Hole in the Wall

History

Doug Cugini and his parents, Orazio and Billie, opened the Hole in the Wall on June 15, 1974, at 2538 Guadalupe Street, a former Longhorn dry cleaner across from the University of Texas. It began as a neighborhood bar, and musicians soon played inside; Nanci Griffith worked there in the first year, and later regulars included Timbuk 3 and Fastball. Cugini sold the bar in 1998 to manager Debbie Rombach and a group of regulars. It closed at the end of June 2002, when the building was listed for $972,000, and reopened in May 2003 after the owners of Austin's Pizza bought the property. Will Tanner, owner since 2008, signed a new lease in August 2023, an initial 10 years plus two five-year options, backed by $1.6 million from the city's Iconic Venue Fund.