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Destination: Viva San Antonio
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From the musica to the chalupas, this Texas city's got a Mexican soul
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BY JOHN MORTHLAND
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San Antonio's River Walk.
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Wrapped in a colorful, festive swirl of conjunto accordions and mariachi trumpets, puffy tacos and micheladas (beer cocktails), ancient cathedrals and inviting icehouses (a South Texas-style beer joint), San Antonio is one of America's most "foreign" cities. In this South Texas town of around 1.4 million people—the seventh-largest in the nation—nearly everybody, it seems, speaks Spanish as well as English. Even in neighborhoods away from tourist spots, the architecture often evokes Mexico. And Mexican-American culture defines the city as much as the Alamo or the Mission Trail, its most popular tourist destinations. Be sure to visit those two attractions if you've never seen them. But with so much more available, don't stop there.
TEX-MEX MUSIC
From Tejano (the Tex-Mex adaptation of contemporary pop) to Peruvian flutes, live music is everywhere. Free weekend concerts are frequent at La Villita (Old Town) and El Mercado (Market Square), and bands set up along the downtown River Walk, the palm-tree-shaded stretch of the San Antonio River that's lined with hotels, restaurants and shops.
If you want to hear accordion played like you never dreamed possible, drop into the cozy Salute International Bar (2801 N. St. Mary's St.; 210-732-5307; saluteinternationalbar.com) nearly any Friday night to catch the 10 p.m. set by the mind-boggling Esteban (Steve) Jordan. He wrings such visionary jazz and rock sounds out of his instrument that he's been dubbed the Jimi Hendrix of the squeeze box. Or you could head over to the workingman's Lerma's Night Club (1602 N. Zarzamora; 210-884-8810) on the West Side, where local conjuntos (groups) play the traditional dance music of South Texas while couples glide around the floor so gracefully that their feet appear to never touch the ground.
MEXICAN MEALS
You'll be hard pressed to get mediocre Mexican food in San Antonio, or to spend much at a Mexican restaurant. The current hotspot is Rosario's (910 S. Alamo St.; 210-223-1806) in Southtown, the business strip of the King William District, with its majestic old Victorian houses. This bar-restaurant is a sleek, stylish place that manages to make earthy Tex-Mex food equally sleek and stylish; the fish tacos and chalupas (sort of a crisp, open-face taco) are rich yet light.
Nearby Cascabel Mexican Patio (1000 S. St. Mary's St.; 210-212-6456) specializes in Mexican comfort food, which usually means chunks of meat in a pipián (ground squash- or pumpkin-seed) or mole sauce. With most plates priced around $7, it's the best deal in town. In the same neighborhood is El Mirador (722 S. St. Mary's St.; 210-225-9444), known for its weekend brunch soups (try the mellow lime-chicken). The Latin-fusion dinner specials are innovative and savory.
RIVER WALK
The River Walk itself winds through the heart of San Antonio. An extension doubling its length just opened this spring, so it now reaches as far north as the San Antonio Museum of Art (200 W. Jones Ave., 210-978-8100; samuseum.org; admission varies). The splendid Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Latin American Art is part of the museum. The Pearl Brewery (312 Pearl Pkwy.; pearlbrewery.com) is currently being developed as a food-focused "urban village" with housing, retail and more. Melissa Guerra, the reigning queen of Tex-Mex cuisine, has already opened her namesake store, which sells Latin American culinary goods and more (877-875-2665; melissaguerra.com).
Also on the River Walk, the Culinary Institute of America (210-222-1113; ciachef.edu) recently established a branch campus specializing in Latin American cuisines; visitors can sign up for short cooking classes and learn to make dishes like tamales with chicken and red chili. The fruits, vegetables, meats and herbs sold on Saturdays at the Pearl Farmers Market alongside the river are all grown or raised within 150 miles of the city.
ART AND MORE ART
El Mercado, or Market Square (514 W. Commerce St.; 210-207-8600; marketsquaresa.com) exemplifies San Antonio's knack for introducing new elements into the old mix. Mi Tierra Café y Panaderia (218 Produce Row; 210- 225-1262), the Cortez family's 24/7 restaurant, has been here since 1941. But the spacious, hot-pink Museo Alameda (101 S. Santa Rosa St.; 210-299-4300; thealameda.org), which opened in 2007 as the first formal Smithsonian affiliate in America, is a wonderful addition. Its freewheeling schedule of exhibitions currently includes a 5,000-square-foot exhibit highlighting the contributions of Latinos to American pop music (through Sept. 25); new work—mainly large-scale photographs—by Chuck Ramirez (Sept. 9 through Nov. 29); portraits of Frida Kahlo by Nickolas Muray (through Dec. 6); and a retrospective of realist painter Jesse Treviño's work (starting Oct. 21).
Ramirez and Treviño are both homeboys, and San Antonio takes its art seriously. On the First Friday of each month, pedestrian traffic pretty much takes over Southtown as vendors set up on the sidewalks, and galleries and shops play host to an art crawl. Inter Artisan Gallery (1036 S. Alamo St.; 210-807-3582; inter-artisan.com) displays the stirring oil paintings of Juan Antonio Barajas of Laredo, pottery from the village of Juan Mata Ortiz in Chihuahua, and delicate handblown glass art by Antigua Santiago of Tonala. Farther down South Alamo, the Blue Star Arts Complex (1414 S. Alamo St.; bluestarartscomplex.com) is a historic warehouse divided into galleries, studios and performance spaces for local artists. It's also home to San Angel Folk Art (110 Blue Star; 210-226-6688; sanangelfolkart.com), one of the most respected folk art stores in the nation.
When evening comes, hang out with the bohemian crowd just across the railroad tracks from Blue Star at La Tuna Icehouse (100 Probandt St.; 210-224-8862), which keeps alive a Texas tradition dating back to the days before residents owned refrigerators. After going to the icehouse to buy blocks of ice, they'd stick around to knock back a cold brew or two and catch up on neighborhood talk. La Tuna, a partially open-air, corrugated-metal shack surrounded by picnic tables under sprawling oak and pecan trees, doesn't sell ice, but the beer selection is stellar and very, very cold. (If you're hungry, the newer La Tuna Grill is right next door.) In San Antonio, where Mexican heritage still shapes so much of daily life, the old ways die hard—and for that a visitor should give thanks.
EAT
You probably won't want to eat Mexican
food every meal, and that's okay: San
Antonio is a great restaurant town, so
there's a range of other options.
LE RÊVE
The seasonal menu at this nationally
rated, contemporary French establishment
on the River Walk has included such
dishes as slow-roasted wild salmon on
dilled cucumber and avocado, and a
divine cheese course. The wine list is
exemplary. Note: jacket and tie are
required. 152 E. Pecan St.; 210-212-2221;
dinner for two, $170
BOUDRO'S
Beginning with citrusy guacamole made
at your table, this River Walk favorite
artfully combines kaleidoscopic Gulf
flavors, from Mexican to Cajun. Every
fish dish is sauced brilliantly. 421 E.
Commerce St.; 210-224-8484; dinner
for two, $125
CHRIS MADRID'S
Champeen of the mostly-burgers menu
at this sprawling, midtown eatery is the
tostada burger, their variant on that San
Antonio creation, the bean burger: a thin,
perfectly charred patty topped with
onions, refried beans and tortilla chips
(purists would use Fritos). 1900 Blanco
Rd.; 210-735-3552; dinner for two, $20
MAGNOLIA PANCAKE HAUS
The best for breakfast, just north of
downtown. Bowing to the city's
considerable German heritage, the
munchenerapfel pfannekuchen is a
Bavarian puffed pancake laced with
apples and cinnamon. The huge
menu also features great bacon
and unusual omelets. 606 Embassy
Oak, Suite 100; 210-496-0828;
breakfast for two, $20
*Prices cover a meal for two, not including
drinks, tax or tip.
STAY
RCI-AFFILIATED RESORTS IN AND AROUND
SAN ANTONIO INCLUDE:
ECKHERT PLACE, San Antonio
WYNDHAM LA CASCADA, San Antonio
SILVERLEAF'S HILL COUNTRY RESORT, Canyon Lake
THE SUMMIT VACATION RESORT TREE TOP VILLAS,
Canyon Lake
For more information,
visit RCI.com or call
Weeks: 800-338-7777
Points: 877-968-7476
NON-RCI-AFFILIATED HOTELS:
OMNI LA MANSIÓN DEL RIO
The 338 rooms in this Spanish Colonial
gem on the River Walk have brick walls,
wood beams and marble baths. 112
College St.; 210-518-1000;
omnihotels.com; doubles from $170
MENGER HOTEL
Built next to the Alamo in 1859 and said
to be haunted, this is among the oldest
hotels in Texas. There are 316 rooms in
the old and new quarters. 204 Alamo
Plaza; 210-223-4361; mengerhotel.com;
doubles from $140
PAINTED LADY INN
Minutes from the River Walk, this B&B
has named most of its nine rooms after
famous folks, from Amelia Earhart to
Liberace, and decorated accordingly.
620Broadway; 210-220-1092;
thepaintedladyinn.com; doubles
from $129
HAVANA RIVERWALK INN
Located at the "wrong" end of the River
Walk—and somehow cozier than those in
the thick of things—this 1914 building has
27 rooms, no two alike. 1015 Navarro St.;
210-222-2008; havanariverwalkinn.com;
rooms from $129
FAIRMOUNT HOTEL
This three-story, red brick Victorian, with
37 rooms, has European-style elegance.
401 S. Alamo St.; 210-224-8800;
fairmountsa.com; doubles from $189
EMILY MORGAN
Recently renovated, this 177-room classic
is near the Alamo. 705 E. Houston St.;
800-824-6674; emilymorganhotel.com;
doubles from $149
NOTE: Information may have changed since publication. Please confirm key details before planning your trip.
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Published: Sept/Oct 2009 Issue
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Photo: Jupiter Images
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