East Side Newness: Updated Dive Takes Up Residence in Former Convenience Store
Named: The Dakota East Side Ice House Background: Kent Oliver, a former riverboat captain, ditches the fleet for brick-and-mortar bar. Happy Hour: $1 off everything Monday through Thursday from 3 to 7 p.m. Patrons: It’s hard to tell. From the folks who stopped during our visit, it seems the neighborhood is still warming up to…
Power Metal Band Riot V is Sweeping Across Europe This Summer
Some bands talk about making big plans while others just get shit done. In the case of the latter, let’s talk about Riot V. After releasing its well-reviewed Armor of Light album in April, the San Antonio-connected power metal outfit is storming stages from London to Lubljana, Slovenia, this summer and fall. Along the way, it’s…
#AbolishICE? Texas Democrats Begin to Navigate Emerging Issue
This story was originally published by the Texas Tribune. Texas Democrats, including some of their top candidates in November, are beginning to grapple with an issue that is steadily gaining support at the national level: whether to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE, which is the main federal agency in charge of immigration law enforcement,…
PSA: There’s a Hotline to Rat You Out for Popping Fireworks in Bexar County
In many corners of the United States, we use Fourth of July fireworks to display the internal chaotic flurries of fiery patriotism, grievances and wonderment when words about life in this nation escape us. Unfortunately, the familiar dry conditions of South Texas make our DIY pyrotechnic attempts at red, white, and blue expression quite challenging…
Would Kawhi Leonard Rather Sit Out Another Season Than Play with the Spurs Again?
Following the announcement that LeBron James is trading camps once again to join the Los Angeles Lakers, NBA commentator Stephen A. Smith spoke about the move, and the Spurs’ own Kawhi Leonard got thrown into the mix. During a Sunday night segment, Smith revealed that league executives have told him that Leonard is willing to…
Texas and Other States Trump Won Will Feel the Biggest Pinch from Tariffs, According to a New Report
More than 52 percent of Texans voted for Donald Trump in 2016. Now the wallet of everyone in the state may feel the consequences. About $3.9 billion in Texas-produced exports are under threat due to President Trump’s escalating trade war, according to a new study by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Data collected by the nation’s biggest…
Third Root Drops New Track with Grammy Award Winners Grupo Fantasma
When Third Root drops a track, everyone should really stop what they’re doing and take notice because, 1) they’re one of the most talented rap groups to emerge out of South Texas and 2) their lyricism is important and often is commentary on the socio and political climate of the nation. Yea, Easy Lee (MoJoe),…
Lloyd Doggett Sandbagged the Unveiling of Trump’s Not-So-Simple Tax “Postcard”
It was supposed to be a publicity slam-dunk for President Trump: an unveiling last week of a new, postcard-sized form touted as a way to simplify Americans’ taxes. In theory, it should have been good news before the July 4th holiday and something to pull attention away from those embarrassing family separations down on the…
San Antonians Have Plenty of Ways to Celebrate Frida Kahlo’s 111th Birthday
You don’t have to look far to see Frida Kahlo’s signature brows stitched across a tote bag, dangling from earrings or painted on a prayer candle like the Virgin De Guadalupe. These days, it seems that there is something pressingly important about the commercial urgency to reproduce her likeness and diffuse it. While one can…
Here’s How San Antonians Can Eat at Pluckers for Free Before It Opens
San Antonio’s first Pluckers (technically in Selma) isn’t set to open for another week, but dedicated fans can enjoy a free meal this week. According to the Pluckers website, the Austin-based chain is welcoming San Antonians to stop by the new location to help get staff used to making and serving up delicious wings. The…
Justice Kennedy’s Retirement Won’t Just Shape the U.S. Supreme Court — It Could Also Reshape the U.S. Senate Race in Texas
This story originally appeared in the Texas Tribune. In recent weeks, the race between U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke, D-El Paso, has largely revolved around immigration, playing out in detention centers along the southern border and over immigration bills in Washington. But U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy’s abrupt retirement…
Lonnie Walker IV Gives Sneak Peak of San Antonio Apartment
Spurs 2018 NBA Draft pick Lonnie Walker IV is slowly getting settled in San Antonio, as fans can see on his Instagram. The former University of Miami player posted a photo on Sunday of his new apartment and shared a bit of his journey leading up to being drafted. Survival by the fittest was the…
San Antonio Mariachi Group Slays Version of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia”
This week it seems like it’s been gag after gag, y’all. From watching the finale of RuPaul’s Drag Race: Season 10, to the city getting our own rainbow crosswalks, all the shenanigans at Pride and now, a local mariachi group S-L-A-Y-I-N-G their rendition of “The Devil Went Down to Georgia.” OK, so technically this video…
San Antonio Activist’s Petition Asks the Tobin Center to Cancel Jordan Peterson Lecture
A new change.org petition is asking the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts to cancel the Oct. 10 speaking appearance of Jordan B. Peterson, the conservative pop psychologist known for inflammatory statements about LGBT people and… well, just about everyone else other than straight white men. Peterson, a best-selling author with a popular YouTube channel, found…
Where to Celebrate 4th of July in San Antonio
Whether you boast American flag socks (the pinnacle of patriotism) or are just here for the fireworks, there is something for everyone to enjoy this 4th of July. Fourth of July at the Pearl with Sound Cream // Grab a picnic blanket and head on over to Pearl Park, where Austin’s DJ Manolo Black will be…
Fast-Growing S.A. Is One of the Nation’s Hottest Construction Markets — for Better or Worse
If it looks like more and more stuff is creeping into the downtown skyline, that’s because, well, it has. San Antonio isn’t just one of the fastest-growing cities in the nation, it’s also fifth-ranked in construction growth, according to a new analysis by PlanGrid, which develops construction industry software. The ranking is based on the city’s anticipated…
H-E-B, Favor Partner to Bring Hour Beer & Wine Delivery to San Antonio
In a statement this Friday, H-E-B announced that Favor, the Austin-based delivery company, will now offer beer and wine delivery throughout Texas—exclusively from their stores. “This new service truly delivers the best customer experience—a fast, convenient solution with the best selection at the everyday low price our customers expect,” said Martin Otto, chief operating officer…
Mortruary Drape, Volahn Takes Over Limelight for Pummeling Black Metal Lineup
Hell’s coming to the Limelight, at least in the form of a pummeling black metal package tour. Formed in the mid-’80s, Italy’s Mortuary Drape have built a cult following by being one of the volatile scene’s longest-surviving outfits – and, to be honest, their deliciously over-the-top band photos probably didn’t hurt either. While the Drape’s…
TPR Screening 1954 Classic On the Waterfront As Part of Cinema Tuesday Series
Routinely hailed as one of American cinema’s great dramas, 1954’s On the Waterfront intersects many important careers. Marlon Brando gives one of his defining performances (in a career marked by them) as the lost but likable ex-boxer and dockworker Terry Malloy, who’s just starting to realize that he made a bad decision years ago. He…
From the Archives: Gay History in a Three-Ring Binder
As Happy Foundation Archives Director Gene Elder once pointed out, “an archive can be as simple as a shoebox in the closet.” And while his cavernous headquarters at the Bonham Exchange are in fact brimming with what appears to be thousands of these DIY shoebox-archives — not to mention bankers boxes and files dedicated to…
Pollos Asados Los Norteños Is Closed. Again.
Though details are limited, über popular pollo palace Pollos Asados Los Norteños is temporarily closed until further notice. The restaurant reopened this April after being closed for seven months following legal issues with their smoke output. Pollos Asados reopened with longer lines and a large smoke room outfitted with high-tech smoke scrubbers. But according to…
Data Suggests More than 200 Parents Were Deported Without Their Children
More than 200 migrant adults may have been deported from the United States without the children with whom they were apprehended, according to federal data obtained by researchers at Syracuse University. A total of 1,060 of the 4,537 adults traveling with children while apprehended in April have been deported, according to Syracuse’s nonpartisan Transactional Records Access…
Over-the-top Drag Queen Trixie Mattel Brings Tour to San Antonio to Slay Us All
Created by Milwaukee native Brian Michael Firkus as a means of “laughing through the pain” of a childhood riddled by alcoholism and verbal abuse, the over-the-top drag persona Trixie Mattel traffics in the sort of twisted camp “Pope of Trash” John Waters must surely find amusing. Looking simultaneously sweet and psychotic in costumes and makeup…
Pearl Celebrates Spanish Culture with Cabezudos Parade, Live Latin Music
Cabezudos, literally translated as “big-headed,” are popular in Spanish festivals and fiestas of all kinds. These over-sized, cartoonish noggins, which are made from papier maché, are usually worn as a part of a full costume, depicting religious, cultural and even archetypal figures. This weekend, as a part of a summer full of events around the…
Relive Your High School Stoner Days at Slightly Stoopid’s Show This Saturday
It’s been almost three decades since Sublime signed high-schoolers Slightly Stoopid to their Skunk Records imprint, and the San Diego band has made an impressively long run for a self-described “folk/rock/reggae/blue/hip-hop/funk/metal/punk” group whose content almost exclusively concerns itself with weed. For a chance to relive your high-school stoner days (or if those days are still…
Jonathan Tyler & the Northern Lights Bring Americana Rock to Floore Country Store
Jonathan Tyler & the Northern Lights play blues and Americana rock, and have a knack for emotive depth and crunchy, rootsy hooks. His gritty sound and his gently raspy voice catapulted him to fame, from his launching pad in Dallas, in the form of an Atlantic Records deal, spots on the nation’s biggest festival bills,…
Report: Spurs Ready to “Move On” From Kawhi Leonard
A week after Spurs general manager R.C. Buford said the franchise would “explore all of our options” to keep Kawhi Leonard with the team, the Spurs are reportedly in the early stages of trading the powerhouse. According to reports from The New York Times and ESPN, the Spurs franchise is ready for the Kawhi drama…
Adrian Davila of Davila’s BBQ in Seguin Shares Fourth of July BBQ Tips
Adrian Davila, of Davila’s BBQ in Seguin, joins us for this week’s episode of The Big Spoon Podcast. As a third generation pitmaster, Davila shares his heritage and barbecue history in his first book, Cowboy Barbecue (Countryman Press). We chat about his legacy, his adventures in TV and the work that went into the book.…
Aransas Pass Police Find and Wrestle Alligator in Walmart Parking Lot
If a police officer wrestling an alligator in a Walmart parking lot sounds made up, it’s not. It’s just an another day in Aransas Pass. The Aransas Pass Police Department uploaded a video to its Facebook page showing police officers, assisted by game wardens, trying to control the 8-foot-long reptile that was seen sneaking out…
Immigrant Toddlers Ordered to Appear in Court Alone
This story originally appeared in the Texas Tribune. As the White House faces court orders to reunite families separated at the border, immigrant children as young as 3 are being ordered into court for their own deportation proceedings, according to attorneys in Texas, California and Washington, D.C. Requiring unaccompanied minors to go through deportation alone…
Swampy Riff Monsters The Electric Mud Will Slide into The Mix for a Show
Too many bands toiling in the retro-heavy genre slavishly ape a single inspiration — Black Sabbath. It’s easy to understand the temptation. Tony Iommi and crew pretty much wrote the riff rulebook. So, when an outfit comes up with fresh approach that still melts faces with the best of their peers, it’s a welcome change.…
Cherrity Bar Hosting Chopped-style Paella Cook-Off
San Antonio Meals on Wheels, one of Cherrity Bar’s nonprofit beneficiaries this month, is pitting three of the city’s top chefs against each other. Chef James Canter of Guerrilla Gourmet, chef Chris Carlson of The Maverick and chef Michael Sohocki of Gwendolyn and Kimura, will compete for bragging rights as to who can make the…
Meet Sofia Sepulveda: San Antonio’s Progressive Wonder Woman
Editor’s Note: Jade Esteban Estrada is the writer of Glitter Political, a series of articles detailing San Antonio’s elections. Sofia Sepulveda remembers the day Mexican presidential candidate Luis Donaldo Colosio was assassinated at a campaign rally in 1994. The PRI politician’s hopeful speeches promoting Mexico’s economic reformation inspired a 17-year-old Sepulveda to get involved. Colosio’s…
Overtime Theater Debuts One-man Show of Aleister Crowley’s Life
Aleister Crowley, simultaneously one of the most adored and reviled figures in the realms of esoteric philosophy and occultism, was a consummate dabbler with a fiercely penetrating mind and an uncanny ability for interesting (if not always useful) thought and writing outside of the margins of mainstream academic and spiritual currents. The British Crowley, who…
San Antonio’s 2016 Air Quality Was Stinko, According to a New Environmental Report
Hold your breath, San Antonio. In 2016, our metro area had more days of shitty air quality than Texas’ oil and refining centers of Houston, Corpus Christi and Beaumont-Port Arthur, according to new research from environmental groups. The Alamo City racked up 28 days with elevated ozone levels that year, compared to Houston’s 23, Corpus’…
Femina-X to Debut Sophomore Album KIVA
Watching Femina-X gain momentum over the last several years has been exciting. The Latin-rock, alt-pop, trip-hop, world-music group has never tried to be anything but themselves as their sound has matured. They’ve explored tribal sound textures and Native American tones in their tracks, which grabbed the attention of publications such as Texas Monthly and Vice.…
Nine-piece Jazz Outfit Brings Brass Sound to Sam’s Burger Joint
Here’s a brassy and jazzy show that’s liable to cook as hot as the San Anto summer itself. New Breed Brass Band, a nine-piece jazz fusion outfit from the Big Easy, will bring its heady blends of old and new to town this weekend. A jazz band with roots in the city streets and championed…
Texas Suburb Votes to End Contract with Immigration Detention Center
A conservative Texas suburb severed ties with a 500-bed immigration detention center on Tuesday, after years of immigrant-rights groups fighting to shut the facility down. The Tuesday vote comes amid claims that the T. Don Hutto Residential Center outside of Austin houses mothers who have been separated from their children by ICE. Grassroots Leadership, a…
Ticket Prices Soar for Big Tours like Britney Spears, ELO and K-Pop’s BTS
If you’re seeing any of this summer’s top music tours, here’s hoping you managed to keep your wedding ring and grandpa’s antique pocket watch out of hock. The average price of concert tickets selling on exchange site TickPick so far this year is $132.02. But for some of the season’s most-anticipated tours, don’t be surprised…
Blood Donations Needed After Texas Hospital Explosion
One person is dead and 12 more are injured after a generator exploded at a construction site at Coryell Hospital in Gatesville, 36 miles outside of Waco. The incident was reported around 2:30 pm Tuesday afternoon. In a press conference, officials confirmed that all the victims were construction workers in the midst of developing a…
Poet Laureates Octavio Quintanilla and Jenny Browne Leading Discussion of Literacy in San Antonio
It is not often, unfortunately, that we have to say “get there early or you won’t get a seat” about a poetry event. That’s totally the case, however, with this week’s talk at the San Antonio Museum of Art that boasts outgoing Poet Laureate of San Antonio and 2017 Poet Laureate of Texas Jenny Browne…
Wes Fest Brings Moonrise Kingdom Screening to San Antonio Botanical Garden
For the fourth installment of this summer’s Wes Fest — a celebration of Wes Anderson’s entire directorial catalog via free, outdoor screenings, and also one of Slab Cinema’s best ideas ever — you can catch Anderson’s seventh feature, 2012’s Moonrise Kingdom, in the lush confines of the San Antonio Botanical Garden. A bright spot even…
Danny Bible Faces Execution in a 1979 Rape and Murder. He Says He’s Too Sick for Lethal Injection.
This story was originally published by the Texas Tribune. It was nearly 40 years ago when the brutalized body of 20-year-old Inez Deaton was found in a field near a deserted car wash in Harris County. She had been raped and repeatedly stabbed with an ice pick in May 1979, and for about two decades,…
Main Strip Rainbow Crosswalk Installation Underway Ahead of Pride Celebrations
This story was originally published by our sister publication, Out In SA. By the end of today, city crews will have completed the installation of a rainbow crosswalk at the corner of North Main and Evergreen in the heart of the city’s LGBT business district. The photos here were taken this morning by Councilman Roberto…
South Side Billboard Welcomes NBA Draft Pick Lonnie Walker IV to San Antonio
Spurs rookie guard Lonnie Walker IV has arrived in San Antonio, and the Alamo City is welcoming him with open arms. Last Thursday, the Spurs selected Walker from the University of Miami in the 2018 NBA Draft. With the 18th pick, general manager R.C. Buford called Walker “one of the best athletes in the draft.”…
About a Boy: A Kid Like Jake is a Sensitive, But Safe Story About a Gender-expansive Child and His Parents
Alex and Greg Wheeler (Claire Danes and Jim Parsons) are like any other parents of a four-year-old child. They want their son Jake (Leo James Davis) to get a good education, have friends, be happy and express himself creatively in any way he sees fit. They come to a defining moment in their lives when…
Pleasant Patios: Where San Antonians Can Brave the Heat In Style
Though San Antonio temperatures have straddled the triple digits for the better part of six weeks, we still love a good patio and there are plenty to choose from. Here’s a rundown of where to sip and sweat this summer. Southtown One of Southtown’s latest patios, the Maverick’s Le Palm, is an oasis with touches…
Beyond the Rainbow: ‘We Are’ Blurs Boundaries to Paint Diverse Portrait of San Antonio’s LGBTQIA Community
What a difference 21 years can make. In 1997, then-mayor Howard Peak led city council to a vote that would disqualify the Esperanza Peace and Justice Center and two of its sponsored organizations, the San Antonio Lesbian and Gay Media Project and VÁN, from city funding due to its social-justice work and political leanings. Fast-forward…
Exploring San Antonio’s Pet-friendly Eateries, Parks and Patios
Whether you want to take the whole family out or sip on some fancy cocktails with your well-behaved four-legged companion, we’ve found places sure to please you and your pet. From restaurants for the whole family to bars and coffee shops, San Antonio is sure to have a place for you and your furry companion.…
Tricycle Cart Brings Fresh Coffee to South of San Antonio
Next time you’re taking an idyllic morning drive down Old Pearsall Road, you may want to pay a visit to Shebel’s Rollin Cafe. The tricycle cart launched this week in front of owner Sheldon Stanley’s home on Old Pearsall Road between Hidden Cove Elementary School and Southwest Elementary School at 10996 Pearsall Road. Much like its…
Cinema Solstice: New Movies to Watch This Summer
Summertime means movie time. Luckily, Thanos didn’t kill off any characters outside of his own franchise. The summer movie lineup is jam-packed with everything from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson leaping from tall buildings in a single bound to a crime thriller featuring Sesame Street-like puppets doing a lot of very bad things. We always knew…
Gender Roles: 8 Transgender Characters in Cinema Who Broke the Mold
Although we don’t know whether Jake Wheeler, the four-year-old title character in the family drama A Kid Like Jake, will grow up to be a transgender adult just because he likes to wear pink tutus and play with The Little Mermaid toys, we do know the subject matter resonated strongly with the film’s transgender director…
Summer Escapes In and Around San Antonio: Kids Edition
Summer means more quality time with the kids, and that’s great — up to a point. You know how it goes – the house starts to feel a little small and you end up craving some time alone to enjoy Margaritas by the pool. If not that, at least an outdoor excursion where everybody has…
Kick, Push and Coast to Paper Tiger ‘Cause Lupe Fiasco is Coming, Fam
Oh snap. Lupe Fiasco is coming to San Antonio and oh my god yassssss. Whether you’re a fan or not, it’s undeniable Fiasco separates himself from his rap counterparts by the level of storytelling and high-caliber lyricism in his songs. His vibe is underground poet, while still managing to land on charts and hit has…
The Big Spoon: Food is Political. Full Stop.
Editor’s Note: The following is The Big Spoon, an opinion column on San Antonio’s food and drink scene. One of the loudest criticisms The Big Spoon column and I have faced since launching earlier this spring has been about “making food political.” It happens in columns about prices, for example, and about not going back…
The Texas Supreme Court Shuts Down San Antonio’s ‘Evergreen’ Lawsuit Against the Fire Union
Editor’s Note: The following is Their Town, a column of opinion and analysis. Since late 2014, City Manager Sheryl Sculley, two mayors and most of the members of two city councils clung to a legal strategy they believed would get them out of a costly provision in the firefighters’ labor contract – the evergreen clause.…
Cool Treats: Where to Cool Off in San Antonio This Summer
Paletas, ice cream, snow cones, gelato, shaved ice, milk shakes and more — San Antonio has never been short on ways to make it through the sticky summer days and nights. Here’s how you can eat your way through SA to survive this summer. Más Paletas Alabama-based Steel City Pops opened a second location at…
The Hot Five: The Texas Concerts You Have to Hit This Summer
One day, it was barely 85. The next day, we stepped outside, and it was 105. Where was the fucking warning for this heat? But I guess that’s just Texas. We’ll learn to deal with it with raspas, frosés and tubing up in San Marcos. Another way to get through this summer is by hitting…
Advocates Raise Questions About Access to Legal Help, Food and Health Care at ICE’s Detention Site Near San Antonio
From Interstate 35, the farming community of Pearsall’s most visible landmarks are the Hungry Farmer Steakhouse, an H-E-B that resembles a red barn and a hunting superstore surrounded by an armada of deer blinds. But the small town an hour southwest of San Antonio is also home to the South Texas Detention Complex, one of…
Cold Ones in San Antonio: Fun Ways to Kickoff Your Summer with a Crisp Beer
Throw Some Chanclas // Head over to Busted Sandal Brewing to celebrate summer “the Chancla way” on June 30. They will be serving $4 beers all day. At noon, the 210 Watermelon Ale and Tanlines Pale Ale taps will begin flowing. At 5 p.m., the spread will feature signature watermelon Hefeweizen Cask tapping and Pank…
Savage Love: Both & Baggage
Q: When I started dating my husband, he told me he had a low libido. I said I could deal with that. We waited several months before having sex, and then after we started, it was infrequent and impersonal. There was some slow improvement over the three years we dated. Then we got married, and…
Free Will Astrology (6/27/18-7/3/18)
ARIES (March 21-April 19): Your best ideas and soundest decisions will materialize as if by magic while you’re lounging around doing nothing in a worry-free environment. So please make sure you have an abundance of relaxed slack and unhurried grace. Treat yourself to record-setting levels of comfort and self-care. Do whatever’s necessary for you to…
Rey of Light: Rey Lopez Illuminates Drag in San Antonio
It’s an muggy Sunday evening as I step out of the car and walk toward Heat nightclub, one of several queer-oriented venues on the North Main Street Strip. Alaska Thunderfuck 5000 – who came to fame on the competitive drag-queen show RuPaul’s Drag Race, and is better known as just Alaska – is set to…
Limelight Welcomes Japanese Bands Salsa, Tricot
If you are a Japanese band that calls itself Salsa, it is only right that you bring your act to San Antonio, a place where salsa is practically its own spirituality, as often as you can. The deliciously named trio brings its punk/new-wave-tinged brand of indie rock to SA this week for the second time…
Snapchat Comedian Heather Land Brings Self-Deprecating Humor to Majestic Theatre
Comedian/musician Heather Land has made herself social-media famous over the last few years with her viral videos featuring herself talking about everyday stuff while using the “Big Eyes Big Mouth” Snapchat filter that makes everyone look like a character from the web series Annoying Orange. With over 300 million views on her Snapchat platform, the…
LGBT-friendly Spot La Botanica Throwing Pride Night Party
Here’s the thing: when La Botanica throws a free Pride Night bash, you go to it – simple as that. The bar/vegan eatery has worked hard to hone its reputation as a place of fierce inclusivity, a business with a true social consciousness, and a welcoming meeting place for revolutionaries, the marginalized and LGBTQIA+ citizens.…
Cocktail of the Week: I Said Aloe at George’s Keep
Bars put out menus littered with sweet and fruity drinks during summer. They throw different juices into cocktails hoping that they will become the ultimate summer cocktail perfect for sippin’ on a hot summer day. Once the temperature in San Antonio starts reaching triple-digits, you can say goodbye to the whiskey-based winter cocktails, which are…
Latrice Royale is Ready to Werk the Heat Nightclub
Known to be “large and in charge,” Latrice “mutha fuckin’” Royale is one queen you don’t wanna mess with. As evidenced by her extended stay in a Florida jail back in 2007, the season four RuPaul’s Drag Race contestant will cut a bitch. But don’t let her intimidating figure and questionable past fool you: Royale…
