So this Friday the little women and I will get a night away from the kids. We are headed to Helotes to see Dwight Yoakam at Flores Country Store. I think after a night of beer and country music, a good plate of Mexican food will be a must for lunch on Saturday.

Any suggestions for good Tex-mex of Mex-mex in San Antonio? La Fogata is my stand-by pick, though I'm always looking for a new spot.

Also, does anyone have a favorite puffy taco joint? When I was a kid there was a place on the Southside that made great puffy tacos, but they are long gone. I've heard of Henry's and Ray's. Any thoughts?

MAROON

Puffy tacos? I've heard of puffy nipples, but never puffy tacos....

same concept...puffy tacos are better

Mexican Manhattan downtown.

Rosarios, on St Mary's in the King William District.

Paloma Blanca, on Broadway near Incarnate Word.

Or my personal favorite, La Calesa on the corner of Broadway and Hilldebrand, across the street from Earl Abel's.

uh, anything downtown is wasting your time. go to the south or west side, get more for less money, and get some authentic mexican food.

He said he wanted Tex-Mex not authentic mexican...which generally blows.

Cruise the south side for any cinder block establishment or old house with the words Hacienda, Familia, or Taqueria on the sign.

Sorry, didn't get to finish...My cousin is from San Antonio and her family always takes us to the best hole in the wall places. In fact those are pretty much the only spanish words I know. Except for cerveza.

he also said mex-mex, which i assume meant authentic mexican. and i fail to see how you can like tex-mex without liking authentic, since tex-mex is just toned-down variations of the real thing.

you must be a real gringo.

La Fogata, as you said, Alamo Cafe, El Jarro.....

Try Teka Molina on San Pedro, close to North Star Mall. It's been run by the same hispanic family for a little over 20 years, I believe.

Someone in their family owned a place called Taco Hut on the south side that we used to love, but it was shut down due to an Albertson's or Kroger being built. They moved the restaurant elsewhere, but it's not as good as it used to be. So, Teka Molina is our new favorite.

El Jarro at 281 and Bitters
Los Barrios on Blanco
Paloma Blanca on Broadway
Mario's on Fredericksburg

El Chapparal in Helotes is one of my favs... and pretty close to Floore's...

Alcoholics go to Meetings, Drunks go to Bars.

There is a place called El Chaparral in Helotes right on Hwy 16 that is pretty good if that is the area you are staying near. I grew up near San Antonio and have never heard of La Fogata. A nicer place is La Fonda on Fredericksburg Rd. and 410.

i need to just keep this list in word format so I can cut and paste every other week...

Jacala's- 606 West Ave.
Blanco Cafe #1- 1720 Blanco Ave.
Alamo Cafe- 14250 US 281N (some servings are a little small)
Margarita's in Boerne is pretty good.

Mi Tierra's in Downtown... great food, not guite the best, but really sweet atmosphere.

Hands down, El Mirador on St. Mary's off of Durango. It has tex-mex, mex-mex, the BEST queso, and great margaritas.

I used to like La Fogata until I found this place.

Martha's at Babcock and Huebner,

Taqueria Aguas Caliente near 1604 and Babcock (next door to Hills and Dales Bar on 1604) kind of hole in the wall...

Taqueria Arandas, 7055 W Military Dr, across Hwy 90 from Lackland AFB

"Someone in their family owned a place called Taco Hut on the south side that we used to love, but it was shut down "

Holy moly! That is the place my family went to on the Southside when I was growing up. I might just have to try Teko to see if they have the same kind of tacos

MAROON- The Taco Hut was awesome! I hope Teko measures up in your opinion...also, I'm hoping that I can get the name right as far as spelling goes

Is Henry's Puffy Taco off of Bandera Rd still open? They used to have some righteous Tex-Mex...


Thanks, Face... glad to see someone agree's with me...

BTW, I also really like Martha's... and Blanco Cafe ain't bad...

Alcoholics go to Meetings, Drunks go to Bars.

Pretty good listing from the SA website:

http://news.mysanantonio.com/story.cfm?xla=saen&xlb=652&xlc=962946&xld=652

We ate at the Chaparral in Helotes about three weeks ago and it was good. I agree that La Fogata is the standard, but El Mirador is excellent as well.

I can't believe no one has recommended Karems on Zarazamora...........west side, excellent, excellent food and great atmosphere. Best of all, its no where near the river...

quote:

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he also said mex-mex, which i assume meant authentic mexican. and i fail to see how you can like tex-mex without liking authentic, since tex-mex is just toned-down variations of the real thing.

---

I always thought it was just the opposite and authentic mexican was more "toned-down" than tex-mex.

Jacalas
La Fogata

Mi Tierra's breakast is dang good...aske Lyle Lovett. I also thought the same thing, tex mex is a spicier more flavorful version of mexican food. Whenever I go to "authentic" mexican food places, I find it bland and have to doctor it up with salt and a bowl of hot sauce to make it taste good.

Me too, Crawford. And for that reason I do not normally look like to go to authentic mexican restaurants.

[This message has been edited by MemAg92 (edited 8/13/2003 10:10p).]

If you're going to be in Helotes - go to El Chaparral - I love their beef enchiladas and salsa. Their atmosphere has improved by 2002 times since their remodeling.

Try Mamasita's - had their beef fajita's this evening and I couldn't finish the plate - I'm a pretty big eater too. It's off of I-10 toward 410 on the right. Callahan, I think?

Also try Gringo's Mexican Kitchen if you want some solid tex-mex without paying too much - the avg. entree is 7-8 bucks. This place is new to town - it has a Vegas-style sign out front - and is at Summit Parkway off NW 410.

Chacho's has some great salsas. Had to mention that too.

I would have mentioned Karems but it has been a few years since I have been there.

It was great the last time I went.

[This message has been edited by puffytacoman (edited 8/14/2003 4:02a).]

My suggestions have already been covered.

For Tex-Mex:
Rosario's
La Fogata
El Mirasol (on Blanco south of Bitters)

For Mex-Mex:
La Calesa

For Puffy Tacos:
Teka Molino...going away

NO QUESTION.... GO TO EL CHAPPARAL.

less than a mile from Floore's, great food, good atmosphere.

At the behest of Face

Most of the places we go are family owned places over near Jefferson High School or run by families who's sons my dad coached at Central Catholic. Honestly, I don't remember the names. Looking at the thread though, Chapparel is a good call as is Blanco Cafe #1 and Jacalas