OUR PICK: (Tie) Friends of Sound, 700 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 971-8044, friendsofsound.com; Southtown Vinyl, 1010 S. Flores St., Suite 120, (210) 231-0512, southtownvinyl.com

It once seemed like the brick-and-mortar music store was destined for extinction. Of course, this was before vinyl and cassettes enjoyed the surge in popularity that they are still enjoying today. Thus, it has come to be that this year’s Critic’s Pick for Best Record Store is split between two relatively new, and equally righteous, spots in SA: Southtown Vinyl and Friends of Sound. For its part, Southtown Vinyl is the more local of the two — since Friends of Sound originated in ATX — and sells hardware, as well as a solid selection of vinyl, much of it specifically catered to crate-digging DJs. Meanwhile, Friends of Sound, which is roomier and more conducive to hanging out than Southtown Vinyl, has a crazy deep selection (with much more available online), hosts rad concerts from time to time, and boasts one of the sweetest music-related murals in towns. All in all, SA is lucky to have both of these establishments and it’s up to us, the music-loving public, to keep them around.

WINNER: Bike World, multiple locations, bikeworld.com

2. Bicycle Heaven, multiple locations, bicycle-heaven.com

3. Blue Star Bike Shop, 1414 S. Alamo St., (210) 858-0331, bluestarbikeshop.com

WINNER: Twig Book Shop, 306 Pearl Pkwy., (210) 826-6411, thetwig.com

2. Nine Lives, 4907 NW Loop 410 #102, (210) 647-5656, ninelivesbooks.com

3. Imagine Books and Records, 8373 Culebra Ste 201B, (210) 236-7668, imaginebookstore.com

WINNER: Bazinga Comics, 2941 Thousand Oaks Drive, Suite 101, (210) 404-9174, bazingacomics.com

2. Dragon’s Lair, 7959 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 615-1229, dlair.net

3. Gotham Newsstand, 4522 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 379-5115, gothamnewsstand.com

WINNER: Trader’s Village, 9333 SW Loop 410, (210) 623-8383, tradersvillage.com/san-antonio

2. Eisenhauer Flea Market, 3903 Eisenhauer Road, (210) 468-1081, eisenhauerfleamarketsa.net

3. Busseys, 18738 I-35 S., Schertz, (830) 609-0800, busseysfm.com

WINNER: Spring Garden Flower Shop, 211 Brooklyn Ave., (210) 229-1231, springgardenflowershop.com

2. Artistic Blooms, 7863 Callaghan Road, Suite 103, (210) 696-8080, artisticblooms.com

3. HEB Blooms, multiple locations, heb.com

WINNER: Las Americas, 6623 San Pedro Ave., (210) 340-2747, lasamericaslatinmarket.com

2. Tim’s Oriental Seafood Market, 7015 Bandera Road, Suite 8, (210) 523-1688

3. Ali Baba, 9307 Wurzbach Road, (210) 691-1111, alibabasanantonio.com

WINNER: Total Wine and More, multiple locations, totalwine.com

2. PigLiquors, 519 S. Presa, (210) 226-6465, pigliquors.net

3. Gabriel’s, multiple locations, gabrielsliquor.com

4. Alamo City Liquor, 2943 Thousand Oaks Drive, Suite 3, (210) 490-9883, garrisonbros.com/alamo-city-liquor

WINNER: Redbone, 8126 Broadway, (210) 822-4111, redboneguitar.com

2. Alamo Music Center, multiple locations, alamomusic.com

3. Robot Monster, 517 E. Woodlawn Ave., (210) 320-1710, robotmonsterguitars.com

WINNER: Amols', 710 S. Flores St., (210) 227-1457, amols.com

2. Piñata Time, 3005 W. Commerce St., (210) 277-7406,
facebook.com/pinatatimes.a.3005/

3. Fiesta on Main, 2025 N. Main Ave., (210) 738-1188, alamofiesta.com

WINNER: Shades of Green, 334 W. Sunset Road, (210) 824-3772, shadesofgreensa.com

2. Rainbow Gardens, multiple locations, rainbowgardens.biz

3. Evergreen Garden, 922 W. Hildebrand Ave., (210) 735-0669, facebook.com/evergreengardensatx