🚲 What's the Real Waco Experience?

Good Morning Waco! This is The Waco Buzz, the newsletter that feels like waking up before your alarm and realizing you get 20 extra minutes in your day.

In today's edition:
🚲 Would the real Waco experience please stand up?
🚐 A New Way to Get Around Waco
🏈 Baylor Football Opens in Atlanta
🏛 City Council Meeting Preview
🎶 The Best Midweek Live Music and Events

Let's get to it!
— Sam Harper

Woodway Wine & Food Fest: Around the World
Your passport to a night abroad doesn't require leaving town. Woodway’s annual Wine & Food Fest returns Saturday, September 12 from 6 to 9 PM with an Around the World theme. The Wine Shoppe of Waco is pouring 10 wines from Texas, California, France, Spain, and Italy, and general admission gets you eight of the ten plus samples from every food vendor, including a grazing table from Rio Brazos Cuisine.

JD's Café, Olive Branch, Curry Up & Wok This Way, L'Atelier Fromager, and Puffy Postcard Pastries are all bringing small bites, and the Art Center of Waco is rolling in its mobile art installation for guests to browse.

Want the full night? A VIP table for eight gets all 10 wines, a personal charcuterie board, and a gift from the City of Woodway.

👉 Grab your tickets here*

🚲 What's the Real Waco Experience?
For ten years, Waco Tours racked up national attention. TripAdvisor named their Classic Tour the No. 4 Top Overall Experience in the United States, and USA Today crowned their River Cruise the No. 1 Best Boat Tour in North America. A decade, 100,000+ guests served, and a whole lot of Waco history and stories told, not just the parts that got fixed up on TV.

This summer, Waco Tours closed its doors, which got me wondering: What does a visitor find today when they go looking for a distinctly Waco experience? I pulled up Airbnb Experiences, where travelers look for something beyond the standard tourist stops. The options included two horseback riding trips and a cow-milking experience.

Nothing wrong with any of that. It just got me thinking about what you would recommend if a friend came to town and said, “I want to experience the real Waco.”

When our family travels somewhere new, especially internationally, two of our go-tos are almost always a bike tour and a food tour. Not because we need someone pointing out the obvious landmarks, but because a good local guide shows you the stuff you might miss scrolling on your own. The neighborhood you'd never think to visit. The restaurant locals swear by (highly recommend Schmaltz's... not sponsored). The world-class mountain bike trails tucked into Cameron Park that most visitors never hear about.

So here's my question for you: what's the real Waco experience?

💬 Community Corner

A few months back, I asked you to help shape where The Waco Buzz goes next. The answer was loud and clear: more events, more community. Here's what's coming up this month:

Dinner Club - September 17. Making new friends as an adult is hard. Dinner Club makes it easy. Over 650 people have shown up to a dinner since we started. 👉 Reserve your seat

Social Studies - September 24. Social Studies brings live lectures to unexpected places around Waco. This month, we're at Pignetti's with Dr. Andy Hogue, Baylor Master Teacher and Associate Dean for Engaged Learning, talking about what it means to be a good citizen in an “Era of Seductive Despair.” 👉 Grab a ticket

Pottery Night - September 26 (First Ever). Brand new this month. The Waco Buzz and Outpost Pottery are teaming up for a hands-on pottery night, wheel throwing, decorating pre-made pieces, or painting one to take home. No experience needed. Only 30 spots.
👉 Save your spot

Waco → Tokyo for $808 round trip. This week’s find is with one stop in DFW each way, making Tokyo about the same price you as Hawaii. Here’s the kicker: Tokyo Disney is about $50 per day, compared with around $150 in Orlando. Suddenly, a Tokyo Disney trip doesn’t sound quite so crazy. 😏
👉 Check availability*
*_{^{Price is subject to change and may no longer be available at the time you check the link.}}

🚐 A New Way to Get Around Waco
Matthew Heaton, former manager of Waco Tours, just launched The Waco Line, a private transportation company serving Waco and Central Texas. Think airport transfers, weddings, corporate events, and private groups, all in a sprinter van with a professional driver instead of a rideshare gamble.

Heaton says the name is a nod to the old Dallas to Waco interurban railway that connected Central Texas starting in 1913, back when a train was how you got somewhere.

Quick Hits:
🕰 The former Suit City space downtown at 707 Austin Ave is now home to Crown & Curio, an antiques and vintage shop packed with records, books, art, and collectibles.

🎣 Academy Sports and Outdoors celebrates its grand opening in Bellmead this weekend, Friday through Sunday. The first 150 people in line each morning get a gift card.

⚖️ City Council Preview
Waco City Council meets today at the Waco Convention Center. Here’s what’s on the agenda:

The work session starts at 3 PM, followed by the business session at 6 PM at the Waco Convention Center.

See full agenda here.

📚 Also, September is Library Card Sign-Up and Fine Forgiveness Month. Sign up for a card, or come clean on that overdue book fine you've been dodging, and they'll wipe the slate clean.

🎨 Celebrating the Legacy of Robert Wilson
Art Center Waco is hosting a lunch October 4 honoring Robert Wilson, the internationally acclaimed avant-garde theater director who was born and raised right here in Waco. Wilson worked with everyone from Philip Glass to Lady Gaga, and the date isn't random. It would have been his 85th birthday.

Proceeds support Art Center Waco's mission to make art accessible across the community. Presented by Ambassador Lyndon and Kay Olson, Alyce and Steve Beard, and sponsored in part by MCC. 👉 Get tickets here*

🏈 Baylor vs. Auburn | Saturday, 2:30 PM
The Bears open the season in Atlanta against Auburn, the same team that beat Baylor 38-24 in last year’s opener. New season, new roster, new chance to make a statement.

🏐 Baylor Volleyball | Thursday + Saturday
The Bears open Thursday at home against North Texas (7 PM), then get a tougher test Saturday against No. 17 Florida (1 PM). Saturday is also the first Waco Rush Pass game, with tickets just $2 for pass holders.

Tuesday, September 1:

Wednesday, September 2:

Thursday, September 3:

Want your event featured? Reserve a spot here.

🔥 HOTWORX Woodway is offering Waco-area teachers a free week through September 30.

🧗‍♀️ This Fall, Basin Climbing + Fitness is hosting the best birthday parties in Waco. Use code BUZZ75 to get $75 off a September or October birthday party. Reserve your spot.

🚗 Your neighbors at Chevrolet of West have been taking care of Waco drivers for years with new and pre-owned trucks, SUVs, and cars just 20 minutes up I-35 in West, TX. Stop by or browse their inventory today.

💧 Need a boost? I-ViT Wellness offers IV therapy and wellness treatments to help you feel better, recover faster, and boost energy. Waco Buzz readers get $35 off by clicking the link.

💪 Move better. Recover faster. Live stronger. Waco Body Mend is a world class space built for everyday movers, athletes, and anyone who wants to feel their best.

✨ Skin & Body Refinery delivers top tier injectors, advanced treatments, and natural looking results that help you look and feel your best.

Thanks for reading The Waco Buzz today. If you found something useful, share it with your friend who's obsessed with fantasy football.

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