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Dell Diamond /
Round Rock Express
All you really need to
know about the Dell Diamond is this: it feels like
it’s in the middle of a former pasture.
Not that there are many bad ones. All seats are angled to face the diamond, including the corner seats. It is a cozy ballpark, as the first row of seats behind home plate is only 60 feet from home plate, and there’s only nine feet of foul space down each line. The curve of the grandstand is accentuated by the curved dugouts. The ballpark’s design follows a familiar model: the playing area is below grade, a grandstand curls from foul pole to foul pole, berm seating is available in the outfield, and a concourse rings the entire playing area. The requisite suites, press box and group picnic area comprises the second deck.
Like most ballparks
built in the last five years, the Dell Diamond
features plenty of diversions to entertain fans
who can’t sustain interest in baseball for nine
innings, including kids’ play areas, a pool and
extensive concessions. Most families will end up spending time in the right-field area, the ballpark’s entertainment center. For older kids, there’s a climbing wall (the three fastest climbers to the top get their names and times on the scoreboard), a speed gun and a basketball court; for younger kids there’s a video arcade and playground area. The entire area is supervised, with its own concession stand. For Sunday games there are inflatable play areas outside the ballpark.
In addition, right
field is home to a pool, spa and volleyball court.
This is a group area and sure to invoke the most
envy from other fans.
The Dell Diamond perfectly embodies the Austin ethos: it’s professional without being too overwhelming, about as laid-back as you’ll find in Class AAA baseball. And for the Texas baseball fan, that’s enough: give them a good game, a good beer and a comfortable seat, and they’ll be happy.
Concessions If you want something of a more traditional Texas nature – i.e., beef – head behind the concourse to the Nolan Ryan’s Tender Age Beef Grill Stand, where burgers are grilled fresh, or to the Pok-e-Jo’s stand, where beef BBQ is on the menu. Also worth checking out: the shaved ice stations (kids can apply their own toppings, which probably ends up in some disgustingly sweet mixes), freshly prepared caramel corn, Chicago red hots, chili cheese fries and frozen magaritas. For those who really do eat at Hooter’s for the food and not for the talent there are the chain’s wings and fries. Otherwise, the remaining concessions are pretty standard: Dippin’ Dots, ice cream, corn dogs beer, pop, lemonade, hot dogs, cotton candy and the like. Yes, you can find Shiner Bock on tap, as well as a large selection of mainstream and microbrewed (Fat Tire) beers.
What to Do
Before/After the Game That’s why you’ll want to spend your time away from the ballpark in Austin. There’s really no other place like Austin on the planet, though college towns like Madison and Berkeley come close. People in Austin tend to do things at their own pace and in their own way, frequently with a countercultural bent. There’s a strong music scene – Willie Nelson lives nearby, while alt-county and modern swing both have deep roots in the area – and the local restaurant and literary scenes are lively. While most of Texas is conservative and pro-business, Austin is liberal, colorful, artsy and wholly unique. It’s fairly hard to find a bad meal in Austin, but there are some restaurants worth checking out. Elsi’s Restaurant (6601 Burnet Rd., Austin) serves up great Tex-Mex and Southwestern food; we’d recommend the tacos ahorgados and the chicken breast in mole sauce. Downtown Austin features the Scholz Garten (1607 San Jacinto), a German beer garden dating back to 1866. The menu is a mixture of German specialties (German potato salad, Jaeger schnitzel) and Texas barbeque. The Z’Tejas chain (1603 West 5th Street), now up to 11 locations in five states, originated in Austin, and the original location remains one of the prettiest restaurants in town. North by Northwest Restaurant and Brewery (10010 Capital of TX Hwy. N) combines fresh microbrewed beer with a solid menu. Above we mentioned Texadelphia and Pok-e-Jo’s. If you don’t get a cheesesteak at the ballpark, get one in the chain’s original location (2422 Guadalupe Street) near the University of Texas-Austin campus. Similarly, the downtown Pok-e-Jo’s (1603 West 5th St.) is worth a visit for Texas beef and pork BBQ. These listings don’t come close to scratching the surface of the lively restaurant scene in Austin. Quite honestly, you can find great food anywhere, and sometimes in the most unexpected places. Even the takeout at the new Whole Foods Market (525 N. Lamar) is outstanding. If you do go for takeout at Whole Foods, spend some time at one of the great independent bookstores in America: BookPeople (603 N. Lamar). With such an active nightlife, it’s pretty much mandatory you spend the evening out after the game. Nightlife comes in all categories in Austin, ranging from bar-boned bars in downtown Austin (the action centers on West 6th Street, between Brazos and Sabine) to upscale bars and eateries in southwest Austin. However, with great live music throughout the area, you should begin your nightlife search at one of the established clubs. The Continental Club (1315 S. Congress Av.) is an Austin legend, beginning life as a hotspot for hipsters in 1957 and turning into a burlesque club before becoming a live-music hotspot in the late 1970s, where the likes of Joe Ely, Stevie Ray Vaughn and Kinky Friedman made their starts. Today you can still find Kelly Willis, Heybale (old-style country) and members of Split Lip Rayfield (post-modern bluegrass) performing regularly. Antone’s (213 W 5th St.) is Austin’s preeminent blues joint featuring local and national acts. Stubb’s (801 Red River) mixes great BBQ and real Southern sides (okra, black-eyed peas) with live music. The thing to remember about looking for live music in Austin: don’t be afraid to see an act you’ve never heard of. Take the aforementioned Heybale, who lack a national recording contract. It’s a local superband of sorts, made of former backing musicians for the likes of Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash. They can be found (as of this writing) every Sunday Night at the Continental.
Where to Stay
Downtown Austin
features more dignified historic hotels. The
history of
The Driskill (604 Brazos St.; 800-252-9367) is
fully intertwined with Texas history; it dates
back to 1886 and served as a second home for Texas
political leaders when in Austin. Lyndon Baines
Johnson and his future wife, Lady Bird, had their
first date at the Driskill, and LBJ always held
big events there. The
Intercontinental Stephen F. Austin (701
Congress Avenue; 512/457-8800) opened in 1924 and
similarly served as a political gathering ground
before being extensively remodeled and reopened in
2000.
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