USA TODAY’s 10BEST list for the Best Drive-In Theaters of 2025 came out in late May. The 10 drive-in theaters on the list were nominated by a panel of experts that includes travel writers, newspaper editors and USA TODAY editors, and were then voted on by USA TODAY readers.
Stars & Stripes Drive-In Theatre in New Braunfels
The Stars & Stripes Drive-In Theatre in New Braunfels placed at No. 10 in USA TODAY’s 10BEST list for the Best Drive-In Theaters of 2025. USA TODAY highlighted the food selection at the year-round, three-screen drive-in: “Their extensive food menu guarantees you won’t go hungry during the flick, with choices like spicy chicken wings, grilled cheese sandwiches, and hand-spun milkshakes,” the judges wrote.
Stars & Stripes also came in 10th in USA TODAY’s 2024 list. The family-owned-and-operated drive-in theater actually has two locations; the New Braunfels spot opened in 2013 and the original Lubbock location opened in 2003. Drive-in theaters, especially Stars & Stripes and Fort Worth’s Coyote Drive In, were a boon to the film industry during the pandemic, because patrons didn’t have to leave their cars to see a movie.
The New Braunfels Stars & Stripes location is at 1178 Kroesche Lane.
North Texas drive-in movie theaters
Drive-in theaters have strong Texas roots. One of the first “drive-ins” started in 1921 in Comanche, Texas, when theater exhibitor Claude V. Caver got a city permit to erect a screen on the courthouse lawn across the street from his theater, which was undergoing renovations. People would park their cars bumper-to-bumper and watch silent films. The first patented drive-in theater wouldn’t come along until 1932 in New Jersey.
If you don’t want to drive down to New Braunfels to experience a drive-in movie, there are plenty of local options:
- Coyote Drive-In, Fort Worth
- Rooftop Cinema Club, Fort Worth (Not technically a drive-in, but still a fun experience)
- Galaxy Drive-In, Ennis
- Brazos Drive-In, Granbury Graham Drive-In Theatre, Graham
By: Jake Harris | Fort Worth Star-Telegram | 817-390-7237
Jake Harris is the Service Journalism Editor for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has spent nearly 10 years working as a digital producer across newsrooms in Texas. He mainly writes about pop culture and local North Texas happenings and occasionally writes concert reviews.