Est. Whenever It Was Still Cheap
We Remember When
Austin Was Weird
For Free
Comedic Austin nostalgia satire for people who remember what used to be where your condo is now, what tacos used to cost, and when music venues weren't “experiences.”
Latest Gripes
The newest complaints about Austin prices, lost venues, SXSW creep, and the city’s ongoing talent for replacing charm with monetization.
Meet Kade Sonnenfeld, AI-Native Since Tuesday
Composite character Kade Sonnenfeld rides the elevator to the 16th floor of 701 Brazos with a $7.50 croissant and the unshakable confidence of a man who discovered transformers last week, then explains them to the woman who co-wrote the original paper.
The Aldrich Street Receipts, Filed in Triplicate
A 7:42 a.m. Zillow rent comp sheet for Mosaic at Mueller ($1,880 one-bedroom) and Aldrich 51 sits beside last quarter's Mueller POA notice on the counter; cross-referenced against the 2004 Master Development Agreement for the old Robert Mueller Municipal Airport site, with one $28 plate of rigatoni entered as Exhibit B.
A Field Guide to the MoPac Time Tax
Deadpan notes from the Parmer-to-Cesar Chavez run on Loop 1, where 2017's "managed lanes" still leave general-purpose traffic in the 35-60 minute range and every extended idle translates into another $6.50 Veracruz All Natural taco you'll skip at the finish line.
One Small, One Jumbo, and a Water Now Tops Twelve at 412 Sterzing
Breaking down Sno-Beach's current menu at the purple trailer on Sterzing Street where a small hits four dollars and the jumbo tub seven, set against late-90s pricing that matched a gallon of milk, all while tracking the 3 p.m. elementary school rush and post-pool family math near Barton Springs.
Boots Still Shuffle at 3201 S Lamar Blvd
Dropped in on a weeknight at the Broken Spoke where the chicken fried steak runs $16.95, the two-step lesson costs ten bucks and fills by 7:30, and the condo cranes now peer over the tin roof from the back parking lot like uninvited guests.
Tech Bro of the Week: The Standing Desk Rancher
He bought 40 acres in Dripping Springs and now has opinions about cedar.
The Grouch Manifesto
We don't hate Austin. We hate what happened to it while we were waiting in line for a $16 breakfast taco that used to cost two bucks and some pocket lint.
This site is a love letter disguised as a complaint form. Every post is a tiny funeral for something that made this city weird, wonderful, and almost affordable.
We remember. And we're not shutting up about it.
Featured Series
Follow the biggest recurring complaints through editorial hubs built around Austin prices, music history, tech-bro absurdity, development, and SXSW fatigue.
Condos of Shame
6 posts
Documenting the luxury boxes replacing everything you loved.
"Where your favorite taco truck used to be."
SXSW Ruin Counter
5 posts
Tracking the annual corporate colonization of Austin's weirdest week.
"It used to be about the music. Now it's about the lanyard."
Things That Used to Cost $3
6 posts
A eulogy for affordable Austin, one price tag at a time.
"Adjusting for inflation and broken dreams."
Tech Bro of the Week
6 posts
Satirical profiles of the disruptors disrupting your neighborhood.
"Move fast and break rent prices."
Lost Venues & Dive Bars
6 posts
Remembering the sticky-floored sanctuaries that defined a city.
"Gone but not forgotten. Unlike your bar tab."
Things We Lost
1 post
A running obituary for vanished Austin institutions, rituals, and neighborhoods that got priced out, paved over, or rebranded.
"For everyone still giving directions based on what's not there anymore."
Browse by Topic
Start with the biggest Austin themes people keep arguing about: gentrification, SXSW, music venues, prices, food, and the whole weird grief economy of local memory.
Austin Gentrification
8 posts
Satirical essays and historical gripes about condo creep, redevelopment pressure, and the neighborhoods Austin keeps trading away.
Austin Development
5 posts
Coverage of towers, mixed-use ambition, neighborhood churn, and the civic buzzwords used to sell every new block of Austin.
Austin Music
5 posts
Stories about the live music culture, bands, venues, and weird little scenes that gave Austin a pulse before the latest tower render.
Austin Prices
5 posts
A running archive of what Austin used to cost before breakfast tacos, parking, badges, and rent all got delusions of grandeur.
Austin Tech
5 posts
Satirical profiles of founders, remote-work cosplay, AI pivots, and the venture-funded habits reshaping Austin culture.
Festivals
5 posts
Browse Old Austin Grouch posts about festivals, Austin nostalgia, and the city habits locals still argue about.
Get Grouchy in Your Inbox
New complaints delivered weekly, plus a steady reminder that Austin’s best landmarks now survive mostly as stories, inside jokes, and suspiciously expensive mixed-use copy.
Comedic Austin nostalgia satire. We remember when this town was weird for free.
Series
Disclaimer
This is satire. We love Austin — even the parts we complain about. All characters are fictional composites. No tech bros were harmed in the making of this website.
© 2026 Old Austin Grouch. All rights reserved. Keep Austin Grouchy.