Brushy Creek's favorite legend gets the whole afternoon Saturday, and the rest of the weekend fills in around him: pumpkin games in the morning and a downtown car show on Sunday.

Hairy Man Festival · Saturday, Oct 17, noon–5pm · Cat Hollow Park, 8320 O'Connor Dr
Live bands all afternoon (Fun Gus & The Shrooms, Tarah New and the Crew, Dysfunkshun Junkshun), plus inflatables, face painting, petting zoos, carnival games, and food and game booths run by local nonprofits. The costume contest is at 2pm, someone reads the Legend of the Hairy Man aloud at 4:15, and the Hairiest Man contest closes things out at 4:30. Admission is free; bring two non-perishable food items or $2 a person for the Round Rock Serving Center. Runners can start the day with the Hairy Man 5K at 9am.

Pumpkin Palooza · Saturday, Oct 17, 10am–2pm · St. Richard's Episcopal Church, 1420 E Palm Valley Blvd
Pumpkin bowling, sack races, putt-putt, ring toss, crafts, face painting, prizes, and food on the church grounds. The pumpkin patch is open the same day, so you can pick one out before you head to Brushy Creek.

Round Rock Car Show · Sunday, Oct 18, 9am–noon · Centennial Plaza, 301 W Bagdad Ave
Classics, muscle cars, modern sports cars, and custom builds parked downtown, hosted by the Round Rock Police Department. It's free; get there early if you want a close parking spot.

Wayne and Dianne Anderson are from Jamaica, and they've done this before: back in New Jersey, the couple ran a Jamaican and Caribbean restaurant. They moved to Texas to be near their grown kids and settled in Leander, and late last year they opened Island Riddim Jerk & BBQ Grill in the University Commons shopping center, with Wayne as chef. Part of what the restaurant makes goes toward scholarships for students in Jamaica.

The name says it: island food and Texas barbecue on one menu. On the Jamaican side are jerk chicken, oxtail, brown stew snapper, curry goat, and curry chicken. On the Texas side are BBQ ribs and "Bar-B-Fried" chicken, and the jerk wings are somewhere in between. There's a curry chickpea and potato plate for the vegetarians. Mains come with rice and peas and mixed vegetables; add fried plantains. To drink, there are craft sodas and specialty lemonades.

"When you come into the restaurant, you're experiencing the food," Dianne told Community Impact when they were getting ready to open. "We're hoping that you'll have a cultural experience as well." You can eat in, order online for pickup, or get delivery through DoorDash or Uber Eats.

Open every day, 11am–10pm.

📍 200 University Blvd, Ste 350 (University Commons)
See the menu →

One downtown spot with two good reasons to go before the weekend: Purely Provisions, the coffee-and-cocktails house in a 1930s cottage on West Main.

Purely Provisions
Tasty Tuesdays — every Tuesday, 3–9pm — the Purely Burger is $9 instead of $14.50. That's a smashed Black Angus patty with grilled onions, peach aioli, bourbon bacon jam, and cheddar on brioche, plus fries cooked in beef tallow.
📍 212 W Main St · See the specials →

Purely Provisions
Happy Hour — Tue, Thu & Fri 3–6pm; Wed 3pm–close — $2 off draft beer, $12 specialty cocktails, a $5 glass of any wine, and the $10 Purely O'Margarita. Then there's Margarita Madness: margaritas are half off for an hour, 8–9pm Tuesday through Thursday and 9–10pm Friday.
📍 212 W Main St · See the menu →

Lunchtime music on Main, a creekside market, another weekend at the pumpkin farm, and Encore at Music on Main.

Hometown Lunchtime Parklet Shows
🗓 Thursday, Oct 15 and Tuesday, Oct 20, 11:30am–1pm
📍 Main Street parklets, downtown
Free midday sets: Undiskovered Trio plays Thursday at Parklet #4 in the Griffith Building paseo, and Paul Val plays Tuesday at Parklet #1, in front of Brass Tap. Bring your lunch.

Round Rock Pumpkin Festival
🗓 Friday–Monday, Oct 16–19, 10am–7pm
📍 Old Settlers Association, 3300 E Palm Valley Blvd
The pumpkin patch, train rides, pony rides, a mechanical bull, and a donkey named Jack. Admission is listed at $12, and some attractions cost extra. It's open Fridays through Mondays until Halloween.

Trailside Market
🗓 Saturday, Oct 17, 9am–noon
📍 Memorial Park, 600 N Lee St
Local makers, boutique clothing, baked goods, and specialty food and drinks along the creek. Free, and it's done in time to make it to the Hairy Man Festival.

Music on Main: Encore
🗓 Wednesday, Oct 21, 7–9pm
📍 Prete Main Street Plaza, 221 E Main St
Week three of the free fall concert series. Bring a chair or a blanket; parking is free all over downtown.

Just ahead: Penfold Theatre stages Forever Dolly, the music of Dolly Parton sung by Yesenia McNett with a five-piece band, Thursday and Friday, Oct 22–23, at 7pm. The second weekend of Navratri brings garba back to the Round Rock Sports Center Friday and Saturday, Oct 23–24, from 7pm ($25 guest tickets). Then Saturday, Oct 24, is packed: the free Round Rock Diwali Festival fills Centennial Plaza from 1 to 10pm with 60-plus live performances, Indian street food, and a diya lighting; Sweet Irene's Boutique holds its grand opening at 110 S Lampasas St, 1–5:30pm, with swag bags for the first 50 guests; and Kalahari's Spooktacular runs 5–9pm with a trick-or-treat trail, bounce houses, and a DJ dance party ($30 per car to park if you're not staying at the resort).

Good things happening around town this week:

Drone delivery takes off in Round Rock — Zipline picked Round Rock for its first Austin-area site. If you live within about 3 miles of its drone site, you can order through the Zipline app from 25 businesses, including local Instill Coffee, and your order can arrive in about 20 minutes. Watch our video…

ACC's new automotive building is open — Austin Community College cut the ribbon Oct. 8 on a 36,500-square-foot automotive technology facility at its Round Rock Campus, more than double the space the program had before. It's home to ACC's Toyota T-TEN program, which Toyota recognized as the nation's top-performing T-TEN school for student success. Semiconductor, HVAC, and welding training are expected to follow in 2027. Read more…

Round Rock Premium Outlets turns 20 this weekend — the center at 4401 N I-35 opened Aug. 3, 2006, and it's celebrating Oct. 15–18. On Saturday, Oct. 17, from noon to 5pm, families get a touch-a-truck, face painting, balloon twisting, and slime making, plus keychain personalization, bracelet making, and a Y2K-themed photo spot. Read more…

A Round Rock startup turns family stories into books — Nate Bensimon launched Posterity Books this month. After using an AI tool to turn conversations with his father into a memoir, he built a service that compiles about 30 recorded conversations into a small printed book of family history, printed when you order it. Some proceeds from books on topics like military service go to related causes. Read more…

Thinking about buying, selling, or simply curious what homes are selling for around town? Our Real Estate Corner highlights notable local listings, market insights, and trends shaping the Round Rock housing market.

2237 Hamlet Cir, Round Rock 78664
$899,000 · 4 bed · 4 bath · 4,367 sqft

Golf course across the street, pool and spa out back. This 2006 Forest Creek house sits on a 0.35-acre lot, and the backyard is the main event: the pool and spa are ringed by mature trees and lounge areas, and the covered patio has a full outdoor kitchen. Inside there's a curved staircase and wood floors, plus four living spaces besides the family room: a formal living room, an office, an upstairs game room, and a media room. The kitchen has quartz counters, gas cooking, and a center island. The primary suite is downstairs, with three more bedrooms upstairs. HOA dues are $72 a month, and the neighborhood has its own pools and tennis courts. Assigned schools are Forest Creek Elementary, Ridgeview Middle, and Cedar Ridge High.

Market note: just up the street, 2263 Hamlet Cir sold for $875,000 on Aug. 21, according to Redfin.

See the listing →

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