Four San Antonio spots landed on Texas Monthly’s list of the 25 Best New (or Improved!) Taquerias in Texas, a roundup the magazine compiled to laud the gutsy purveyors braving tough restaurant-industry conditions to feed taco fans.
An uneven economy, high food prices and the White House’s immigration crackdown don’t exactly make it easy on restaurateurs, the article pointed out. But, apparently, where there’s a will to serve tacos, there’s a way.
“There’s never the right timing, and it’s always the right timing,” Juan Andion, who opened San Antonio’s Tacos on the Street last fall, informed Texas Monthly. “If we were concerned about what’s happening in the world, we could be paralyzed.”
Of course, Tacos on the Street, 22026 U.S. Highway 281, is among the quartet of San Antonio taquerias with a spot on the list. The restaurant — the first U.S. location of a Puerto Vallarta stalwart — earned Texas Monthly Taco Editor José R. Ralat’s praise for its smoky, charcoal-cooked carne asada and chopped chicken fillings.
Aguazul, which opened at 2831 Northwest Loop 410 last year with James Beard Award semifinalist Enrique Lozano at the helm, got the magazine’ attention for its way with fresh seafood, including its take on surf and turf: a taco combining octopus and tripe.
Former Stixs & Stone chef Leo Davila got a shoutout for his Anancho Coffee & Cantina at the revamped St. Anthony Hotel. Ralat commended the casual dining spot at 300 E. Travis St. for its Big Red and barbacoa tacos — a holdover from Stixs & Stone — and a punchy bean and cheese breakfast taco con nopales.
Keeping things plenty real, Ralat’s named the Waca food trailer that posts up beside West Side watering hole Chifladas, 1804 W. Martin St., as his fourth SA fave. “The Wacabolas are clever fritters of guacamole, chicken and cheese,” he writes of his favorite menu item. “I call them San Antonio–style hush puppies.”
Despite all shit talking associated with the San Antonio-Austin taco rivalry, it’s good to see Texas Monthly acknowledge just how gutsy and creative our city’s taqueria operators are. After all, the mag’s hometown of Austin only landed two spots on the list, and only much larger Houston matched SA in its number of establishments on the list.
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