An Average Joe in San Antonio

Schilo’s is a restaurant that I have wanted to go to for several years now but just have never been able to make it.  This is mainly due to the fact that whenever I think about going, it is Sunday and Schilo’s is closed on Sundays!  I heard great things about Schilo’s from a variety of people and it is even one of my neighbor’s favorite places to eat in all of San Antonio.  Needless to say, I was pretty excited to FINALLY go eat there!

The inside of the restaurant harkens back to the good ole days.  There are plenty of seats in old wooden booths and the open floor plan has high ceilings.  As you enter, you will notice the display cases with all the deli meats and cheeses and old pictures from San Antonio’s past on the wall.

Our server was incredibly friendly and offered some great suggestions.  She told us that we absolutely had to try the lentil soup, so I found a plate that had a sandwich on rye, cup of soup, and warm German potato salad for like $7; I think it was called Fritz’s plate or something along those lines.  To wash it down, I ordered a Spaten Oktoberfest beer which was on tap.

The soup came out first and it was really amazing!  It was really thick and a dark brown color with lentils and sausage and was accompanied by a slice of rye bread that really went well with it.  Trust the waitress on the fact that you will absolutely want to get a cup of that lentil soup, especially on a cool fall/winter day.

Not soon after, the meal came out.  The German potato salad was really good, but the sandwich was unbelievable!  It was stacked high with turkey, ham, two types of cheese, and fresh vegetables all on the fresh rye bread.  After the soup and potato salad, I was only able to take down half of the sandwich and I was going on a ghost tour later that night so I couldn’t take the other half home.  I know when I go in the future, I am going to be able to take a doggie bag because it was so much food and the other half of the sandwich could serve as another meal all by itself!  The fresh vegetables were really good, but the mayo was what made the sandwich.

Look at how thick this sandwich is!

I love sandwiches and have been to many different places around town, but I have to say that not only was this a terrific value, it was also the best sandwich that I have had in San Antonio.  Be sure to treat yourself to this San Antonio institution on your next sojourn to the river!

Value: 10/10 ($7 for dinner… that will fill you up… that includes a soup… that is down near the Riverwalk!  What a deal!)
Atmosphere: 9.5/10 (cool old school atmosphere from a place that has been in San Antonio for many, many years; our waitress even told us that on some night they have an “Um-pah” German band come in and play)
Service: 9.5/10 (friendly waitress who made knowledgeable suggestions)
Taste: 10/10 (the best sandwich I have found to date in San Antonio!)
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I know, I know, you think that I only eat Mexican food and hamburgers.  Well this post is to show you that I actually can get outside of my comfort zone!  As a coworker and I were en route to go grab a taco, a crazy thought came over me and I thought that we should try something different, so we decided to pull over and try Sompong Thai.

The inside of the restaurant was nice, but I have to admit, the atmosphere was not all there.  There were some clippings at the front from past reviews, and a lot of them were from some major publications so I was optimistic for the food.

As we were waiting to order, the waitress brought us a bowl of soup that was a nice appetizer.  I decided to order the Pad Thai, namely because that is what I always get at Thai restaurants, and I asked for it to come out extra spicy.

The eggroll was really good; the Pad Thai was not as spicy as I would have liked.

We didn’t have to wait long for the food, and overall all it was pretty good but definitely not out of this world.  The Pad Thai was tasty, but it was not near as spicy as I would have hoped.  I did get a kick out of the fact that they brought it out with forks instead of chopsticks.  I mean, I know I am a gringo but I at least like to attempt to use chopsticks at an Asian restaurant!

The meal was reasonably priced and was filling, so I will keep it in mind if I need a change of pace and something close by during lunch, but it is not a restaurant that I would go out of my way to eat.

Value: 8/10 (you are looking at $6.50 a plate with soup during lunch)
Atmosphere: 5/10 (nothing bad about the atmosphere, but it is definitely average)
Service: 7/10 (the service was fine and they were helpful, but I was kind of disappointed I wasn’t asked if I wanted chopsticks)
Taste: 6.5/10 (above average but not out of this world)
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I know that this is my second post in a row that is about a restaurant outside of the Rivercity, however, my job has recently asked me to travel to our Austin office so I thought I would stop by one of my favorites, North by Northwest.

Playing on the name of the popular festival, SXSW, North by Northwest (NXNW) is located on the North side of Austin and is a microbrewery along with serving some of the funky Austin fare relatively cheap.  A friend of mine who lives in Austin introduced me to this restaurant several years back and I really enjoyed it.

Unfortunately, I can’t really say anything about the beer because it has been a while since I got to drink at the restaurant (read: been at the restaurant afterhours and not on a lunch), but from what I remember it was pretty good for a microbrew.

I ordered what I think has to be one of the best things off of the menu, the cedar plank salmon.  It is served on top of cooked spinach along with blue cheese scalloped potatoes.  The spinach is incredibly tasty and a little salty which I think compliments the salmon nicely.  I used to not even like blue cheese, but these potatoes changed all that several years ago; they come out piping hot and are incredibly creamy.  Not to be outdone is the salmon which just flakes off and I think is glazed with a soy/ginger type of sauce.

I love the cedar plank salmon at NXNW!

I really like the atmosphere of the restaurant; the patio is on the front so you can people watch as patrons arrive, the seating in the bar area encourages you to meet new people, the main restaurant is in an open room with a big fireplace that kind of feels like a lodge; you can also see all the brewing equipment through the glass wall.  There is a nice sound to the restaurant because you get a good noise from the crowd as people start filling in; you don’t have to shout to talk over it, but it has a good vibe.

When you are in Austin, be sure to stop by, but make sure you go when you can actually partake in the beer that they brew there!

Value: 8/10 (if you go at lunch you get a better bang for the buck and they are the same size as the dinner portions; at lunch the salmon is like $12, dinner it’s $19)
Atmosphere: 9.5/10 (cool feel on the inside and the patio is nice on a sunny day)
Service: 9/10 (nice and friendly staff)
Taste: 9.5/10 (good food with some of the funky Austin charm)
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I was making my way up to Dallas for the U2 concert and decided to take the scenic route up 281 to avoid all the I-35 mess on the weekend.  I was meeting up a friend in Arlington, and she didn’t get off of work until 11:00PM, so I just decided to take my time, do some geocaching (I need to write a post on this later) and stop wherever I wanted (I also stumbled upon a ranch rodeo in Evant, TX later that night that was pretty cool).

At any rate, I was driving through Marble Falls and saw the Blue Bonnet Café; I was pretty confident that a café with an old school neon sign and a “Pie Happy Hour” was going to be good, so I decided to stop on in.

Wouldn't you stop at a restaurant that had a sign like this?

Randomly, I ran into a coworker and her family who was coming out of the restaurant.  She told me that the food was excellent and told me not to leave without getting a piece of pie.  Seeing that I have a sweet tooth, I wasn’t going to pass on dessert with a recommendation like that coupled with the “Pie Happy Hour” sign.

As I walked in, I saw exactly what she was talking about; there was a huge refrigerated case that held all their pies and I noticed that there was a constant stream of waitresses stopping by to get either pieces or the entire pie!  Now I was just wondering if I was going to get one or two pieces…

How can you turn one of these bad boys down?

I was greeted by a friendly waitress, and she told me that I could go take at the bar if I didn’t want to wait for a table (the restaurant was really bumping).  I went up to the bar and was promptly greeted by another waitress who was very friendly.  I told her that I stumbled upon the restaurant en route to Dallas, and that I needed to find out what the house specialties were.  She told me that most of the people get either the pot roast or the chicken fried steak.  I opted for the roast, and for my three sides I got mashed potatoes, fried okra, and tamale soup (per her recommendation for a final side).

The food came out REALLY quick, so if you are just passing through town, go ahead and stop on by; you will probably get your meal faster than at a fast food joint!  Now, I have never heard of tamale soup, but it was really good.  It tasted just like a tamale, and had a nice spice to it.  The soup was full of flavor, so I knew that I was in for something good with my main course.

I think I might have mentioned this before, but it is worth repeating again in this post.  I think that food is one of the best things that can “transport” you back to another time and/or place.  Old pictures are good and reminding you of what something looked like, and music can bring a flood of memories of events that you associate with the song.  Food, however, is something that can stimulate all five senses: (1) obviously you taste it, (2) you feel the smooth/gritty/lumpy/tender texture of the food as you eat it, (3) you smell the aroma of a chili simmering or cookies baking, (4) you see the bright colors of fresh produce or the dark grill marks, and (5) you hear fajitas sizzle, soups bubble, or the utensils clanking on the plates (not to mention conversation with friends and family over the course of the meal).

Several times I have lived away from my hometown for extended periods of time, and whenever I got homesick I would inevitably seek out a familiar food because of its power to make me feel as if I was at home.  Other times, I will be able to find a local joint that has some food that reminds me of a bistro along a side street in some faraway place I traveled.  And still to this day, when I whip up a bowl of my mom’s famous green chili queso (made with Hatch green chilis that I get on my pilgrimage every year (yes I check a cooler as baggage on the airplane)) I feel like I am with my immediate family watching a game.  Sitting at the Blue Bonnet Café and eating the roast, mashed potatoes, and brown gravy instantly took me back to my Grandmother’s kitchen on a Saturday afternoon.

This roast, mashed potatoes, and brown gravy were as good as my grandmother's; no, I don't give that compliment often.

She passed away 7 years ago, but eating this meal immediately brought back a flood of memories of growing up, of going to a tiny West Texas town for Sunday lunch, and of how important she was in my life.  The mashed potatoes were incredibly smooth and not lumpy at all, just how she made them.  I know that some people like lumpy potatoes, but I can’t stand having any lumps in my mashed potatoes.  The roast was tender and just melted in your mouth, and the brown gravy was just the right consistency, saltiness, and flavor.  It was really cool how I was brought back to her kitchen even though I was miles away from that tiny West Texas town and she is no longer around.

Anyway, it was time for dessert, so I again asked my waitress what she suggested.  She said that the peanut butter pie was her absolute favorite, and she liked to drizzle chocolate sauce on top of it.  That seemed perfect to me, so I ordered that with a cup of coffee.  The pie was extremely rich, but was so good.  I never have had peanut butter pie, but it has the same consistency as chocolate pie with the exception that there are small pieces of peanuts mixed in that give it a little crunchiness.  The crust was also amazing and really made the pie!

If you get the peanut butter pie, ask for some chocolate sauce on the side!

I am so glad that I stumbled upon Blue Bonnet Café and look forward to stopping by there any time I am heading through Marble Falls to either get full helping of food and small town hospitality or to just get a whole pie to go.

Value: 9/10 (if you order any of the specials or happen in during Pie Happy Hour you will get a really good deal, otherwise you are looking at $7-$8 a plate and $3 for a piece of pie; note this is a CASH only restaurant)
Atmosphere: 10/10 (old school diner with  a bar with open seating in the middle of the restaurant)
Service: 10/10 (super friendly staff)
Taste: 10/10 (do yourself a favor and don’t leave without getting a piece of pie!)
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Using an old gas station located on the fringe of King William, the cleverly named Filling Station serves a variety of hot and cold sandwiches and pizza.  The inside of the restaurant is extremely small (imagine taking an old Texaco gas station that has a kitchen installed in it with a front counter; you aren’t going to fit too many tables in it!), but there is plenty of seating outside.

As I was standing in line, I noticed how many people were dropping in and picking up to-go orders that were already wrapped up.  I liked how the owner knew most of them by name; I enjoy going to eat at places where the staff and owners really know their customer base.

I ended up ordering the pulled pork sandwich, and reflecting back, this was not something that I should have done.  You see, I had lived in Memphis for a summer and was spoiled by the pork BBQ, in particular ribs and pulled pork.  I haven’t really had a pulled pork sandwich (other than Willie’s Ice House) since leaving Memphis in 2004, and after seeing it on the menu I just had to have it.

The sandwich was good, but it definitely wasn’t as good as I was expecting.  Then again, nothing outside of Shelby county in Tennessee could live up to what I was looking for (a large reason was the fact that they didn’t put coleslaw on top of the pulled pork)!

This pulled pork sandwich was aight, but nothing like what you can get in Memphis...

So you can see that I set this restaurant up to fail; it would be on par of going to a random restaurant in Memphis and ordering fajitas at some place where Mexican food was not the primary focus.  For this reason, I am not going to provide a rating, but will say that if you are strolling along King William, you should give them a chance.

Value: 7.5/10 (about $5 for a sandwich)
Atmosphere: 8/10 (the inside is really small, but if it is a nice day you can sit outside)
Service: 9/10 (the folks are pretty friendly and know a lot of the customers that stop by)
Taste: ?/10 (will have to go back and try something else)

Thanks to @writeontime for suggesting that I try out this restaurant; you can read her blog by clicking here!
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