La Touf owned the bar for six months before picking a concept he felt the neighborhood would embrace. To preserve the history of the bar, La Touf kept the original furniture that was brought in 30 years ago and had the business’s dust painted into the walls. “If money comes from it, great if money doesn’t come from it … my goal was always just to say, ‘If I break even, I’ll be happy.’” “I to open something up that has some cultural significance to the neighborhood,” he said. The bar has changed names several times throughout the years, including being a gay bar called Bernadette’s and an African-American bar called Airport Bar & Grill, he said. La Touf, an East Austin native, describes his business as a dive bar that offers live entertainment seven days a week, including music, comedy and open mic nights. When Johnny La Touf and his wife, Mary, opened Skylark Lounge in June 2013, they said they wanted to create an old-school East Austin vibe to attract cultures of all varieties. Whether you call them mixologists or bartenders, whether you prefer canned PBR or fancy cocktails, whether you like it dark and dingy or bright and sleek, we can all agree on one thing: there's nothing like a nice cold drink to take the edge off.Ĭheck out our What Community Impact Newspaper has to say.: The Best Bar in Every State, According to Yelp Check us out.Ĭheck out our latest press in Business Insider: Looking a cool laid back atmosphere and that unique bar you've yet to find in Austin? That's Skylark. Need a place to bring friends? With cool secluded booths, an open outdoor patio and a game room with pool and darts, Skylark is a super place to meet. Be sure to check our event calendar for listings. We feature touring musicians and new and upcoming talent as well. Dickie Lee Erwin every Tuesday with a Songwriter's Open Mic. (as voted by the Austin Chronicle) Comedy every Monday. We also have regular weekly performer's like Margaret Wright, who performs the best happy hour show in town. Looking for an incredible show? Here's what we offer: Several blues legends play at Skylark regularly and are definitely not to be missed. Dark lounge with a cool vibe, super sound and music, truly a unique atmosphere. We have live music nightly and strive to bring you the best local musicians in Austin.
The Skylark is part Austin dive bar and part live music venue.