San Antonio is a city of many things. We have a fantastic San Antonio Spurs basketball team (2012), a majestic tourist attraction in The Riverwalk, and we are home to the historical landmark The Alamo. In addition to all of these more well-known aspects of San Antonio though, is our passion for food. In a city where we claim to have more restaurants per capita than any other city in the U.S., and have even ranked near the top of the U.S. Fattest Cities list, you better believe that there are a ton of dining options at your disposal.
So how do you decide where to eat when there is such a supersaturation of restaurants throughout San Antonio? Well, you simply look to a food expert to put you on the path to culinary heaven. This is where I come in! Below, I have created a comprehensive list of the Top 3 Restaurants in San Antonio, sorted by their style cuisine. When you go to any of these restaurants, you are guaranteed great food, accommodating service, a clean and inviting atmosphere, all at a price befitting the quality.
1.) Best Restaurant for ‘ The Carnivore ‘
As the title alludes to, if you are a person who loves meat and a wide variety of different cuts of it, then there is no better place to go to then Chauma Gaucha located at 18318 Sonterra Place on the North side of San Antonio right-off of the 1604 Loop. Chama Gaucha is a Brazilian steakhouse, and for those of you who have never had the Brazilian-Steakhouse-Experience before, you must go here. The only requirement you must meet before coming here is having a big appetite. That’s right, fast for 2 -3 days beforehand so you can try every single offering at this establishment. OK, maybe I exaggerate a little; but make sure you come hungry!
When you first enter the restaurant, you are immediately greeted by two or more friendly Greeters that make you feel right at home. If you have a reservation (which I strongly recommend), you are generally seated very quickly. On your way to your table you will notice the beautiful ambiance created by the expensive fixtures and furnishings, the intimately dimmed lights, and the incredibly accommodating and nice staff that will constantly try to satisfy your every culinary desire. The main thing that will catch your eye though is the giant display of delectable, delicious, and fresh offerings at their generous salad bar.
Gourmet prosciutto, Parmesan carved right from the wheel, freshly made salads and vegetables are just some of the many offerings at the salad bar that come with your meal. Not only does it look astounding, but the quality and superiority of the ingredients on the salad bar are awing. This is an incredibly delicious way to begin any meal; but you haven’t seen nothin’ yet.
First, let me give you some brief insight into the Brazilian Steakhouse Dining Experience. It is essentially a buffet on crack. It is a buffet elevated to a level that seems inconceivable until you experience it. When you are seated you are given a card. One side is green and the other side is red. Essentially, once you flip your card to ‘green’, the magic begins. Staff members with spits hot-off an open fire in the kitchen come rushing to your table with offerings including Rack of Lamb, Top Sirloin, Filet Mignon, Roasted Chicken, Parmesan-Crusted Pork, Smoked Sausage Links, and other incredibly-well-seasoned, fresh-off-the-spit meats.
Watching these Meat Gods and Goddesses hurdle across the dining room to serve your every need is like watching a beautifully choreographed orchestra or ballet. The only difference is, the performance is much shorter and much more satisfying. They will continue to bring hot, seared meat offering after meat offering until you concede to your moaning stomach and flip your card to red. It is then that the meat will stop coming and you will have a chance to rest. If by chance you get a second-wind, flip that card back to green and the orchestra recommences.
As we all know though, a restaurant’s worth isn’t just about the food–it is about the whole package. A truly fantastic restaurant not only provides an amazing food product, but it also gives you an experience that you can remember in regards to service, atmosphere, and price. Chama Gaucha delivers this as well. Their service-style is: ‘Serve the customer to the highest standard’. Simply put, there is an entire staff of people waiting to fulfill your every desire. They are constantly and subtly grooming the table with small brushes to remove crumbs, your water glass never gets more than half empty, they have staff that will specifically run back and get the exact cut of meat you want, and there is a manager that always stops by to check on your dining experience.
Chama Gaucha is more than just a place to go get food. It is an experience you will never forget from start to finish. The best part is that it isn’t all just for show, because the food that they offer is some of the very best you can get for your dollar. As far as a price range goes, you are looking to spend about forty dollars per person for the buffet at dinner. Drinks, desserts, and other items are not included with that price. When my wife and I went, after tax and tip, you can expect about $120-$150 for a party of two–a price well-worth it for what you get. That is, incredible service, an amazing experience, and delicious food.
2.) Best Pizza in San Antonio
I am a native New Yorker. I moved to San Antonio a little over two years ago, and every day has been a battle for me in terms of food. There are just some food offerings in San Antonio that do not stack-up to my hometown of Syracuse, NY. One type of food that we have had particular difficulty finding is pizza. Ah, the American favorite. A simple combination of sauce, cheese, and dough. Though it seems like such an easy thing to make, in San Antonio there are hundreds of restaurants that simply do it wrong.
Not at Florio’s on 7701 Broadway on the North side of the city inside the 410 Loop. After almost two years of scouring the city for the best pie in San Antonio, I can confidently say that I found it! When I go to a pizza place, I try as much and as many combinations of their pizza as I possibly can. At Florio’s this was no different. I ordered two 16″ pizzas, one with half sausage and half pepperoni, and the other with half cheese and half mushrooms. Yea, I probably looked a little ridiculous with two 16″ pizzas in front of two people at my table, but this is just how it has to be done.
The dough is the canvas upon which master-pizza-makers paint. It is the foundation of the entire pie, and more times than not, if the dough is lacking–the entire pizza is lacking. Because let’s be honest. A pizza is not about one ingredient. A pizza is the sum of all of its parts. It is the combination of ingredients and flavors created that either makes the pizza perfect, or fall flat. At Florio’s when I first saw the dough, I’ll admit, I was a little bit skeptical. But once it hit my mouth and it had that beautiful crispy exterior coupled with a soft, tender interior I was a believer. It had that slight chewiness, but crisp texture that is so hard to come by with many pizzas, and the flavor was spot-on.
On top of the dough is a perfectly seasoned sauce that tasted of fresh tomatoes, a hint of sweetness, and a nice zesty finish. The sauce has the perfect flavor profile to compliment the dough. Furthermore, with its slight sweetness, it helps juxtapose the saltiness of the whole milk mozzarella. This bring me to the cheese.
The cheese was everything you would want on top of your pizza. It is gooey, melt-y, rich, salty, flavorful, and there is just the right amount on it. Like I said though, it isn’t about one ingredient, it is about all of the ingredients, and at Florio’s, all of these flavors marry together to create a flavor in your mouth that I thought was unachievable in San Antonio. It wasn’t until I left Florio’s that I realized I was actually still in San Antonio.
There are other pizza establishments in San Antonio which come close. They are few and far in between, but there are some which almost reach the level that Florio’s does. Despite that, Florio’s takes the cake (or should I say the pie) for me. If you are craving an incredible pizza, at a fair price, then you must give it a try.
3.) The Best Burger Place in San Antonio
Alright, this has been a topic of sore controversy in this town for quite some time. If there is one thing that I have learned about San Antonio in the two years I have been here is that you guys are serious about your burgers and your BBQ. This is why I know I will get some backlash for this; but I am brave, and here I go anyway.
The best burger in San Antonio comes from Longhorn Cafe and Icehouse. You can get this burger at any one of their locations. There is one up Highway 10 West near Dominion and Boerne Stage Road, and there is also one on the northeast side as well near Rittiman inside the 410 Loop. Hands-down, this is the best burger that your money can buy. Let me tell you how I arrived at this conclusion.
First and foremost is the taste. The burger patty is always moist, cooked to perfection, and seasoned perfectly. It is always topped with your choice of fixins’ and they are fresh and crisp. It is served on top of a beautifully, hand-crafted, perfectly-toasted bun that has a soft, velvety texture and a nice hint of butter to its flavor. Finally, the additional toppings, such as bacon, is cooked fresh to order. The best part is that it is real bacon (unlike some of the cheap stuff you get at fast food restaurants), and it is always cooked to a nice crispiness and never overcooked.
In addition to their absolutely, ridiculously good burgers, they also have some great appetizer-like menu items. One of which are the fried mushrooms. I cannot express to you in words how fantastic these mushrooms are. Couple that with a perfectly seasoned country gravy that is creamy and has the perfect amount of Black Pepper in it, and you have some of the most–if not the most–delicious fried mushrooms on the planet.
This next part is borderline embarrassing, but it has to be said. There was a stretch of time where I ate at Longhorn Cafe every weekend, once per weekend, for 3 months straight. *Gasp*! I know, it’s bad; but this is how good their burger really is. This is a burger that I can have every single week and not tire of its flavor. Like the pizza above, the burger is not merely the patty. It is a combination of all of the flavors together that make it so special. The salty-savoriness of the patty mixed with the buttery flavor of the bun, mixed with the creamy, mild-flavored American Cheese, topped with fresh, crisp lettuce and tomato, all brought together by mustard, mayo, and my own addition of Ketchup to provide a sweet knife to cut through all the salty and savory.
This concludes my review of the Top 3 restaurants you need to go to in San Antonio. These are the culinary giants in this city, in their respective categories, and you need to go to them. If not for me, do it for your stomach. It will most certainly thank you for it afterwards. Stay-tuned, because in future articles I will give you some more ‘Best-Of’ San Antonio, and I might even sneak in a ‘Worst-Of’ as well? I don’t know, there are just so many possibilities!
