If you’re a San Marcos local, you’ve at least driven by the little pink coffee house on the corner of Hopkins and Comanche numerous times. Tantra Coffeehouse doubles as a coffee shop and an outdoor music venue for bands to share their music and locals to enjoy San Marcos’ growing music and arts scene. The coffeehouse opened in 2007 by Nathan and Jaimie Todd and is now owned and managed by Adam Lilley. “Nathan had always wanted to own a coffee shop where people could gather, kind of like a community center,” Lilley said. “He wanted to create a place to foster music and art and alternative ways of thinking.” Another reason the original owners opened Tantra is because of the lack of places for the “different” people of San Marcos to gather. “The coffeehouse is so representative of all different walks of life,” Lilley said.

Tantra has provided San Marcos with live music since its opening, but the outdoor tent wasn’t added until about three years ago. “Tantra started becoming a constant venue, so we added the tent to keep shows from getting rained out,” Lilley said. Tantra has been a venue for KTSW’s MR Fest since the beginning and is the home of the station’s monthly event, Third Thursday. It provides the San Marcos music scene with live music every night of the week, including their Wednesday night Bluegrass and Open Mic Nights. Tantra hosts other local events such as Bike Prom and its outdoor stage has been played on by many big names in the Austin and San Marcos music scene. The coffee shop also supports local artists by showcasing their works throughout the venue.

            Tantra’s dishes range from $0-10, and accommodate vegetarians as well as meat lovers. Breakfast, lunch, and appetizers are served as well as an assortment of beer and wine. Tantra is open seven days a week from 7 a.m to 12 a.m and until 1 a.m on Saturdays. During this year’s MR Fest, eleven artists will take the stage at Tantra on April 26^th and 28^th, including Henry + the Invisibles, Victor Holk, and Whistle & Fish.

           

https://www.facebook.com/tantracoffeehouse

-Andrea Carr