[lifesaver]

COOL!

We’ll gladly welcome you and your coworkers to SA. I can give you the lowdown on all the good goings on here. A few suggestions first:

I recommend you getting a car. At least for one day. San Antonio is one of those really large sprawling texas towns and if ya’ll wanna experience the real san Antonio, ya need to get away from downtown and the riverwalk. DT is cool, but its very polished, touristy and fake. Seriously, most locals avoid it. And most locals have been to the Alamo like one time in their entire lives.


While downtown these are my suggestions:

Meals:
Twin Sisters: Liberal. Corner of Houston and Broadway. (only open for lunch) Very granola, but good meals. Try the tortilla soup.

Mi Tierra: Mexican. Market Square. A legend. Open 24 hours. Bill Clintons fav. Place in SA. Good food. Great Mexican bakery. Pan dulce to die for.

Paeisanos: Italian. Riverwalk. Italian with a touch of Texan. Good. Have the shrimp Paisano or Snapper Paisano.

Dolores del Rio: Italian. Riverwalk. Italian.Medeterranain. Good. Cool atmosphere, bellydancers.

Original Mexican Food Resturaunt. Mexican. Riverwalk. Its been good. Its been bad. It’s a coin toss.

Rosarios: Mexican. King William (You’ll need to cab, maybe 5-10 mins from most DT hotels) The place to see and be seen. Margaritas you’d kill for. Really good food and the owner Lisa Wong is a good friend. My recommendation. Hands down.

Clubs/Bars:
Howl at the Moon. Club/Bar. Wait till Friday or Saturday night for this one. Best then. Othertimes it tends to be a bit empty. If ya want a table, be there by 8:30 or so. It fills up fast and you’ll have to stand. I personally like standing, but some don’t.

Polyesthers: Riverwalk. Dance Club. Wear comfortable shoes and it gets really warm in there. Dress appropriately. Cover is $8. 3 levels. 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s and today. Fun.

Zinc Wine and Champaign bar. Corner of Navarro and Delorosa. High class for SA. Really fun. Sit out back in the cortyard. Great for chatting. Intimate. Try the cure-all. Chambord, Midori, Pineapple Juice topped with champagne. 3 of those and you are cured. Great for during the week. Emmett Smith loved this place during cowboys traing camp and it is real popular with all the local tv people. Theres no sign so you’ll have to get in the area and ask someone where it is. Worth looking for.

La Tuna. Beer Joint. King William. About 15 blocks south of Rosarios. Def. Not walking distance. Its what we call an icehouse. Just a big outdoor area popular with local artisans and a place to chill and drink beer. Just don’t go much further south than La Tuna. It’s the edge of the known world. Dotn go if the weather sucks. Its nothing but picnic tables.

Mad Dogs. Riverwalk in the Hyatt. Bar. Very fun and best butterynipples in town. Plays lots of 80’s. Way fun to chill outside on the patio and watch the touristas go by on the riverwalk.


Outside of Downtown:
Meals:
Rudys. BBQ. I-10 and Boerne Stage Road. (20 miles from DT, but on the northern edge of SA.). Absolutely worth the drive. Best BBQ ON THE PLANET. Its my soul food. Ordered by the ¼, 1/3, ½ or full lb, and eaten on butcher paper, oits by far the best BBQ ever. The sause (yes, that’s how its spelled) is amazing. You’ll buy a bottle on your way out. For gods sake, the place was even featured on the Travel Channel’s Secrets series of Texas. I’ve known it was awesome for years. Its across the street from campus, so wed eat there all the time. Mmmmm.

Reggiano’s. Italian. 281 &1604. Good Italian in a classy neighborhood.

Stoneworks. American. Basse & 281. Great food and a better atmosphere. Voted best place to find your ideal mate the last 3 years running. The beautiful people hang out there.

La Fugata: Mexican. Hildebrand & Blanco. A local fav and really good.

Carraubas: Texan Italian Grill. I-10 and DeZavala. A chain, but very good. Inexpensive, and very popular with the locals.

Scenic Loop Café: Texas/Southwest. Scenic Loop and Boerne Stage Road (3 Miles west of Rudy’s). Very trendy and good. Inexpensive, and George Straight is the owner. Occasionally he pops in. Its in the neighborhood of the Dominion, where David Robinson, Tommy Lee Jones and Madeline Stowe all have homes. Since there’s nothing else out there, there’s always a good chance you might see a star out there. The salmon is amazing.

Chuy’s. Mexican. Alamo Heights. The same chain where Pres. Bushes daughter got busted for drinking a few years ago in Austin. Great enchiladas. A rowdy time and place to be seen.

Clubs/Bars:
Martinis: Show club. Rector at McCullough. Wayne Harper sings a lounge act and the place is always packed. Think Dresden form Swingers and you have it. Weekends are the only time he plays I think.

Hills and Dales: Ice House (That’s what we call a place that’s part store/part bar, very casual and usually has a deck or someplace to sit outside and drink). 1604 and Babcock. Across from campus and very popular with the college crowd. Biggest beer selection in town. Sit on the patio and meet some of the very friendly bikers that hang out on Wednesdays.

Flying Saucer. Bar. I-10 and Huebner. Very popular local joint that jumps most of the week. Many kinds of beers and the young cool kids hang out here. Very friendly.

Lindy’s or Bombays. Bars. Both on Fredericksburg between Callaghan and Huebner. Where all the med students hang out after class/work. Happening most of the week.

I am sure there are more. I’ll think about it for a while and see what I come up with. What days of the week and when specifically will ya’ll be here. I see of the spurs are playing or if there are any really cool festivals going on.