Singh’s Cantina 15410 White Fawn Dr, (210) 979-9110, https://order.toasttab.com/online/singhscantinaSinghs Cantina is serving up Vietnamese soul food right next to Hills and Dales Ice House in Northwest San Antonio. Crowd pleasers on the menu include the Brisket Banh Mi and other crossover dishes. Credit: Stephanie Koithan

The owners of St. Mary’s Strip staple Singhs Vietnamese have returned to their roots — in more ways than one — by opening a new location called Singhs Cantina in Northwest San Antonio.

Located at 15410 White Fawn Drive next to UTSA-area gathering spot Hills & Dales Ice House, the new location represents a homecoming for owners Louis Singh and Eric Treviño. Singh and Treviño grew up together in Northwest San Antonio neighborhood and have deep ties to the property they chose for the expansion.

“Me and my business partners, we were all high school buddies,” Singh said. “We grew up here when there was nothing out here but Hills & Dales [Ice House], so it kind of like a beacon for us. “

Singh and Treviño ventured into the culinary world in 2012 by running their first food truck in the Hills & Dales parking lot. Eventually, that successful venture allowed them to open their first brick-and-mortar eatery on the St. Mary’s Strip.

“So, really coming back here is like a full circle homecoming for us,” Singh added.

The new restaurant — which opened May 9 — represents both familiar and uncharted territory, since it’s the first building the owners have built from the ground up.

Similarly, the new location’s menu is passingly familiar while forging its own path. While both Singhs locations offer banh mi sandwiches, for example, the banh mi at Singhs Cantina is served on a lighter po’boy bread shipped in from Leidenheimer Baking Co., a famous baker in New Orleans.

Patrons can walk up to order at a window and sit at picnic tables or the outdoor bar if they want to “dine in.” However, there’s not really an “in” at Singhs Cantina. Credit: Stephanie Koithan

And while both locations offer a signature rice-based dish, the new location leans into Vietnamese peasant food with com tấm, or broken rice, the discarded grains broken in the milling process. The imperfect rice yields a fluffier texture, making the dish a popular street food.

“It literally came from the farmers who would take the broken rice that was deemed unsellable — they would take it home to feed their family,” Singh said.

The new cantina is continuing the Singhs reputation for recreating Vietnamese home cooking. To that end, it also offers a romaine-and-mint salad as its take on another traditional dish, goi.

“Even my mom was like, ‘You can’t sell goi, that’s what we eat at home. It’s not fancy enough for a restaurant!” Singh said.

The food menu straddles both traditional Vietnamese and Texas dishes. Credit: Stephanie Koithan

For all the emphasis the menu places on traditional Vietnamese dishes, it also includes dishes such as pulled pork rice and brisket banh mi that give a nod to Texas flavors.

While Singh says his prior concepts represented “a mother’s Vietnamese recipes as told by her Texas son,” his latest venture is “very much from San Antonio.”

“The neighborhood and community dictated our [new] menu. They told us what they want to see,” Singh said. “I was very stubborn as a young chef. I wanted to keep it traditional and I was like ‘I’m not putting brisket on a banh mi.”

He added: “At some point I realized this belongs to [the community].”

A patron drinks at the open-air bar. Credit: Stephanie Koithan

Singhs Cantina is a small, asymmetrical building just big enough to house the kitchen and bar, which means all seating is on its patio. Singh also shared plans with the Current for a future outdoor grilling area intended as an homage to another puro San Antonio experience: the backyard cookout.

True to the “cantina” part of its name, the location has a full bar with signature drinks. Singh also hopes to bring back the “plaque system” Hills & Dales once had. Customers who got through the tap menu twice at the Ice House received a commemorative plaque on the wall.

“It’s our version of a neighborhood bar,” Singh said.

Singhs has also expanded its operation and grounded the menu in San Antonio through its kitchen crew, composed of executive chef Alex Garcia, general manager Carlos Narvaez and sous chef Marcos Narvaez.

“They’re all putting their touches on the menu so this is very much a San Antonio joint,” Singh explained.

Bar manager Joe Robledo and business manager Jeffrey Posada round out the  leadership team.

The kitchen, which views itself as a culinary playground, also plans to incorporate Mexican influences in its revolving repertoire, as the cuisines share many techniques and ingredients. Those include jalapeño, cilantro, lime, chayote squash and the vibrant red-orange spice known as annatto, derived from the seeds of the achiote tree.

“I’m biased, but I think both Vietnamese and Mexican are the most beautiful cuisines because they’re born out of struggle,” Singh said.

Subscribe to SA Current newsletters.

Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed

Related Stories

This article appears in May 14-27, 2025.

Stephanie Koithan is the Digital Content Editor of the San Antonio Current. In her role, she writes about politics, music, art, culture and food. Send her a tip at skoithan@sacurrent.com.