Where to find boozy frozen drinks in Austin

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In far South Austin, the Little Darlin' has an expansive outdoor area where locals can enjoy games of washers and horseshoes or simply talk and hang out. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN FILE]

The Little Darlin’

6507 Circle S Road

This dive in far South Austin might not look like much from the outside, but that’s how the Little Darlin’ lures you in. You might become a regular, not just for the food, but for the frozen cocktail, which rotates often and might be different from visit to visit.

Velouria is a new coffee and cocktail bar in South Austin, but it's already gained a following for the frozen espresso martini offered on its opening menu (and probably on subsequent ones, too). [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Velouria

3801 S. Congress Ave.

Once derided, espresso martinis have been making a comeback. The new coffee shop and cocktail bar just north of Ben White Boulevard has put a particularly Austin spin on this one by tipping vanilla vodka, coffee liqueur and Austin Roasting Co. espresso into a frozen machine. The result will both cool you down and pick you up after a long, hot summer day.

Still Austin Whiskey Co. has a tasting room where you can order whiskey cocktails, as well as an outdoor patio area with a food truck and live music. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Still Austin Whiskey Co.

440 E. St. Elmo Road

Drinking the urban whiskey distillery’s newly released bourbon might not be the most refreshing option; instead, turn to the frozen strawberry lemonade featuring Still’s new make whiskey infused with strawberry and thyme.

Photo: facebook.com/southaustinbeergarden

South Austin Beer Garden

10700 Manchaca Road

The latest dive bar with a giant outdoor space to open in far South Austin has a little bit of everything in the way of drinks. Frozen Coke can be spiked with airplane bottles of booze such as Jack Daniel’s and Fernet, for instance. Other options include the dairy-free Frochata, a perfect summer dessert.

Loro, the Japanese smokehouse from local chef heavyweights Aaron Franklin and Tyson Cole, has a frozen sake cocktail featuring lots of mango. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN FILE]

Loro

2115 S. Lamar Blvd.

From the minds behind Uchi and Franklin Barbecue, the Asian smokehouse tends to draw attention for its food. But don’t overlook the drinks, especially not the canary-yellow, Instagram-ready Mango Sake slushy.

[Alberto Martinez / AMERICAN-STATESMAN FILE]

Swift’s Attic

315 Congress Ave.

Open again after a late-night kitchen fire in March, the downtown restaurant doesn’t offer what you’d think of as traditional frozen cocktails. Swift’s Attic’s handful of “ice ball” cocktails feature a couple of ounces of liquor in a glass otherwise consumed by a giant globe of ice containing the rest of the ingredients. As it melts, the full flavors of the drink (such as the Strawberry Fields, with a vodka and sparkling wine base) develop sip by sip.

The Westin Austin's Azul Rooftop Pool & Bar offers stunning views of the city during the day and at night. [Contributed]

Azul Rooftop at the Westin Downtown

310 E. Fifth St.

With a pool party-like atmosphere, the outdoor pool and lounge area at the Westin Austin will give you a rowdy good time, as well as hard-to-beat downtown views. Gaze at the owl-shaped Frost Bank Tower while you drink boozy delights like the Raspberry F’rosé with Wheatley vodka, peach, raspberry and sparkling rosé.

Photo: Contributed by Richard Casteel

Sour Duck Market

1814 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

The casual sibling eatery of Barley Swine and Odd Duck has an enormous patio that clearly calls for a frozen drink. To that end, order the frozen margarita with a special twist. It’s worth dropping $2 extra for a swirl of any of its draft cocktails in the margarita, such as the gin-centric Summer in Greece.

Photo: instagram.com/laststrawatx

Last Straw

1914 E. Sixth St., Suite C

Brightened by multicolored walls, Last Straw intends to be your vacation from everyday life and will help take you there through a variety of tropical cocktails — four of them frozen. Order the Miami Vice, which combines the piña colada with a strawberry daiquiri and serves that pink-and-white swirl of booze and ice in an actual pineapple.

The mezcal bar La Holly offers two frozen drinks, including the Jamaica Y Mezcal with Kimo Sabe mezcal, housemade hibiscus syrup, lime and triple sec. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

La Holly

2500 E. Sixth St.

You might drive past this little mezcal bar while you’re looking for it, but double back for your agave fix, and also tacos. The cantina’s frozen Jamaica Y Mezcal with Kimo Sabe mezcal, housemade hibiscus syrup, lime and triple sec is fruity, smoky and delicious.

The King Bee Lounge on East Twelfth Street has become known for its signature cocktail, a frozen Bee's Knees that is wickedly easy to drink. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

King Bee Lounge

1906 E. 12th St.

A frozen Bee’s Knees has helped to keep this dimly lit dive buzzing with people since summer 2014, and every regular would feel the sting if owner Billy Hankey ever took the signature drink off the menu.

Infinite Monkey Theorem makes the wine slushees available at its East Austin tasting room with its canned rose , canned riesling, canned red and Camp Cider. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Infinite Monkey Theorem

702 Shady Lane

This eclectic urban winery moved to a much larger location in East Austin earlier this year, but a couple of key elements haven’t changed. It’s got even more graffiti art on the walls, and it’s still making all the same wines — including a so-called wine slushy. Somehow, Infinite Monkey Theorem’s canned rosé, canned riesling, canned red and Camp Cider can all come together in a frozen mixture that is simply divine.

East Sixth Street Italian restaurant Il Brutto offers an Aperol Spritz in frozen form and serves it the same way as the regular spritz, in a wine glass. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Il Brutto

1601 E. Sixth St.

The other essential summer sipper is a spritz — it’s low in alcohol and comes with bubbles. So this airy Italian restaurant had the brilliant idea to combine the two this spring and introduced a frozen Aperol Spritz with the same ingredients as its Il Brutto Spritz (Aperol, bubbles and orange). Does the frozen version lose the appeal of the fizz because it’s been blended with ice? Surprisingly, not at all.

Photo: facebook.com/hanksinaustin

Hank’s

5811 Berkman Drive

The all-day cafe and restaurant is a real looker, thanks to what you might call a “desert modern” aesthetic especially present on the long, succulent-dotted patio. Hank’s has the substance to back up all that style, with a pretty-in-pink frozen paloma featuring tequila, grapefruit juice, soda and lime. It goes down a little too easily even when it’s not $5 during happy hour.

The Austin Eastciders Collaboratory serves the tasting room-only cider slushy in corresponding cans, offering a watermelon version currently that may soon switch to blood orange. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Austin Eastciders Collaboratory

979 Springdale Road

Many of Austin Eastciders’ flavored ciders are widely available, but come to the Collaboratory for a taste of taproom-only options like a cider slushy. Currently made with the Watermelon Cider, it’s served in the actual can, sans lid, and features the addition of white port in part to raise the alcohol level. Yes, please.

Photo: facebook.com/FoxholeATX

Foxhole Culinary Tavern

13995 N. U.S. 183

Frosé caught on as rosé skyrocketed in popularity, but not all frosé — as with so many things in life — is created equal. In the Lakeline area, this date-night spot offers the Foxhole Frosé, with rosé, lemon, basil and strawberry, which you might find tastier than nearly all the rest.

Photo: facebook.com/AristocratLoungeATX

The Aristocrat Lounge

6507 Burnet Road

Keep it simple. Keep it safe. You can count on the former Poodle Dog Lounge to offer a laid-back good time and also to have some kind of rotating frozen cocktail on special, such as this summer’s frozen Bee’s Knees with Ford’s Gin, fresh lemon and honey.

The frozen margarita at Manuel's is a traditional recipe, with tequila, triple sec and fresh lime, and that simplicity produces delicious results. [Arianna Auber / AMERICAN-STATESMAN]

Manuel’s

10201 Jollyville Road

Throw a stone anywhere in Austin and, depending on your arm, it’ll likely land near a place that sells frozen margaritas. But the Manuel’s version (so easy, so frosty) exemplifies how blanco tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice made margaritas so beloved in Texas in the first place. Manuel’s has two locations; although the downtown one (310 Congress Ave.) is perfectly nice, the Arboretum restaurant has an outdoor patio so pretty you might not even notice the summer heat.

Photo: facebook.com/Oasthouseatx

Oasthouse Kitchen + Bar

8300 N. RM 620

The credo of Oasthouse and its sister bar, District, is to create a culinary program that changes with the seasons — something the bar program does, too. A frozen margarita is available always, but another frozen option rotates as the temperature changes. For summer, the icy offering is Ain’t It Frosty, with Tito’s Vodka, cucumber water, lime and simple syrup. In other words, it’s what you wish they’d offer at the spa.