While the inside of El Mirasol is charming with the red tiled tabletops, the real action is happening outside on the patio.  Even though it was a 100+ degrees outside, the patio immediately to the right of the entrance was packed so we had to sit at the secondary patio up the stairs.  This was not a problem because there was a nice breeze and the sun was setting.

Obviously a cool drink doesn’t hurt, so I ordered the house margarita which is very refreshing and strong.  We all stayed late into the night talking and trying other drinks, but I have to say the drink of the night had to be the strawberry mojito that my girlfriend ordered.  The sweet taste was understated and not too sugary (unlike the overbearingly sweet peach mojito she tried later on) and was complimented nicely by the mint.  As much as I like margaritas, this might be the drink that you should check out on your next visit.

While I love margaritas, this strawberry mojito was exceptional (picture taken by my girlfriend).

Now the reason why my mom loves El Mirasol is because of their enchiladas antiguas which is an enchilada made with farmers cheese and topped with an ancho sauce, a darker sauce made from a dried poblano pepper.  The unique taste of their enchiladas antiguas comes from the fact that they use cinnamon in the sauce.

We had a great server who was very engaged with our table.  She overheard our conversation about how my mom doesn’t get to come to El Mirasol often and how she pines for their cinnamon-y tasting enchiladas.  Our waitress spoke up and had some bad news for my mom: they had changed their recipe to the ancho sauce to be spicier and did not have as much cinnamon in it.  She suggested that we try a sample to make sure it was what my mom wanted to order.

Much to my mom’s disappointment, the waitress was spot on in her assessment.  There was hardly any cinnamon to the sauce any more.  The waitress did have a bit of good news and said that their sister restaurant, Soluna, still had the original recipe.

My mom’s loss was my gain; I really enjoyed the newer version of the sauce and decided to order the plate myself with a side of rice and borracho beans.  The enchiladas were delicious with a spicy kick from the ancho sauce that was smoothed out by the farmers cheese and crema.  The rice is some of the best in the city and enjoy their borracho beans.

Even though the enchiladas antiguas had a less cinnamon-y ancho sauce than in the past, I really loved the new version that was more spicy.

(A quick aside on the borracho beans at El Mirasol.  I always like to ask restaurants if they use beer in their borracho beans (for you gringos like me, borracho means “drunk,” hence the beans are made usually with a can of beer) and on a visit to El Mirasol many years ago I asked my waitress this question.  She didn’t know and went to ask the cook in the back.  The waitress came back and said, “I have some bad news and some good news about the borracho beans.  The bad news is that they are not made with beer.  The good news, however, is that the cook said he was drunk while he made them.”  This is one of my favorite stories ever and to this day I tell it whenever I order borracho beans!)

I look forward to taking my mom down to Soluna the next time she is in town to see if their enchiladas antiguas taste like she remembers them, but regardless, I had a great night at El Mirasol filled with wonderful food and even better conversation.

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Website: http://sasmexicanfood.com/

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As you walk towards the restaurant and see the calavera sitting on the bench, you know that you are in for a good time.  The restaurant gets every small detail perfect: from how their name is cut out of metal piece that holds items on your table, the table side purse rack for the ladies, and the really cool basket that the chips come in, the restaurant makes you feel carefree, like you are on a vacation.

The Margarita La Gloria: very blue, not so tart, and potent.

I had some friends who came into town from Austin and were looking at possibly relocating to San Antonio.  I wanted to highlight that our city also has a funky kind of vibe, so I decided to show off the Pearl Brewery, the Museum Reach river extension (they loved the F.I.S.H. sculptures), and La Gloria.

My friends have a 13-month year old daughter, and I knew that La Gloria would be the perfect place to take a toddler.  There is a good buzz in the air from all the conversation and how the acoustics work, so I knew she could be a little rambunctious without disturbing any restaurant goers.  Furthermore, with Pearl’s policy of “Please, Play on our Grass” I knew that mom or dad could take her outside to play.

La Gloria serves Mexican street food, so there are an abundance of tacos, tostadas, sopes, and tortas to choose from.  The portions are small to medium sized and are designed for you to eat and share with your table.

We wanted to try a little of everything so we got a molcajete of queso with chile, ceviche verde (on the suggestion of @ShrinkingFoodie), a traditional tlayuda (think Mexican pizza), panucho cochinita pibil, and tacos dorados de pollo verde (on the suggestion of Eva at Mesa a Mesa).

You absolutely have to order a molcajete when you go to La Gloria.  A molcajete is like a morter and pestle that is used to grind spices or prepare salsas in Mexican cuisine.  If you ever decide to purchase one, the best are made out of volcanic rock and you have to cure it out by grinding rice in it.  This will smooth out the molcajete which is very important because if you don’t do it the sharp edges will tear at your ingredients instead of grind them.  Trust me.  My friend tried to make a salsa with one I bought her before she cured it and it wasn’t working…

At any rate, the molcajetes at La Gloria come out of the oven at like a billion degrees and the contents are bubbling hot.  Don’t believe me? Check out this video that I shot.

My girlfriend went to La Gloria once before and raved about the queso molcajete so we ordered it.  The one we got was a little different because in addition to the queso there were a lot of chiles mixed in.  Regardless, it was delicious with just a very mild spice.  We spooned the boiling hot cheese onto corn tortillas and devoured the bowl in no time.

Since we ordered so much food and to avoid being verbose, I am going to show a picture and briefly say what I liked about each of them for the remainder of this post.

Ceviche Verde at La Gloria Ice House

I am not that big of a fan of ceviche, but the ceviche verde was working; what tied it together were the olives.

Traditional Tlayuda at La Gloria Ice House

The traditional tlayuda was on an enormous fried tortilla and had black beans, cheese, lettuce, avocado, and some really nice tomatoes.  Kick up the heat by topping it off with some of their house salsa.

Panucho Cochinita Pibil at La Gloria Ice House

The panucho cochinita pibil is the item that I would have left out (although it still was very good!).  The pork was similar to pulled pork that you might get at a barbecue joint without the BBQ sauce.

My favorite dish of the night, Tacos Dorads de Pollo Verde at La Gloria Ice House

The tacos dorados de pollo verde was my favorite dish of the night, and I don’t even like tomatillo sauce! (Whenever I hear of a verde sauce I immediately think of New Mexico green chiles so my taste buds are never prepared for the tartness of the tomatillo.)  You get three mini tacos that are stuffed with perfectly marinated chicken and topped with farmer’s cheese and crema that give it a smooth taste.  Be sure to get this dish when you visit!

To wash it all down, I had to try the Margarita La Gloria, which is a blue colored margarita.  While it is not as tart as traditional margaritas, it is every bit potent.  They also have a wide variety of aguas frescas, and when they brought out the sandia, or watermelon drink, I had to get a cup of it.  I liked that it was not too sweet and there was a good amount of pulp in it, in addition to the fact that you get unlimited refills!

Be sure to leave room for dessert! The Tres Leches Cake at La Gloria Ice House rocks!

Finally, you would be remiss not to order the tres leches cake at La Gloria.  Instead of garnishing the cake with sauce or chocolate, they let it stand on it’s own merits and it works quite nicely.  Incredibly sweet and moist, regardless of how full you are you have to have a bite.

Chef Johnny and his staff have created such a great experience for locals and tourists alike.  You would be well served to make a stop in midtown for not only a great atmosphere that extends from the restaurant to the river, but also for some incredible food.

Value: You can spend a little or a lot at La Gloria; while the plates can add up, you do have the ability to control how much you get.
Atmosphere: Such an amazing atmosphere! The devil is in the details and La Gloria gets it! What’s even better is that you are right by the Museum Reach portion of the river so you can go for an after dinner stroll
Service: The service had a couple of hiccups, but overall was pretty good (in fairness, they were slammed when I went); the main thing was  when my friend ordered a Caipirinha and got a pink fruity drink; the waiter said that it was correct but I know that the drink should not be pink; we pressed further and he finally got the right drink from the bartender.
Salsa: Fantastic salsa with the right amount of heat! The chips were delicious as well.
Taste: You aren’t going to go wrong with a meal at La Gloria, there is something for everyone and it all tastes fantastic! They are very deserving of the best new restaurant nod!

Twitter: Follow @LaGloriaSA
Facebook: Like La Gloria
Website: http://lagloriaicehouse.com
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La Fogata is located off of Vance Jackson and has the feel of being a neighborhood restaurant.  Parking used to be a pain as their tiny lot would fill and patrons had to park in the neighborhood (some home owners would place orange cones in front of their houses to try to keep people from crowding their street).  A year or two ago, the restaurant purchased a couple of houses across the street that they tore down to make an overflow parking lot that has alleviated much of the pain.

While there is limited indoor seating, the reason to go to La Fogata is to sit on the patio.  You will enter the patio through a huge wooden door that was once the entrance to a hacienda built in the 1880s in Mexico.  The patio has a lot of neon lights, so there is a soft blueish-pink glow.  No matter when you go there will be a wait, but don’t worry, grab a margarita from the bar and sit by the fountain while you wait for your name to be called.

I always have enjoyed the house margarita (it is on my Margarita Foodspotting Guide for San Antonio) because it is pretty big, more tart than sugary sweet, and poured by a heavy handed bartender.  My girlfriend decided to go with the frozen raspberry margarita that came with a test tube of Grand Marnier inside it (I have no clue why they didn’t mix it in).  I have to say, I was impressed by her fruity margarita and stole more than one sip from it.

The margarita at La Fogata; don't let that flower fool you, it is quite strong!

Their chips and salsa are some of the best in town with a roasted salsa that is a dark red color and a smokey flavor.  This is my dad’s favorite salsa and I will stop by HEB on the way out of town to pick him up several jars.  On each visit to La Fogata I will go through two of the bowls of salsa myself because it is so tasty.

La Fogata is one of those places that you have to get an appetizer.  I like to get either the queso flameado which they light on fire at your table side, guacamole a mano which is also prepared fresh at your table, but this time I opted for the rajas chile poblano (a lot of places might call it rajas con crema).  This appetizer is a bowl of poblano peppers and onions sauteed with white and cream cheese.  You scoop the mixture on a tortilla and it is really rich.

Rajas Chile Poblano under the neon glow of the patio.

For my main course, I went with the Tacos Norteños which is crispy tortillas filled with refried beans, cheese, and beef fajita meet and is cook on the grill.  The tacos are topped with cabbage, tomatoes, and slices of avocados.  They use a lot of fajita meat in these tacos so you definitely get your money’s worth.  While the borracho beans are amazing, the Mexican rice is not all that good.  They have improved it since my last visit, but still, it is so-so at best; this is the only drawback to the meal.

The Tacos Norteños have a lot of beef fajita meat.

The best part, however, is the fact that there will always be mariachis roaming around waiting to serenade you and your table.  Since moving to San Antone, I have found a special place in my heart for mariachis and if they are around, I have to get them to play a song.  If you are an out-of-towner, do a little research and suggest something besides La Bamba; some of my favorites include Guadalajara, Rancho Grande, El Mariachi, and Volver.  However, since I was with that special someone, I asked them to play Tu Solo Tu.

If you are in town and looking for that quintessential San Antonio experience, La Fogata will treat you right.  Have a designated driver, a healthy appetite, and $10 for the mariachis.

Value: 9/10 (the margaritas are a little pricey (and you might have more than one during your wait) but the food is reasonable)
Atmosphere: 10/10 (the best patio in town; the way it is set up takes you out of reality and into a fantasy land with a huge fountain and neon glow filled with food, friends, and tequila)
Service: 8/10 (they are usually swamped so the service can be a little slow)
Salsa: 10/10 (amazing salsa; if you are a visitor, you can find jars of it at HEB)
Taste: 9.5/10 (so good! I just wish that they could bring it with the rice!)
Website: http://lafogata.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lafogata
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I really love to use Foodspotting when I am torn on what to order at a restaurant.  It is easy to see what other folks have spotted and what their experience/recommendations are.  This alone is worth getting the app.

The other reason that Foodspotting is awesome  is that I can browse restaurants while I’m at home and see where I should eat in the near future.  The platform is so easy to use and a lot of fun.

Recently, I published a couple of guides that you might be interested in: San Antonio Joe’s Favorite Mexican Food, San Antonio Joe’s Favorite Margaritas, and San Antonio Joe’s Top Beer Joints.  If you spot five of the items on a guide you can get a cool badge for your Foodspotting profile like the ones seen below.  On top of that, if you are the first person to spot ALL the items in a guide, I will mail you a cool prize (and yes, it is cool)!

I hope you can follow San Antonio Joe on Foodspotting and that you enjoy the app as much as I do!

Operating on Main Street since 1930, La Fonda has been the go to place for many San Antonians, visiting actors (Gary Cooper, John Wayne), generals (Eisenhower, McArthur), and sitting presidents (FDR, LBJ).  As you can see, the restaurant is steeped in history.  I decided to go snag lunch there earlier this week with a friend.

Right off the bat, I was blown away by the atmosphere.  You feel like you are eating in a place that has a history, and since the weather was nice, we decided to go eat out on the patio next to a huge oak tree (I am guessing that it has to be over a hundred years old!).  One thing to be aware of (especially if you are not from San Antonio), this is the time where all our Live Oaks drop their acorns and this big tree has its fair share of them!

The service was great and we were promptly greeted by our waitress.  I started out with Steve’s Margarita, and the waitress forewarned me that it is essentially tequila and lime juice and is really tart.  This is my type of margarita.  I don’t know what tequila they used, but it did have a good, tart, refreshing taste (and packed a punch).  I think it misses a little something by not having an orange liquor, but it was good none-the-less.

I decided to order the Enchiladas Rojas de Queso which was enchiladas with a red tomato type sauce and the white cheese.  I thought it was going to be enchiladas with a red chile instead (I have recently been cooking a lot with some extra hot red chile I picked up in New Mexico), so it was not exactly what I was expecting.

Think about a time when you you ordered a Dr. Pepper but got a Coke instead; Coke isn’t necessarily bad but it wasn’t what you were looking for.  Overall the main dish was really good, however, I confess that it was not what I expected.  The enchiladas with the tomato sauce actually seemed like a Mexican take on manicotti with the tortillas subbing in for the pasta.  Since it is not what I was expecting, I am going to withhold my rating until another visit where I try something more in line with the Tex Mex that I love.

The Enchiladas Rojas de Queso has a tomato sauce that is good, but is not what I was looking for; order the La Fonda Special if you are looking for Tex Mex.

My friend ordered the La Fonda Special Plate and when I saw it I was immediately jealous.  It had every Tex Mex dish on it that you could imagine, even a nice tamale with guisada gravy.  I’ll tell you what, I KNOW what I am going to order the next time I return!

So I guess the jury is still out for me on La Fonda on Main.  I think that it is a restaurant that I could love, but I definitely have to get out there again and order a different dish.

Value: 7/10 (it is a little pricey for lunch (the La Fonda Special Plate is $12))
Atmosphere: 10/10 (awesome atmosphere with a lot of history; the patio has to be one of the best in town)
Service: 9/10 (great service that was incredibly fast and friendly (one of the little old ladies called me “handsome” completely out of the blue as I was leaving; flattery is worth something as far as I’m concerned!))
Salsa: 6/10 (I will say that I was a little disappointed in the salsa; it was fresh but it seemed like it was missing something; while adding a little salt will bring out the flavors, it is not spicy at all)
Taste: ???/10 (going to have to go back to get another plate; if you are in town for some Tex Mex, you would be best to avoid the Enchiladas Rojas de Queso as it tastes more Italian than Mexican to me)
Website: www.lafondaonmain.com/
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Anyone expecting something similar to Munich’s Hofbrauhaus would be remiss, the inside is more like a hunting lodge on a Texas Ranch.  I have to admit, given the name I was expecting something more German (there is not really any German food on the menu), but the owners really went all out with the atmosphere and put a lot of work into it.  There are a lot of bucks and other wildlife mounted on the walls and a huge stone fireplace that ties the restaurant together and gives it a nice feel.

The server started out by placing a basket of bread with butter that had fruit and nuts in it.  I have to admit, the taste was a little foreign at first, but it really grew on me.  However, if you don’t like it, just be sure to ask your waiter for a side of plain butter.

I was in the mood for a hamburger and ordered the Pepper Jack Bacon Melt.  The burger comes with pepper jack cheese, honey chipotle bacon, jalapeños, and a jalapeño cheddar bun.  When I got the burger, I was immediately impressed, and one bite sold me on the fact that this is one of the best burgers in San Antonio.  The bun was sweet and had a nice soft texture and those fried jalapeños provided a good kick while providing a crunchiness that I really liked.  This all mixed well with the thick slabs of bacon that were cooked perfectly for a burger, not too crispy and not too soggy.

Sorry the picture is a little dark, but don't worry, the burger was really tasty.

Equally good was the fries; they were thick cut and you could tell they were fresh.  Yes, $10 might be a little much for a burger, but I tell you what, this burger is worth it!

Finally, while I didn’t get to try one (I had ordered a Shiner), I want to mention something that looked interesting.  They serve these huge schooners of margaritas with an upside down beer in them.  I saw this as I was finishing up my meal and had to ask my waiter about it.  I forgot the name (just ask your server), but he assured me that they were awesome and the best kind are made with Dos Equis Amber.  He said they are quite potent, something like being equivalent to 3-4 drinks, so if you get one make sure your group has a Designated Driver!  Needless to say, I am DEFINITELY getting one the next time out there.

Hopefully the Quarry Hofbrau and Beer Garden will overturn the curse of that building, but be sure to do your part and get out there and snag one of the best burgers in town!

Value: 8.5/10 (a little on the expensive side, but worth the price)
Atmosphere: 10/10 (awesome Texas Ranch lodge kind of feel)
Service: 9/10 (extremely friendly, helpful at explaining the menu, and quick)
Taste: 9.5/10 ( they try to do something different with the bread and butter before the meal that is a little funky and initially it was strange but grew on me; if you don’t like the butter with fruit and nuts ask for a plain version of it to make sure you get off on the right step; the hamburger just busted out with flavor, from the meat, bacon, and jalapeños on it; really solid!)
Website: http://quarryhofbrau.com/
Facebook: Quarry Hofbrau and Beer Garden on Facebook
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*2 shotglasses of Patron Silver
*1 shotglass of Cointreau
*1 shotglass of freshly squeezed lime (using a lime squeezer this is about 2 limes)
*twist of a fresh orange

Combine all ingredients with ice in a shaker; shake and serve in a martini glass.

I like it because you can still taste the tequila (hence the importance of using good tequila) and it just tastes fresh.

That’s it. Simple. Easy. Fresh. Potent.

Be sure to vote for El Clásico inn the Patrón Cocktail Lab on Facebook so that it becomes the most popular margarita!

El Jarro is a family owned business since 1975 and is run by owners Arturo and Sandy Cerna.  You can really tell the emphasis is on family as you will see many of the same folks working in the restaurant year to year.  I really like it because in addition to the management, many of the waiters and staff have been there for a while.  You really feel like part of the family when you dine there.

Entering the restaurant takes you away from the hustle and bustle of Highway 281 and transports you into the interior of Mexico.  On the weekends, there is a band that will play a combination of Latin and 60s/70s pop music.  You can even shake it on the smallish dance floor.

The outside patio is nice, however, it is pretty difficult to get away from the fact that you are in a strip mall next to a major highway and Party City.  In spite of this, they do a pretty nice job of trying to set up an oasis to escape the work day with one of their patented margaritas.

Speaking of, I think that the margaritas at El Jarro are the best in the city.  Don’t waste your time with a frozen one or one with a swirl.  Opt instead for the real deal, The Arturo.  Made with Patron, Cointreau, and lime juice, this potent mixture is served in a martini glass instead of the more traditional rounded margarita glass.  The margarita is $8 but packs a punch that makes it completely worth the price.  A word to the wise – if you will be drinking a couple of these you better plan on having a designated driver for the trip back home.

Normally served in a taller martini glass, this margarita packs a punch. Have a DD if you plan on drinking two.

Their chips and salsa are pretty addicting.  The salsa is always made fresh and pretty chunky.  It is almost like a pico de gallo but not quite; depending on how hot the jalapeños are that day it can be medium to really spicy heat.  Arturo recently talked to the San Antonio Express News and gave them his salsa recipe which is pretty quick and easy to make.  Apparently they make 40 gallons of it a day!

If I have a friend visiting me in San Antonio for the first time, we will inevitably make a stop here for dinner.  For all first timers, I make sure that we order the Queso Flameado as an antojito (or appetizer).  As opposed to queso that most gringos are used to (the kind at Super Bowl parties), this is more of a thicker consistency that has some peppers and chorizo mixed in with it.  They will usually bring it out and light it on fire while mixing all the ingredients together.  It is best eaten on a corn tortilla.

In addition to having the traditional Tex-Mex fare, El Jarro offers a nice variety of Mexico-Mex including Norteño and coastal food.  This is why I typically rotate between three main options for my meal:

If I am feeling a little Tex-Mex, I usually order the El Jarro #3 which is two cheese enchiladas, a crispy taco (be sure to sub in the puffy taco!), rice, beans, and guacamole.  At just above $10, this plate will leave you completely full and satisfied.

For all you seafood lovers, you won’t be remiss to go with the Red Snapper a la Pepe.  More on the expensive side (about $22), the fish is served with a tequila tomato sauce that is really nice. You also get a Salad a la George with this meal, which is a Romaine lettuce salad with mango, jicama, red bell pepper, purple onions, avocado and a vinegar dressing.  The salad almost equals the fish; I love this meal because after I eat it I am full but I do not feel weighted down.

The third option I usually go with is a Norteño delicacy called Cabrito, or baby goat.  I know firsthand that this might sound strange to a lot of folks because when I moved to San Antonio 5 years ago and visited El Jarro for the first time I was kind of shocked to see it on the menu.  I kept going back to restaurant and wondered what it tasted like until one day I got the courage to ask my waiter about it.  He said that it was a specialty and one of his favorites so I ordered it.  I’ve been hooked ever since.

Apparently, I’m not the only one.  In 2009, a foodie for the New York Times wrote an article about how he learned to love goat meat.  The taste of cabrito is really nice because it is so tender and really isn’t a greasy meat.  I was a little afraid that it might have a gamey taste (I don’t like venison for this reason), but I don’t think it is gamey at all.  Cabrito is good either by itself or by making a taco on a corn tortilla with a little bit of guacamole.

The cabrito is a specialty at El Jarro; I ordered it this past visit.

After telling folks how much I liked El Jarro’s cabrito, some of my Mexican friends told me I should check out El Rey de Cabrito in Monterrey, Mexico.  Always up for an adventure, a buddy and I took a midnight bus down to Mexico back in 2006 with the express interest of getting the cabrito.  I will say that El Rey de Cabrito is better, but it is only by the slimmest margins.

El Jarro is one of my San Antonio staples.  I go there to celebrate birthdays, new jobs, or life in general along with going there to commiserate after a bad day or a failure.  It has been a place to take friends and family the first time that they visit me in San Antonio, and a place to return time and time again to catch up.  In short, the overall friendliness of the staff and exceptional food at El Jarro is San Antonio to me.  God willing, their doors will be open for years to come.

Value: 9/10 (you can get a Tex-Mex dinner for $10 that will fill you up or some higher cuisine for $20; the margaritas are $8 but pack more of a punch than two of the typical $4 ones elsewhere)

Atmosphere: 9/10 (Inside atmosphere is really nice and cozy; the patio is good, but you are in a strip mall)

Service: 9.5/10 (really nice servers who will guide you through the menu; I would give it a 10 but the thing is that the service can sometimes be slow; don’t worry, you are in the land of mañana, sit back, relax, and visit )

Salsa: 10/10 (different than most in San Antonio, chunky with a nice heat; don’t forget the recipe seen here)

Taste: 10/10 (my favorite spot in town; if you visit me for the first time we are probably going there)

Website: http://www.eljarro.com

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My friend Mike had told me that there are three things you have to try at El Mirador: the empanada as an appetizer, the house margarita, and the puffy tacos.  I decided to take his advice verbatim and did just that.

First, the empanada is a jumbo size that could give 3-4 people a nice appetizer before lunch.  It is stuffed with chicken, cheese, a mushroom that grows on corn, some sauce, and topped with a poblano cream sauce.  It is served over a salad that had a nice house vinaigrette dressing and red bell peppers and jicama.   I don’t typically order appetizers, but not only did Mike stress that I should get this, the waiter also said that the restaurant is renowned for it – I was not led astray!  The empanada was absolutely amazing and was just jam packed with flavor.  The cream sauce had a nice bite to it, but the spice was cut by the salad.  I think I would just like to order it as a meal for myself!

Do not come here and leave with out ordering this empanada! It is amazing!

The house margarita was pretty good; it was not overly syrupy and had a nice fresh taste to it.  Again, I think it complimented the empanada and the chips and salsa.  The salsa was slightly roasted and was served in a little carafe so that you could refill the bowl yourself.  The chips were multicolored; I always like that.

I will say that while the puffy tacos were good (and surprisingly stayed together (it is my theory that you have like 20 seconds to try to eat a puffy taco when the waiter brings it to you before they split open)), they were also kind of unmemorable compared to my parents dishes.  The charro beans on the other hand were awesome and a true highlight of the dish.

The puffy tacos were good, but I would suggest Diane's or Jessica's plates.

My dad got, what I thought, was the best meal at the table, the Jessica Enchiladas.  They were chicken enchiladas topped with the same poblano sauce as the empanada.  I think I would like to order that next time.

Finally, to conclude the meal, the waiter brought us a tres leches cake for dessert.  Now, I love tres leches cake since it was introduced to me when I moved to San Antonio a while back.  The tres leches at El Mirador has to be the absolute best in the city.  It is amazingly sweet, swimming in some evaporated milk, and has some homemade whipped cream to top it off.  Get a cup of coffee and you will be loving life.

Value: 9.5/10 (dinner entrees run around $10 – $12 and are incredibly tasty and presented quite nicely)
Atmosphere: 9/10 (very nice restaurant right on the fringe of King William)
Service: 10/10 (unbelievable service; the waiter was kind to offer suggestions and really was nice to our table)
Salsa: 8/10 (the salsa had a mild bite to it and was fresh)
Taste: 9.5/10 (the empanada is a must have; the puffy tacos were ok but the other entrees I had were nice; tres leches is the best in the city)
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This is some great advertising during the summer heat!

Apparently, this Wednesday night was a biker night at Martha’s – there were tons of motorcycles, leather, a dj spinning some tunes, and a chip/salsa/queso bar set up outside!  One of the guys on my team brought some chips and salsa to the table and they were inhaled.  The salsa was incredible fresh made primarily of tomato and some peppers.  I went back to refill and noticed that there was also some free queso!  I gave my friend some grief, because it is common sense to NEVER turn down free queso!!!!  Not only that, but the queso was really really good; had just the right amount of spice in it.

Now Martha’s is a clever restaurant.  You see, they have some really good combination specials, and the #1 automatically comes with guacamole on the side; the other combinations are appealing, but they do not come with guacamole.  Having seen the guacamole listed first you are like, “Man, I want some guacamole,” but you would have to pay an extra buck to get it added thus blowing the cost of the combo out the water!  I didn’t want the #1, but I did want guacamole so I looked all over the menu for a platter that had it on the side.  I ended up going with the Taco Salad.

Have you ever heard the Budweiser “Real Men of Genius” commercial about the Taco Salad Guy?  Well there have never been truer words spoken with regards to Martha’s taco salad – they pile all sorts of goodness in it including cheese, sour cream, guacamole, rice, chicken tomato and lettuce; I even took mine over to the spot on the patio and loaded it up with queso (this is an excellent touch and I would advise you to do the same).  The shell was really flakey and held its crispiness throughout the entire meal.  I was stuffed after eating only half of it!

Here's to you, Mr. Taco Salad inventor guy!

In spite of the patio being packed, our waitress was extremely proficient; she was pretty good at getting all our drinks out to us in a timely fashion and also interacted with the table both in dishing out and receiving a bunch of cracks/jokes/grief.  We accidentally let her know we wanted a split ticket at the very end, and again in spite of the large amount of people there, she was able to accommodate us without issue.

So while the heat has been brutal here in San Antonio, there is a place where you can relish in it, be nice and full, and even have a shot at a dollar margarita!

Value: 8.5/10 (there are some good patio specials, especially during happy hour but some of the entrees are a little high when they aren’t on special)
Atmosphere: 9.5/10 (loved the patio, especially during a biker night!)
Service: 10/10 (waitress was incredibly prompt and nice ESPECIALLY considering how packed the patio was)
Salsa: 7/10 (I liked the fresh salsa, but it was not one of my favorites in town)
Taste: 8.5/10 (overall pretty good flavor and will make you full!)
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