Here’s the locals guide to SA.
Mexican - El Chaparral in Helotes (about 20 mins from downtown)
www.elchaparral.com (the pict is of their old building, which was torn down and rebuilt in 2002.) The best mexican food in town. Mi Tierra (In market square) is OK, but way too expensive for Mexican. Pappasito’s is fun.
www.pappasitos.com But its really white people Mexican food.
BBQ – Look no further than Rudy’s BBQ.
http://www.rudys.com There is no other. Don’t try that Bill Miller crap. That’s shit you’d get at a church BBQ. Bill Millers is generic BBQ and their sauce is terrible. Its like taking your family to McDonalds. It’s the McDonalds of BBQ. The Rudy’s by sea world is closest to you, but the one in Leon Springs has the most character. At Rudy's you order by weight and heres an insiders tip. When you order the brisket, and you will, get the lean. Its mcuh better. Dont forget the sausage, and turkey. For sides try the mustard potato salad, and beans. For those freaks of nature who enjoy creamed corn, I hear its pretty good. I think the concept of creamed corn is disgusting.
For catfish, try Clear Springs Catfish
www.clearspringscafe.com/aboutus.html They have a location near 281 and 1604 North. Be sure to order the onion rings.
Italian – Paisano’s (no website found) with two locations; one on the ‘south bank’ of the river walk (just ask and people will tell you where the south bank is) and the other is in Alamo Heights just off 281, about 8 minutes north of downtown. They both are great. Do SouthBank to see tourists and eat on the rivers edge. Do Alamo Heights if you want to eta a little cheaper and see a few local stars (Tim Duncan & Wife, Tommy Lee Jones & Wife are frequently seen there). AH also has a classier location.
Texan/Southwestern – Scenic Loop Café.
www.scenicloopcafe.com Great food, true Texas atmosphere. They’ll take great care of ya. Rumor has it that its owned by George Strait. It is on his land. (He owns the show stables property it sits on). Its only a few years old, but has a huge local following and you’re guaranteed to not see any touristas.
Breakfast – Guenther house on the property of the Pioneer Flour Mills
www.guentherhouse.com/Main.aspx really good food. Busy as hell on the weekends. Great to sit outside and eat if the weather is nice. Good coffee.
Events –
Alamo – Obviously.
King William Tour in Southtown – Tour of turn of the century homes south of town.
Gruene Hall/Gruene Texas – A great way to kill an afternoon / evening. Lots of cool old shops (it’s a historic area, a town frozen in time - think the little old town from Fried Green Tomatoes) that has a great Restaurant called the Gristmill (once a working mill) and lots of neat bars to have a beer and catch some live Texas music. Something for everyone and your German friend can get the Texas experience without the kitsch. Save it for a friday or saturday afternoon. Roger Creager is playing both Friday and Saturday nights. He puts on a great show and they have a great patio area to chill outside, enjoy the weather and listen to the music... He'll go on about 10 PM. So an idea is to get there around 5 or 6, walk around for awhile, eat at the gristmill, then catch the show next door at Gruene Hall.
www.gruene.net/index.asp www.gruenehall.com www.gristmillrestaurant.com. Also theres something called Gruene Market Days that Saturday. Dont know what the hell it is but heres the link
www.gruenemarketdays.com
Cowboys Dance Hall – A big loud bar that is Texas with the kitsch. Its everything hes probably ever imagined about Texas. Including the mechanical bull. Ugh.
San Marcos Outlet Shops. About 500 outlet shops.
North Star Mall – San Antonio’s largest mall
Boerne – (half hour NW of SA on I-10) Antiquing on the haupstrasse (mainstreet).
Fredericksburg – (hour NW of SA on I-10) 10X the antiquing and cool shops of Boerne. Its an old German city that has the Admiral Nimitz museum and about 100 Biergartens.
Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum – Really Cool and has an IMAX Texas history show. (in Austin)
Sea World – Cool but only open on a limited schedule. Family went today and had a blast. Said hardly anyone was there and there was no wait. Check their site at
www.seaworld.com
Fiesta Texas – Same as sea world. Can be a bit tiring, cause its so spread out.
San Antonio Missions National Historic Park – Visit some of the old missions in SA beside the touristy Alamo and San Fernando (downtown). The others Espada, San Juan, San Jose and Conception.
http://www.nps.gov/saan/ Absolutely AMAZING. Like stepping back 300 years in time. You will feel like you are in colonial mexico.
Hope this helps. Its what id consider if I had peeps coming to visit.
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