In a neighborhood that's taken a speed run through the gentrification gauntlet, Lynny's offers something refreshing: a vintage-inspired diner that respects East Austin's history while imagining a community-focused future.
Lynny's is the first brick-and-mortar restaurant from Lynn Metcalf and Erin Gentry, partners in business and in life who are longtime Austin residents. They first launched Lynny's as a food truck at MASS Gallery, a contemporary art collective supporting queer artists, where their strong coffee, playful lattes, and excellent buttermilk biscuits quickly gained a major fan base.
The interior feels like Luke's Diner from Gilmore Girls designed by Portlandia characters — vintage floral wallpaper, vinyl booths, bar stools at the coffee counter, and whimsical, cartoon-inspired murals create genuine warmth with just a touch of kitsch.
"This space and its proprietors honor East Austin and have no interest in pushing a bougie agenda," notes the Austin Chronicle. "It's this embrace of the neighborhood that will hopefully keep Lynny's in business for years to come."
The must-order item is the biscuits and gravy — sweet, wonderfully crumbly biscuits with smooth, savory gravy and a perfectly cooked egg with slightly crispy edges and a just-past-jammy yolk. The All Day breakfast sandwich towers with egg, sausage, cheese, tomato, and chipotle peppers, with a garlic-drenched dill pickle spear on the side.
The espresso, grown at Gentry's family coffee ranch in Nayarit, Mexico, is deep, dark, and intense. The Sidecar — a single shot paired with a coupe of Cava — showcases it beautifully. The wine program features wine-based cocktails like their spin on Tinto de Verano with house-made lemonade and Gamay.
"It's nice to see stylish young couples with small children, groups of twentysomething friends, adult children taking their parents for brunch, and longtime East Austin residents all gathering here happily and comfortably," one reviewer observed.
Lynny's proves that authentic, community-minded dining can thrive even in Austin's trendiest neighborhoods.