Best Hotel

Austin's epoch of maximum minimalism, the Hotel San José continues to set the bar in local lodging. People forget how unaccommodating the landscape was before Liz Lambert put her pomo boho SoCo paws all up in it. The Lambie empire now stretches to Marfa, San Antonio, and back (fame and fortune is a magnet, after all). But no matter the number of little chunky red pieces on the game board, the noble San José remains the flagship in her hotelopoly. Each room here is gloriously spartan, with feet-deep mattresses wrapped like tight little sushis in plain, luxurious white cotton and accented in Jaipuri playfulness. Reclaimed wood, simple accent chairs, and modest desk lamps round out an aesthetic that's as calming as it's been influential. Here it is, Austin, your moment of Zen.