Even without The Hole in the Wall’s considerable backstory, this is a college dive bar mixed with a live music venue in the best possible way, historic or not. The bar’s front stage is the more informal of the two setups, another more professional installation found in the bar’s secondary space. The front room is sparse, ready to accommodate a live music crowd at a moment’s notice, with a small bar off to one side. Stickers, graffiti and beer options can be found sprinkled throughout the Austin dive bar, a photobooth a permanent resident opposite the bar.
The Hole in the Wall keeps going, however, the dedicated second stage in back opening up to a sprawling patio area that houses a set of picnic tables, a bit of shelter from the sun and access to an indoor-outdoor pool table setup. A third bar can be found here in a dedicated structure primarily used for karaoke that runs every night from 10 PM to close.
Thankfully, the Austin dive bar’s exterior lives up to the very lofty bar set by its status and unfolding set of drinking-friendly amenities. A long black awning stretches out over the sidewalk, harkening back to the bar’s original conception as a night club. The yellow marquee sign pairs well with the equally yellow paint atop the building, a skyline depicted that includes a beer bottle for a building and a bird carrying a banner reading “Come As You Are.” The front door includes a hidden bit of stained glass imprinted with the establishment date of the bar and though the handle was replaced, it was once a baseball bat as an ode to the bar’s past life as a softball bar.
No single review can capture every layer of the The Hole in the Wall experience, the space very much a product of its robust and ongoing relationship with college students, live music and alcohol. Thankfully, that relationship has endured unchanged despite a pair of attempts to potentially shutter the space, a testament to the Austin community’s appreciation for what The Hole in the Wall offers.