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Each year upwards of 400,000 people descend upon Austin, TX for the annual SXSW festival, and though I don’t have hard data to back it up, I’m willing to bet a pretty decent portion of that crowd includes cannabis fans. So if you’re heading to the capital city this week or next, here are a few suggestions to help maximize your high times in Austin. Just keep in mind that if you’re visiting from a recreational-legal state, Austin is an oasis of blue in a sea of red, and it is definitely not legal to smoke in Austin. Not that it’s stopping anyone, certainly not Willie Nelson or Matthew McConaughey.
And for those who aren’t making it down to the Lone Star State, there is a variety of programming available to live stream, including the interview with President Obama. That way you can get high and hang out at SX without ever having to leave your couch.
Note: Most of these suggestions stick to the downtown area to make things easier, otherwise this list would never end.
Panels
After testing out the waters a bit last year with the panel Cannabis: Past, Present, and Exciting Future, SXSW has ramped up their marijuana-related content with four panels during the Interactive portion of the conference.
Mentor Session: Alexander Rodriguez, Pot Pioneer: Marijuana Opportunities & Pitfalls
Sunday, March 13
The legalization of marijuana marked the beginning of the country's fastest growing industry and the biggest step for prohibition in America; coming with it, a plethora of beneficial advances in our culture and civilization.The most substantial topics in this industry, being the opportunities in business, research, and technology will enable entrepreneurs to take advantage of this wide open market. The industry is just beginning and we see it's enormous potential to explore these opportunities and expand on the positives and negatives.
Panel: Enabling Cannabis Innovation with Law and Policy
Sunday, March 13
This panel will explore the risks, rewards, and obstacles of innovating in a black market moving quickly into shades of white. A panel of entrepreneurs, investors, and legal experts working, legitimately, in the startup marijuana industry will explore how these startups navigate law and policy issues, talk about the community’s political efforts, and discuss lessons for innovation in heavily regulated areas.
Panel: Ending Cannabis Prohibition: Tech Politics Culture
Monday, March 14
When stakeholders do not exercise their voice, a market is at significant risk. Due to the state of current US drug policy, collateral technology companies can be the best voice for this emerging market, and thereby ensure that the market breadth satisfies clients and investors.
Panel: Beyond The Leaf: Cannabis Grows Up
Tuesday, March 15
Cannabis and cannabinoid receptor modulators have always been a hot topic, for both pharmaceutical industry as well as mass media. Last year, we provided an introduction to the business and overall landscape of cannabis. This year, we’re coming back to provide a more personal look into this exciting field from several perspectives and how it can compare to traditional pharma or biotech. We want to give you the resources to understand and participate in this burgeoning industry, how these compounds act on your health, and how to run a business in this industry.
Music
- If you’re looking to catch a good display of some of Austin’s best stoner-friendly music from rock to hip-hop, the free Magical Monday party from Solstice offers a smorgasbord of quality shit. Not to be missed is the trippy stage show of Octopus Project (there are often theramins and ghosts involved) and Cats From Japan, a David Bowie tribute band.
- Too $hort is still blowin after 30 years, and he’s celebrating his anniversary at Empire Garage with a day party on March 16, for just $10. More big names to be announced shortly-keep an eye out, those tickets are going to sell out fast.
- The Sixth Annual Music Tech Mashup: This party combines some quality Austin hip hop talent including Sip Sip and Riders Against the Storm with electronic duo Break Science and Canada’s Keys n Krates headlining. That’s what I’m talkin aboot. Full lineup and RSVP info here.
- If you’re into bass music, and really, why wouldn’t you be? You’ll want to hit the Play Me Records unofficial showcase at Barcelona, headlined by Reid Speed on Saturday, March 19. You get five hours of bass DJs-for free in a dark bass cave that lets you catch your breath from all the SX madness (and then immediately lose it again).
- And if that’s not enough bass for you, catch Mad Classy’s Official Showcase at Barcelona on March 16, featuring Sharkweek, Mad Classy, DJ Shiftee, and others.
There’s a lot more to Austin than just the downtown streets, so why not get a tour of the city while sipping cocktails and listening to Latin/tropical bass music from the Surefire Agency’s lineup at their annual boat party? Grab some sun and open air (read: smoking patio) on the top of a Lone Star Riverboat that’s floating down Lady Bird/Town Lake while listening to Truth, B2B, Taso, and others. An open bar is included in the ticket (tickets will sell out soon, so get on it), including Tito’s Vodka, Peligroso Tequila, and delicious, fresh mixers from Austin’s Juiceland.
- Smokers Club and Grizzly Griptape basically sent a personal invite to stoners for their Backwood Fever party at The House of Vans at Mohawk on March 19. The lineup features Denzel Curry, Mike G, Cousin Stizz, and more.
- The Amsterdam Dance Event and Right Light Radio are teaming up for an electronic music party featuring Dutch DJs at Plush on Wednesday March 16, so yeah, great for stoners. ADE is following that party up with another one at Plush the next night with a variety of musical talent from Amsterdam co-sponsored by Appelsap.
- Weed, Friday, March 18-Their name is Weed. That’s really all you need to know. But also their influences include David Bowie, Paul McCartney, and The Eagles.
- SXSW also has some recommendations for good electronic music shows.
Provisions
The Gas Pipe is your only standard head shop downtown, and they have a variety of daily discounts throughout the week (find the full list on their website), including a St. Patrick’s Day special where customers receive a free pack of green papers with purchase. It’s right by the convention center at 5th and I-35, so it should be easy to find for any stoner.
Bee Grocery is a charming little store on the east side with lots of hippie snacks, banh mi, a variety of hydration options (including great beer and wine selections), as well as a small glass selection behind the counter, rolling papers, and lighters.
For emergency rolling paper and lighter needs there are a few convenience stores and gas stations dotted along downtown, but not many, so planning ahead is your best bet.
Munchies
The taco scene in Austin is pretty legendary, enough to make you want to move there. But please don’t, it’s basically at capacity (you’ll hear this a lot while you’re at SXSW). In fact, Austin is currently embroiled in a taco war with its southern neighbor, San Antonio, over which city can be named the home of the breakfast taco. You’re likely to run into some tech company using tacos as a promotional tool, and while you should definitely take free food wherever you can, you have to make time to try some of the tacos that Austin has to offer. Pueblo Viejo needs to be at the top of your list, followed by Veracruz All Natural, Tamale House East, and plenty of others.
Luckily Austin offers lots of great late night options, though be prepared for a wait at places like 24 Diner, Magnolia Cafe, and Kerbey Lane Cafe-your best bet is to head to one at least an hour before last call. If you’re on Dirty 6th, you’ll want to slip into Voodoo Doughnut for a pink box of joy (don’t forget your cash).Whataburger is an Austin must-have as well. If you can’t quite make it from downtown, give Favor a try, though they’ll likely be extremely busy dealing with all of the other stoners and drunkards in town.
Austin has definitely had its fair share of dining options spring up from the food truck fad, and some of the best ones are downtown. Angry Egg Roll has incredible egg rolls the size of burritos, Chi’Lantro BBQ offers up Mexican and Korean fusion that sounds like it shouldn’t work but really, really does (the kimchi fries are a big deal), and Kebabalicious makes kebabs that are so good urban legends surround the place.
Tex-Mex obviously makes up a good deal of the Austin diet, and out-of-towners usually like to check out places like Guero’s (also a good chance to get some shopping done on South Congress), El Sol y la Luna, and Uncle Julio’s (if you’ve never had warm salsa, it’s worth a try). La Condesa is also a fantastic option if you’re looking for a fancier feast.
While there are a few pizza vendors downtown that will do in a pinch, as well as a couple of nice restaurants that serve good pies, Via 313’s Detroit-style pizza reigns supreme over them all. For more carb loading, Easy Tiger has a great beer selection to go with their in-house made pretzels and sausages. Mmmmm, beer cheese. Frank is where you need to go to get your hot dog fix, because a lot of their concoctions definitely seem like they were created by someone who was really, really high. The Hightower will be extended their weekend brunch to run from March 17-March 20 for SXSW, and their smoked redfish spread will make want to lick the serving bowl. And if you’re in the mood for free crawfish, Empire Garage is hosting SXSWBoiled starting at 1pm on March 12, featuring Austin DJs, art, and 500 pounds of boiled crawfish with 50 pounds of sausage.
A visit to Austin wouldn’t be the same without a bit of barbecue, so head for Lamberts, Ironworks, and Stubbs. Though Franklin Barbecue is the place where every online guide will tell you to go, it’s not the best use of your limited time. La Barbecue is a great alternative to Franklin, but can also get extremely busy.
Finally, SouthBites is SXSW’s gift to stoners, with a variety of programming specifically about food. There’s a taco meetup, documentaries, mentor sessions, an interview with Anthony Bourdain, and lots more.
If you're looking for more food info, Eater Austin has a new SXSW guide.
Weed certainly had a big place at SXSW 2015, leading to lots of fun content for stoners who couldn’t make it to the festival (or who cuddled up with the Internet during their necessary recovery time):
Jimmy Kimmel’s “Pot Quiz” showed off just how much stoners know about weed (and how little they know about other things) with a special guest at the end.
Billboard took a ride around Austin on a bus, smoking pot and eating poutine with Action Bronson, “rap's pre-eminent foodie/weirdo.” I personally couldn’t think of a better way to spend a day during SXSW.
The film festival featured a marijuana documentary called Rolling Papers about the shift in the media surrounding the legalization of marijuana that was picked up for distribution by Alchemy at the festival.
There is also a great talk by Dr. Carl Hunt called Dope Science at Saturday, March 12. Click here to check it out or get tickets.
2016 promises to be an even better year for pot lovers.
What’s on your must-see/do list for this year’s SXSW? Let us know in the comments.
