Welcome to Flavor: Winter 2017
It was a transformative year for San Antonio dining. We saw the addition of several big name restaurants from some of our most note-worthy chefs, along with closures from childhood classics. For this season’s Flavor: San Antonio’s Ultimate Food Lover’s Guide, we take a look at 15 restaurants and shops we love, such as the…
New Kids on the Block: San Antonio Restaurant Openings and Closings in 2017
It was a busy year for restaurants. Here’s a quick glance of new faces in 2017 and at-time shocking good-byes. February Toro Kitchen Bar opened February 2 with tapas, calimocho and plenty of paella. A second location is planned for St. Paul Square. Find them at 115 N. Loop 1604 E., Suite 1105, (210) 776-3606.…
10 Ways to Get Your Drink/Grub in San Antonio This Spring
The year may be over, and that’s all the more reason to get excited about what’s to come in 2018. If you’re a foodie, there’s plenty of food and drink events to look forward to this spring. Be sure to pencil these events into your culinary calendar now. January San Antonio Cocktail Conference Do you…
Seasoned Chefs: Stayin’ Alive in the Instagram Era
“Worst. Dinner. Ever.” Words like this from “elite” Yelpers have goaded outspoken, globe-trotting chef Anthony Bourdain to reply in kind: “There’s really no worse, or lower human being than an elite Yelper,” he said. Others have gleefully thrown Instagram under the same bus, lamenting its focus on how a plate looks rather than how it…
The 15 Hottest San Antonio Restaurants This Season
Rosella at The Rand 114 Houston St., (210) 277-8574, rosellacoffee.com When Charles Gonzalez developed a passion for becoming a coffee connoisseur in 2007, he had his sights set on introducing the world of craft coffee to San Antonio. He and his wife had always wanted to try their hand at an entrepreneurial venture. He suggested…
Asian Creations: San Antonio Strengthened Its Love for Eastern Flavors This Year
This 2017, desserts took a fun turn into playful. Though we still enjoy artful presentations at our favorite fine dining spots, Asian-inspired sweet treats gained lots of traction with the city’s populace. Here’s a quick look at what we’re into these days. Boba Tea Though boba or bubble tea is far from new (The New…
Tour de Force: Tasting San Antonio’s Eateries with The Food Chick
With San Antonio’s latest UNESCO designation as a Creative City of Gastronomy, the eyes of Texas and, well, the world are on our fair city. The appointment also means foodies will flock the area looking for bold bites. Tell them to call The Food Chick. After a 16-year career at USAA, Julia Celeste moved on…
SA Trippin’: A Tex-Pat Returns to the Alamo City
When I left San Antonio for Seattle in 2009, I kept tabs on the changing landscape of San Antonio’s food scene from afar and was delighted by new bars and restaurants that I’d get to try on my visits. Since moving back home to San Antonio in 2016, I can say with con dence that…
Easy Ways to Spruce Up Your Favorite Beer This Season
Some purists may balk at muddling up a perfectly well adjuncted beer, but a little homebrewed ingenuity can jazz up your craft consumption. Whether you’re adding a spritz of soda or grinding up produce in a molcajete and sticking it in a coffee maker, new vistas of flavor will open up before you through a…
3 San Antonio Market Cafes We Love That You Probably Will Too
San Antonio’s expanding palate has been on a slow boil since the late 1970s and the proof lies on the bustling corner of Hildebrand and Blanco. With the opening of Niki’s Tokyo Inn in 1970, and the addition of the sushi bar in 1980, locals got a taste for Japanese fare and by 1983 Tokyo…
Faith and Discourse Combine in Weekly Beer and Bible Meet-ups
Thanks in large part to America’s long fundamentalist hangover, there’s an enduring cultural assumption that good Christians don’t drink good beer — a position that would surprise many of Christendom’s most notable names. It’s been half a millennium since Martin Luther held forth at ale-fueled “table talks” and the future hierarchs of the Church of…
Diving into San Antonio’s Cocktail Bars and Pubs
Hanzo is both more colorful (consider the “scales” opposite the bar) than most Mahoney operations — and more thematically focused. And that focus snaps into special sharpness with the drink menu created by crazy-creative cocktailian Nick Kenna. Brush up on your Asian-themed movie references (Kill Bill, for example). Hightlights include the Thrilla in Vanilla with Japanese…
Keeping Up with the Contemporary Restaurants of San Antonio
Periphery Chef Mark Weaver likes a challenge. After a seven-year tenure with the Jason Dady Restaurant Group he left to try his hand at opening his first solo venture. The opening wasn’t without hurdles — for one, he opened his restaurant inside the former home of Beat Street Coffee Co. and the Old Main Assoc. in…
Barbecue, Burgers and the Best Places to find American Staples
2M Smokehouse & Catering San Antonio, never a barbecue beachhead, may finally have acquired a place worthy of queuing for ‘Q. Most of the acolytes-in-waiting appeared to be ordinary folks, not wild-eyed zealots. Their budding devotion had apparently been inspired by a local boy, Esaul Ramos, who has returned to San Antonio, still wreathed in…
You’ll Find Baked Goods and Great Vibes at these Bakeries and Coffee Shops
La Panadería expanded an already successful space off Broadway and 410 into the Downtown area this summer. Brothers Jose and younger brother David Caceres’ second location is a celebration of space — designed by Clayton & Little Architects — that seamlessly combines massive a bakery and kitchen for more of that storied “bread cultura.” Pan dulce,…
Mexican Restaurants that Have Helped Put San Antonio on the Map
Chisme That guacamole con chisme with cotijo cheese had genuine spunk the second time around. The straight-on queso that comes free with happy hour chips and salsa is just right. Note that the normal 4-6 p.m. happy hour is all day on Tuesday and take advantage. That cochinita fared better on time two as well. Where…
How to Find Flavors from Around the World Without Ever Leaving Home
Toro Kitchen + Bar It’s hard to capture the plethora of cuisines found in Spain, but Toro Kitchen + Bar does just that in the heart of Stone Oak, no less. With a long list of cured meats and cheeses for tablados, and a long menu of tapas, Toro is perfect for both happy hour…
Steakhouses to Visit When Someone Else is Picking Up the Check
Bohanan’s Prime Steak & Seafood It’s hard to imagine a Downtown without Bohanan’s, and hopefully we’ll never have to. The steakhouse is a quintessential part of the Houston Street landscape, that’s been just as much a part of a night out to the area as a stroll along the Riverwalk. But Bohanan’s extends well past…
Where to Find the Best Restaurants for Alternative Diets
5 Points Local There’s a reason to visit the often over-looked 5 Points area near Elmira and South Flores. Actually, there are several and most can be found inside 5 Points Local, another hit project by Lisa Asvestas of The Cove. Once the home to the first location of Green Vegetarian Cuisine, 5 Points Local…
A Few of Our Favorite Food Truck Finds
Cullum’s Attaboy Not only are the burgers at Attaboy juicy, but they have character. Defined by their big homemade buns and selection of toppings, each is unlike anything you’ve had before. Grab and burger and let it all sink in with a classic Big Red. 2410 N. St. Mary’s, attaboyburgers.com. Chamoy City Limits Formerly Institute…
Pizza, Pasta and Plenty of Italian Flavors to Be Found in SA
Battalion took its time. In an age when we want new restaurants and we want them now, Battalion bucked that trend, and delivered amazing results. Though its location was first announced in 2015, red tape and legal woes kept Andrew Goodman and chef Stefan Bowers from opening the third eatery from the power duo until…
SA’s Delis and Diners You Can Always Rely On
Max & Louie’s New York Diner Opened by native New Yorker, Drew Glick and business partner Dr. Sheldon Braverman , Max & Louie’s is a homage to east coast diner traditions. Styled as a tried and true diner, Max & Louie’s holds a sprawling but tight dining room, with tables, booths and counter seating. There’s…
Welcome to Flavor: Summer 2017
For our latest edition of this biannual guide to how to dine in San Antonio, we’ve tackled the impossible: Listing just about every essential restaurant residents and visitors should frequent. We broke things down into digestible chunks. Use this as a guide for when you can’t decide where to eat, for where to take the…
Jason Dady’s had a Busy 2017 — Here’s How His Career Shaped Him for What’s to Come
The bartender poured a trio of tequila shots into clear plastic glasses, turned around and handed them over to the ne’er-do-wells that were about to hop on stage and put their chef skills to the test during the Sprouts Culinary Showdown. This time, though, Jason Dady wasn’t whipping up a dish in less than 30…
Navigating San Antonio’s Asian Restaurants
Ming’s Noodle Bar When Ming’s Noodle Bar opened in mid-December, the small shop was taking a gamble on whether diners would latch on to this market staple. Six months later, as we sat slurping spicy coconut noodles in 97-degree temperatures, it’s evident Ming’s Noodle Bar has cemented owner Ming Qian’s grasp on our city. Qian’s…
Locating the Best Seafood Spots Across San Antonio
Pinch Boil House & Bia Ba Even with San Antonio’s proximity to Houston, the Bayou City has held onto one of its most distinctive cuisines for far too long. Vietnamese-style crawfish boils landed in San Antonio via LA Crawfish, but the Culebra location keeps city dwellers at bay. Soon, with the opening of Pinch Boil…
Delightful Desserts: Starbucks Can’t Hold A Candle to Honeysuckle’s Unicorn Milkshake
Before a certain coffee company unleashed an overly sweet concoction, essentially helping the unicorn trend jump the shark, there was Honeysuckle Tea Time. But while the wave of Starbucks’ frappuccinos will inevitably subside, Honeysuckle founder Sara Lauren Hinojosa and her team are just getting started. The story of how Honeysuckle Tea Time came to fruition…
