With three full acres, a massive bar, and more activities than you can count, it’s easy to spend an entire afternoon at Armadillo Den in South Austin without even realizing it. Drinks here tend to lean into “refreshing” territory and come with the added bonus of a 10% discount if you arrive via rideshare. In the evenings, there’s live music, plus a ton of fire pits for the colder months. And if you want to let out some microaggressions, there are even a few lanes in the back for ax throwing.

Perla’s has one of the most recognizable patios in Austin—in large part from being in the middle of South Congress, where it practically bleeds onto the sidewalk. Make a reservation or put your name on the waitlist, do some people-watching, and get ready to enjoy some of the best seafood in town. But also be ready to drop $38 on a lobster roll.

Sour Duck is the more casual, sister-restaurant of Odd Duck, so you can expect the same level of quality and expertise, with a bit more of a focus on baked goods. Where they differ from Odd Duck is in the amount of outdoor space - most of the restaurant is open-air, on a well-spaced patio.

Like the original on the East Side, the second location of the popular brewery Lazarus on Airport and 48th Street has a large list of beers brewed in-house, plus espresso-based drinks, tacos, and tortas. Both locations have excellent patios, but we especially like the one on Airport for the sheer size of it all—plus, it’s covered to help protect against rain, sun, and very tiny meteorites (probably).

These two East Side dive bars often have live music, and they share one enormous backyard filled with picnic tables and cheap drinks. There’s a great Happy Hour, and there’s the Hotel Vegas Concession Stand serving good burgers and burritos.

The Meteor is one of our favorite places in town for drinking wine—and it only gets better during Happy Hour with half price glasses of wine (and cheeseburgers). It’s located far enough away from the busy part of South Congress to make it a welcome escape from all the action, or just as a bookend on either part of your long day out shopping for new sunglasses and boots. And with a nice, big patio in the back, you’ll always have somewhere perfect to show off your shiny new purchases.

Modeled after classic Irish pubs, B.D. Riley’s is a dark, cozy escape from a sunny afternoon at Mueller Lake Park. Outside there’s a large patio sprawls out onto the sidewalks and walkways, while the largest fan we’ve ever seen spins overhead and provides a light breeze for all 365 days of the year that it’s open. It’s a relaxed place on most evenings, but both the inside and the patio become pretty lively during soccer matches and football games (they’re a Patriots bar).

Austin Beerworks is one of the most popular breweries in Austin, with a huge variety of beer styles and an equally large taproom and shaded patio. Their mainstays are pretty widely distributed around town, but they also do a lot of experimental brewery-only releases. Austin Beerworks also runs a food truck serving tacos, Tex-Mex, and burgers.

Lolo’s is a natural wine bar located on the East Side with a spacious patio. In addition to wine, they have a small, but well-curated selection of snacks, with things like pretzels, tinned fish, and a baguette with some of the best butter we’ve ever had. Wines are available by the bottle, with a limited daily selection of wines by the glass.

It might be called Cosmic Coffee + Beer Garden, but there’s a lot more going on here than just what’s on the sign. Cosmic also has wine and cocktails (and even cocktail flights). And then there’s the extensive outdoor space which is home to some of the city’s best food trucks, including Pueblo Viejo for tacos, Leroy & Lewis, a super non-traditional barbecue truck that we really like, and an outpost of Tommy Want Wingy, serving lollipop-style chicken wings that can get very spicy (if you want).