Winner: Southtown Vinyl
1112 S. St. Mary's St.
(210) 231-0512
The digital media boom has some folks convinced that physical media is dead and that streaming is the name of the game. Whoever subscribes to that notion clearly hasn't checked out LP sales data lately — or visited Southtown Vinyl. The store provides a comfortable, spacious browsing experience. That's vital because physically digging through stacks of records is a big part of the vinyl shopping experience. Customers praise the staff for being friendly and knowledgeable — qualities that can be hard to find in tandem at record stores. This year, Southtown Vinyl even unseated long-running champs Hogwild Records in this Best of San Antonio category. If that's not enough to lure vinyl fiends, there's a Daft Punk mural on the side of the building. Hard to go wrong.
2. Hogwild Records
1824 N. Main Ave.
(210) 733-5354
3. CD Exchange
Multiple locations
Shopping
The Winner: Sexology Institute
707 S. St. Mary's St.
(210) 487-0371
Some folks might read this category and muse, "Porn stores? Isn't it free online?" But that's not what our winner is all about. The Sexology Institute takes the "Institute" part of its name seriously, providing services such as counseling, seminars and workshops intended to spice up love lives. The retail and education spot also operates as an "all-inclusive space, open to all genders, sexual orientations, ethnicities, and body sizes." This is 2022, and statements of equality are essential. In addition to offering a variety of apparel and toys, the Sexology Institute also is available to facilitate gatherings ranging from bachelorette parties to lunches to book clubs. So, feel free to use your imagination. Imagination is a key part of good sex, after all.
2. Adult Megaplex
Multiple locations
3. Love Shack Boutique
1580 Babcock Road
(210) 767-9411
Winner: Karolina's Antiques
1709 Blanco Road
(210) 731-9787
2. Gifts from the Attic
Victoria's Black Swan Inn
1006 Holbrook Road
(210) 596-0862
3. Armadillo Antiques N More
7243 Blanco Road
(210) 236-5340
Winner: Eagle's Nest of San Antonio — The Healing Arts Festival & Market
1235 Basse Road
(210) 669-7127
facebook.com/thehealingartsfestivalandmarket
2. Black Swan Market Days
Victoria's Black Swan Inn
1006 Holbrook Road
(210) 323-8424
3. SoFlo Market
1344 S. Flores St.
(210) 379-4638
Winner: Bike World
Multiple locations
2. Pedal Guerrero
3700 Fredericksburg Road, Suite 101
(210) 314-1955
3. Bicycle Heaven
Multiple locations
Winner: Half Price Books
Multiple locations
2. The Twig Book Shop
306 Pearl Parkway, Unit 106
(210) 826-6411
3. Nine Lives Books
7959 Fredericksburg Road, Suite 119
(210) 647-5656
Winner: Jordan Ford
13010 I-35 North
(210) 653-3673
2. Cavender Chevrolet
30700 I-10 West, Boerne
(210) 721-6692
3. North Star Dodge
7242 San Pedro Ave.
(210) 361-9086
The Winner: Bee's Wellness Cafe
3030 Thousand Oaks Drive, Suite 102
(210) 836-8141
This establishment is owned and operated by one Blazey Bee, who goes by Brook Richie in the real world. The alliterative nickname seems to fit since some customers likely analogize her product to honey, that sweetest of nectars. After all, Ms. Bee has put plenty of effort into making her CBD and smoke shop among the most hospitable in San Antonio. Sure, Bee's Wellness Café carries Delta-8 products, which offer a legal high. But the store's focus is on the medicinal use of CBD — the non-psychoactive element of marijuana — which has aided the proprietor with back pain, high blood pressure and a tremor.
2. Cloud Craft Vape+Smoke
15139 Bulverde Road #101
(210) 951-8273
3. CBD Relief
11627 Bandera Road
(210) 366-4380
Winner: Bambino's
4940 Broadway St., Suite 120
(210) 824-7676
2. Crib & Kids
1309 N. Loop 410 West #106
(210) 764-2742
3. Nursery Couture
434 N. Loop 1604 #1104
(210) 494-2627
Winner: Grey Moon Vintage
The Shops at Broadway News
2202 Broadway
In six short years, married duo Natalie Medina and Colin Bass have turned their sustainable small business Grey Moon Vintage into a must-stop shop for Alamo City nostalgics. Initially an Instagram e-tailer that gave way to a pop-up in a shipping container, Grey Moon is now housed in a lovingly refurbished 1969 Avion Travelcade trailer parked at the Shops at Broadway News. In keeping with its online roots, the compact shop on wheels posts regular merchandise updates, notifying its 10,000-plus Instagram followers about arrivals spanning from well-worn vintage tees and denim cutoffs to enamel pins and '60s-era bowling shirts. Beyond the pre-loved duds, Grey Moon — a repeat winner in this category — also stocks contemporary giftables including branded totes and stickers, crystals, incense and handcrafted jewelry.
2. Eye Candy Boutique
Gardens at San Juan Square
2003 S. Zarzamora St., Unit 1101
(210) 363-3572
3. Bella & Co. Boutique
10203 Culebra Road #8
