Texans everywhere feel a collective pain whenever an Old Austin business closes for good. In memoriam of those classic destinations, MySA is highlighting a bygone Old Austin venue every month to carry on the memory of the community staples.
On a dilapidated property off Barton Springs Road in South Austin, weeds and shrubs run rampant in the vacant lot as graffiti encroaches the now-empty building. It’s a far cry from its glory days a mere five years ago, where the margaritas flowed and the grills fired up green chile burgers for nearly 30 years.
Shady Grove is one of those bygone Austin relics, now residing in the grave yard of Old Austin businesses that have since shuttered their doors. Opened in 1992 by Chuy’s owners Mike Young and John Zapp, Shady Grove became a Barton Springs institution regarded for its Southwestern-influenced menu and free live music performances each Thursday throughout the summertime.
But the dog days of summer came and went, and in May 2020, the business closed its doors for one final times after 28 years serving up Austinites. It’s just one in a series of closures changing the landscape of Austin’s local business scene, emblematic citywide as well as on Barton Springs Road.
That strip, leading up to the city’s crown jewel — Zilker Park — has been the source of plenty of turnovers and business evolutions as the corridor’s real estate values soar and restaurants struggle to compete with rising rents and related costs. At the time of Shady Grove’s closure in May 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was freshly underway, and the Texas capital’s local restaurant scene grappled with the loss of in-person dining volumes and trying to adapt operations to a contact-less, takeout-centric world…