With the addition of The Domain’s Northside and Rock Rose, the area has seen tremendous growth in all aspects of real estate: retail, restaurants, residential, hotel and office.
AQUILA Senior Associate and Domain resident, Seth Stuart, weighs in on the appeal of this area in this month’s Q&A. To discover the best places to try out as well as see which major tenants office in the area, check out our infographic at the bottom of this post.
Art Tree in Domain Northside (photo by Kenny Braun, courtesy of Endeavor)
Q: The Domain is home to many major tenants including HomeAway, WeWork and Amazon. Why do you think the Domain is a good place for these major brands to office?
A: They are here for the Live Work Play environment. There are so many restaurants, bars and things to do in the area which have a huge draw to these younger employer bases. They can pay significantly less to be in The Domain compared to downtown and get similar amenities in the area.
Lobby at HomeAway in the Domain (photo courtesy of Officelovin)
Q: You’ve lived at The Domain for the past year, so you’re pretty familiar with the area. What are your go-to restaurants?
A: If I want to eat somewhere that has a great environment with live music, I go to Culinary Dropout. If I am feeling something healthy, then I head to Whole Foods or Flower Child.
If I want to watch a football game at a bar with good food, then I like Lavaca Street Bar. You then have to top off dinner with a cupcake from Sprinkles! You won’t regret it (unless you eat too many.)
Flower Child is a healthy spot that sources their food locally (photo courtesy of Flower Child)
Q: What is your favorite thing to do in this area?
A: If it’s a nice night, I like to walk around and explore. There’s so many new restaurants and shops that it seems like I always find something new each time I get out.
I also enjoy going to TopGolf on Friday or Saturday when they have live music. The secret is getting a bay on the top floor where they have an outdoor bar and music playing.
The outdoor bar and patio at TopGolf (photo courtesy of TopGolf)
Q: The Domain has recently expanded to include Domain Northside and the Rock Rose area. How has this added to appeal of the area?
A: It has brought in a ton of new restaurants and shops that have helped keep The Domain area on the rise. The “old” Domain as I call it was starting to get a little outdated. It is interesting to see some of the retailers that were located in the first phase of The Domain moving to the Rock Rose/Domain Northside area. I think where they have really hit it big in Phase 2/Rock Rose area was bringing in a ton of new Austin restaurants. It feels a lot more like you are on West 6th now.
Q: In what ways do you think The Domain will continue to grow?
A: They will continue to add more office space to The Domain which will create a cool and fun lunch vibe throughout the week. Most of the new planned office buildings closest to Rock Rose will have first floor retail which will bring some more good restaurants and stores to The Domain as well.
In the next couple years I bet people will fly into Austin and stay in The Domain and never even go downtown. You can easily spend a long weekend at The Domain and never get bored.
Each month in 2017, AQUILA will be featuring a different Austin Neighborhood Spotlight. Check our blog next month for the next featured neighborhood. View our previous neighborhood spotlight infographics.
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- An Insider’s Guide to The Arboretum in Austin, TX: Major Offices and Tenants, Restaurants and Amenities, and Demographics [INFOGRAPHIC]
- Your Ultimate Guide to East Austin: Top Things to Do & Best Place to Eat (and Drink) [INFOGRAPHIC]
