For years, the second Saturday of the month in San Marcos meant the downtown square. That's when the San Marcos Art League sets up Art Squared around the Hays County Historic Courthouse. This November, the same Saturday has a second stage on the east side of I-35, at a barbecue counter inside a grocery store that opened Oct. 7.
The new H-E-B at 1074 E. McCarty Lane is starting a free live music series on second Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., beginning Saturday, Nov. 14. Art Squared is on the square that same morning. On Dec. 12 the overlap grows to three events, because that Saturday is also the last night of Sights & Sounds of Christmas. On that day, something will be running somewhere in San Marcos from 9 a.m. until 11 p.m., with the stops on both sides of the highway.
The new stage is inside a grocery store
The McCarty Lane store opened Oct. 7. The San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce held the ribbon cutting at 6 a.m., and the San Marcos High School Marching Band, the Diamond Line and the cheerleaders performed before sunrise, according to the San Marcos Daily Record. The same report says some of the first customers arrived 12 hours before the doors opened.
The Daily Record also published the Chamber's own description of the opening:
"At 114,000 square feet, this new location is bringing more than groceries to the east side of I-35."
Much of that "more than groceries" is the restaurant. Community Impact reports that this is the city's third H-E-B and its largest, and that it has the first True Texas BBQ in San Marcos. The meats are smoked in-house over Texas oak, and the sides include brisket beans, creamed corn and homestyle potato salad. The store also offers a pharmacy drive-thru, curbside pickup with dedicated parking, and home delivery.
So the music has a built-in audience. People can come for lunch, stay for the set and pick up groceries before they leave. A store spokesperson told the Daily Record the shows would start in November as part of H-E-B's True Texas Tunes program.
The musicians come through an Austin nonprofit
Every True Texas Tunes performer comes through HOME, short for Housing Opportunities for Musicians and Entertainers. HOME is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that helps aging Austin musicians stay housed. It pays rent and utility grants, provides emergency support and makes referrals. The bands that play at H-E-B come from the musicians that organization serves.
The series isn't new to Austin. KXAN reported in February 2026 that the free shows were returning for a second year. San Marcos is now one of three stops on H-E-B's events page, and each stop has its own day:
- San Marcos, 1074 E. McCarty Lane: second Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- South Congress, 2400 S. Congress Ave. in Austin: third Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Lake Austin, 2652 Lake Austin Blvd.: first Wednesdays, 5 to 7 p.m.
Wendy Colonna plays the first San Marcos show on Nov. 14, and Stephen Doster plays Dec. 12. HOME's event calendar lists both shows as free.
The San Marcos series falls on the same Saturday the downtown market has used for years.
The square has had the second Saturday for years
Art Squared is a juried arts and fine crafts market. It runs from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the second Saturday of each month from March through December, with a break in July and August. It's held on the Hays County Historic Courthouse Square at 111 E. San Antonio St. The San Marcos Art League hosts it. The League is in its 39th year and is the oldest arts organization in San Marcos.
The market goes on rain or shine. According to the Art League's event page, it includes live music, a free kids' arts and crafts booth, live art demonstrations, a featured artist of the month and a featured local nonprofit. Vendors sell painting, ceramics, glasswork, jewelry, woodworking, leather, photography and more.
The hours are why the two events fit together. Art Squared runs for seven hours, and the H-E-B set runs for two hours in the middle of it. Anyone who wants both doesn't have to choose. They just have to decide which comes first.
Two Saturdays, side by side
Here's how the next two second Saturdays line up, using the times each organizer has published.
| Time | Saturday, Nov. 14 | Saturday, Dec. 12 |
|---|---|---|
| 9 a.m. | Art Squared opens on the courthouse square | Art Squared opens on the courthouse square |
| 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. | Wendy Colonna at True Texas BBQ, McCarty Lane H-E-B | Stephen Doster at True Texas BBQ, McCarty Lane H-E-B |
| 4 p.m. | Art Squared closes | Art Squared closes |
| 5:30 to 11 p.m. | No evening event on this calendar | Closing night of Sights & Sounds of Christmas, San Marcos Plaza Park |
For Nov. 14, the most practical order is the square first. Arrive when the booths open at 9, then drive east across I-35 to McCarty Lane before 11 for brisket and the set. You'll still have the afternoon to go back downtown for anything you passed up, since the market runs until 4.
December uses the same morning and adds an evening.
Dec. 12 adds a stop after dark
Sights & Sounds of Christmas runs Dec. 3 to 5 and Dec. 10 to 12, 2026, at San Marcos Plaza Park. Visit San Marcos lists the hours as 5:30 to 11 p.m., so Dec. 12 is the festival's last night. That puts the downtown market, the east-side concert and the city's biggest holiday festival all on the same date.
On the festival grounds you'll find a carnival with rides from $1 to $7, a free petting zoo with llamas, lambs, goats and bunnies, an ice rink, Santa arriving each night for photos, and a Town of Bethlehem area with live music and candle making. A few things from the Visit San Marcos listing will help with planning:
- Admission is free for kids 12 and under, $10 per night, or $35 for a six-day pass. Check the festival site before you go to confirm this year's prices.
- Entry is free on Friday, Dec. 4, for Hometown Holidays.
- Most purchases inside use Magic Money bands, an electronic token system you load at kiosks on the grounds.
- Clear bags are allowed if they're smaller than 12 by 6 by 12 inches.
The festival's own bag rules also allow small bags under 5.5 by 8.5 inches, clear backpacks, one-gallon plastic freezer bags, medically necessary bags and diaper bags. Regular backpacks and camera cases aren't allowed. If your Dec. 12 starts at Art Squared and ends at Plaza Park, plan around those rules. A canvas tote full of gifts from the square should go back to the car before you get in line at the gate.
The free Dec. 4 night also changes the plan for some households. A family could use Hometown Holidays for the carnival and Santa photos, then keep Dec. 12 for the market and the McCarty Lane set.
What fills the gaps
The second Saturday isn't the only market date left this year. Art Squared's 2026 calendar adds a Nov. 28 market for Small Business Saturday. For anyone shopping for gifts, it falls between the two second Saturdays.
The McCarty Lane site is also still growing. Community Impact reports that H-E-B plans to open a Fresh Bites convenience store there in spring 2027, with a fuel station and car wash. H-E-B has also partnered with Texan by Nature to give San Marcos High School $20,000 in trees and irrigation, to be planted in spring 2027. As part of the opening, H-E-B gave $10,000 each to the San Marcos Education Foundation, the Hays County Food Bank and the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment, the Daily Record reported.
Art Squared takes July and August off. The H-E-B schedule doesn't say the series pauses in summer. If the shows keep running every month, the east side will have a second-Saturday event even in the months the square is quiet.
At Four22 Realty Group, we're glad to see a free concert, a juried art market and a holiday festival land on the same Saturday in our corner of Hays County. If you're a San Marcos neighbor and want to talk about life on either side of I-35, we'd love to hear from you. Maybe we'll see you on the square on Nov. 14. Start Your Move Today.
