on them and name call at their uniforms? No.. too silly.
We descended about 200 fags into the bar for a happy hour. Guerrilla Queer Bar is a yahoo group, and the guys send out a reminder for each SECOND Friday of each month. We always take over a straight bar and make it the gay hot spot of the night. It's quite a brilliant idea.
There was lap-sitting, hugging, kissing, and lots and lots of liquor being poured. The money and booze was flowing, and you know what? They were very accommodating. Imagine that? Give them a down economy and, over priced drink, and bunch gay guys ...Voila! Instant revenue and not homophobia. Imagine that as a recipe.
I guess we killed them with kindness.
They lose a star for the overpriced drinks and for treating you badly, for sure.
Well hello there you cute little chocolate martini. Aren't you cute, sitting there in your perfect glass with your chocolaty sweetness, sugar rim and straw made from white and milk chocolate. You're so cute, I could just eat you up. And I will. Then I'll order another one and then I'll order your cousin, the Espresso martini. Mmmmmm.
The drinks were divine and the company was even better. Chocolate, vodka and good people? What can beat that? The Wasabi-covered snacks, candied pecans and salted cashews kept drawing my fingers to the bowl. A piano man played in the back ground as the laid back and friendly crowd relaxed over drinks at the tables.
The chocolate martini was my favorite (did I mention that?), but there was quite an extensive list of cocktails to choose from. Our waitress was very sweet and able to suggest different drinks on the menu.
I'll definitely be back next time I'm in town.
I'm giving this place five stars, even though apparently I'm the only Yelper who never sees a celebrity there : )
Seriously, this swanky bar is a great place to have some drinks with friends Try the Mint and Mango Daiquiri. It's green. It's sweet. It rocks.
Best. Free. Snacks. Ever. Little round wasabi crackers, honey roasted pecans and assorted cashews and nuts. When my tablemates joked with the server that we loved the pecans, she brought us an entire tumbler filled with more of them. Nice!
Get a table by the balcony at sunset and watch the bats. We went last night and weirdly, not only did we not see celebrities, we also didn't see any bats flying.
I'm sure you will have better luck : )
While most people would probably be trying to catch as many bands as possible during SXSW I was perfectly happy celebrity watching at The Lobby Lounge at the Four Seasons. Can you tell US Weekly is my favorite mag? ;)
The hottest celeb we saw here was Moby and I'm not sure he counts, but I was in heaven at this lounge. But it wasn't the crowd that was making me happy (although I did have some good company with me)...it was the wasabi nuts and chocolate martinis! The wasabi nuts were the best i've had- so addictive that I believe our waitress had to refill ours about 5 times throughout the night. And that chocolate martini- oh my goodness! It was like drinking pure chocolate- the best drink EVER for chocoholics! We also ordered a cheese plate for our table, which was very good as well, but the wasabi nuts and chocolate martinis were definitely the winners of the night.
Our waitress was lovely (what else do you expect at The Four Seasons) and the nice bellhop even sent me home to the Renaissance in their car service. I would have preferred to crash at The Four Seasons, but unfortunately us non celebs have to stay across town. ;)
One of my favorite spots in Austin (and after 4-5 trips in the past year I've been to a lot of cool places)...enjoy a chocolate martini for me!
I can't even believe this happened....but the Four Season's kicked two gay guys out of their hotel for doing something that straight people do everyday in every hotel lobby, restaurant, mall, bus stop, school sporting event, etc, etc...you name it...every DAY in America....BOYCOTT the Four Seasons and spread the word!.....
.....read his account of what happened here:
"I'm not sure where to begin or what parts to omit from this story but I will do my best to capture the event in a short and precise summary.
Friday night (April 3rd), a friend of mine came into town. We went out for dinner at a local restaurant and afterward decided to go downtown. As we drove downtown we decided to stop in at the Four Season on Caesar Chavez for a drink or two before deciding what to do for a night out. We ordered a couple drinks, sat around and chatted for a bit. It was too loud in the bar so we walked over to the lobby area to discuss where we would end up going. It had been a long day and I was tired so I sat down while my friend tried to convince me to head to a bar. He sat on my lap for a few seconds while we finished the conversation. We couldn't have been in the lobby for more than thirty seconds before a customer happen to walk by and call us trash. I didn't' hear everything she said because I was in shock but from what I did gather she told us we were disgusting faggots and should be ashamed. She even went as far to ask if we were on drugs. The only response we gave was that she was in Austin and she needed to mind her business. As she walked away an employee with the Four Seasons asked us to leave. We asked why and he said that our lifestyle was bothering customers. My friend offered to by a room so that we would be on equal terms. They denied the offer and said we just need to leave. We both argued that it was ridiculous that we were being asked to leave for being gay especially because only one person complained. The employee said more would have if they saw to gay men sitting there. The employee walked off for a few seconds as we discussed just heading out and not causing a scene. After a few seconds four employees surrounded us to escort us from the building. After some discussion we decided to leave. We knew at this point there was nothing we could do.
If you want to know more details about this story I'm more than happy to explain it in full. I do plan on consulting a lawyer and we have a meeting planned with the GM on Wed. Any advice would certainly be appreciated.
Thanks,
Manuel"
What a great little dive bar...uhh...I mean c'mon what did you expect me to say? It's the freaking Four Seasons - Of course it is nice!
The drink menu was fantastic and our server was the epitome of gracious. The lighting is perfect, the decor is a testament that you can decorate with antlers without sacrificing style, and apparently you can see the bats fly out from under the bridge at sunset!
There are precious few opportunities in life to sit in a five star hotel, sip a cocktail, and view bats.
Absolutely some of the best people watching and best service in town, bar none, and pardon the pun. Ask around next time you're in the lounge at a Four Seasons in pretty much any other city (New Yorkers may disagree, but whatever), and Austin's Four Seasons lounge is definitely its own animal. The bar itself is expansive without waxing regal, the attendees prompt without forcing the action, and it's one place we can always go when we're up for a special evening that always but always delivers.
We bumped (pretty much literally) into Lyle Lovett here, and others have many more brushes with fame than I, but I'll say this for the Four Seasons, and what I'm about to say is a pretty tough trick to pull off: they make famous people seem approachable and they make the rest of us seem famous by virtue of the special attention. And that's a special deal in my book any day.
My husband and I like to go here and "pick each other up". It's a great place to pretend you're someone else. And I always see people I recognize who don't recognize me (Luke Wilson...). The little snacks are tasty and beautiful but cost a pint of blood.
This is where we go when we want to pretend we're rich and casual.
This is my second favorite bar in Austin, outdone only by the Driskill's bar, and here's a few reasons why:
- Grabbing a table by the window and being treated to a gorgeous view of Lady Bird Lake.
- It was from the balcony here that I first spied the breath taking view of Austin's bats in full flight.
- The complimentary tasty olives, pecans and wasabi nut mix. (Although you may have to ask for the olives).
- Beer that is served poured into your chilled glass. Your server would never ask, do you want a glass with that? This is assumed.
- The delicious margaritas....these don't come from a pre-made mix.
- The sofa and chair groupings that create a sense of intimacy, the piano player, the pleasant lighting.... these things make this is an excellent place to just "chill".
- The friendly and impeccable service. The last time I was here, the bartender even flagged down my date for me!
- The interesting people watching and sometimes local celebrity sightings.
- Classy texacana (cowhide sofas, antler lamps) - why yes, yes I do believe it's possible.
I love, love, love the Four Seasons Lobby Lounge. It's comfortable, the drinks are really well made (raspberry mojito, yum!) and you get free bar snacks that are way more than just a bowl of peanuts.
Some of the best times I've had in Austin were in this place. It's a place to go to celebrate, to star gaze, to people watch, or to watch the bats in the summer with a drink in your hand and air conditioning on your neck. Being here on a Saturday night in the summer when people have just had a wedding is some of the best people watching in the whole world. And so is just hanging out here during SXSW later in the evening to watch all of the A&R people hob-nob and schmooze.
The list of celebrity sightings I've had in this joint reads like a list of who's who (and used to be who) in Hollywood. Dabney Coleman once asked me if he could use my extra chair! I should have told him he was excellent in The Muppet's Take Manhattan, what a missed opportunity. Le sigh.
In addition, this is a great place to go celebrate, whether it be a new job, achieving remission from cancer, or celebrating an engagement, the lounge-like atmosphere, stellar service, great bar menu and amazing floral arrangements make the Four Seasons one of my favorite places in Austin.
The Four Seasons Austin is a beautiful spot, both in terms of its interior glamour and the natural beauty surrounding it. Right on Town Lake near the Congress Street Bridge, from the Four Seasons lounge you can drink fine libations, people watch, and stroll down towards the water to some beautiful outdoor seating and watch the sunset while two million bats emerge into the sky on their evening forage.
Even if you're not lucky enough to see the bats, drinking at the Four Seasons is high-end pleasure, surely worthy of the not-too-above average pricetag.
I'm a big big fan.
When this very small bar and large, sexy lounge area isn't full of good ole' boys and the cake faces that humor them, it's a nice place to grab a drink.
I really dig the staff that work here, fun and smart, and although $13 martinis aren't rare anymore, they sure are a ridiculous price to pay.
Since you can't smoke inside anymore, and since a drink makes me crave a cigarette, going down the stairs and outside is a must when visiting the Bar. Outside there's a small stoned sitting area complete with a chiminea (with a fire lit when it's cold) and huge Live Oaks are lit up in Christmas lights right by the hike-and-bike trail and the water.
You can also get cheeseburgers sent to you out here (gotta love that service) and it's a great spot to look at the water while hike-and-bike trail joggers and cyclists whiz by.
Pricey, but peaceful.
The service was wonderful and our waiter was charming, dashing and quick with the service.
My friends got their early and snagged a table right in front of the open balcony windows - this, my friends, is heaven itself. Johnny Cash was drifting up from the waterfront, bats were flocking (do bats flock?) and we were laughing like there would be no tomorrow. Very Great Gatsby.
You definitely get what you pay for - it is The Four Seasons, after all. Try the Spring Fling - it tastes of pomegranate and raspberries and love in the springtime.
Don't look at me like that.
HINT: Don't bother getting your parking validated - you will still have to pay what's posted - which is ridiculous.
HINT: Get a table at an balcony window.
Oh, the people and times we have seen hanging out at the Four Seasons Lobby Lounge. At times, it can be a who's who of "Hollywood, Texas," which can make for fun people watching. It also makes for good bat watching.
This is sort of a special occasion place for me, because the prices tend to be a little high. But it is a must during SXSW. So much so that KGSR broadcasts from there in the mornings that week. You never know who is going to stop by!
It is the Four Seasons, so the service is always impeccable. (Again, I love any place that serves a cheese plate.)
I would steer clear of it during UT football home games, unless you are a Longhorn yourself.
PS-Do yourself a favor and get a Chocolate Martini, clear not creamy. You'll be thanking me later :)
Great place for celebrity gawking. Saw Luke Wilson there during ACL.
