I love Mexican food

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After a good night’s rest I left for San Antonio at 6:00 am. I got there just in time for a guided walking tour at 10:00. The tour is normally a group tour but since no one else was there it became my own private tour. The one I did was called San Antonio Walks. It is more history based, which I liked as I didn’t really know much about the history of The Alamo or much of Texas’s history. As an aside, in Texas, the schools teach Texas history first then US and world history second and last.

The tour was fascinating, as we covered The Battle of the Alamo, The Battle of Bejar (both a part of the Texas Revolution), some of the history of wars leading up to this and San Antonio’s role as we walked through parts of the city where related events took place. We covered much of the cultural aspects of San Antonio, especially its diversity with its citizens having come from 26 different nationalities. The big three were Mexican, American and German (I actually remembered this one from my reading ahead of time). We also saw The Menger hotel (the oldest hotel in San Antonio) a bit of the Riverwalk, The Casino Club (a German social club) and the longest continuously operating saloon.

For lunch I decided to try one of the three Mexican restaurants I saw recommended for the area. I had intended to try a small appetizer at one then go next door for a small meal as I had three choices and only two meals. The first was a place called Mi Tierra. I noticed an appetizer on the menu which I had never heard of called Menudo. It’s a Mexican stew, which didn’t sound too appealing in the heat, but when the waiter said “it’s a local favorite but it’s an acquired taste” I knew I had to try it.

While drinking my margarita and munching on some chips and salsa, out came this huge bowl of soup, a darkish mix of brown and red in color. In it lied a fantastic medley of heat, spices and flavor. After downing the bulk of it, I knew there was no way I could eat more.

Mi Tierra is located in a section called Market Place. Market Place features many vendors selling various Texan hats, sombreros, blankets, masks, t-shirts and other souvenirs. There is also an indoor Mercado which sells similar items.

Full from lunch, I returned to the saloon to have a beer at the bar. As I drank my locally brewed rye ale (which tasted like an IPA) I absorbed the interior, with its numerous wall-mounted animal heads. The saloon held a 78 point buck just above the bar, bears, deer, elk, moose, a mammoth, an elephant, a rhino… almost any hunted animal you can think of.

Later in the afternoon, on the Riverwalk, I found a bar called Mad Dog, which had free Internet access for customers. While posting the last few days’ entries, I downed a few Shiner Bocks, a locally brewed beer from Shiner, TX. I remembered having these in Houston in April. They were just as delicious as last time.

I roamed around Riverwalk a bit more and was ready to grab dinner, though lunch still sat heavy.

I walked to Rasario’s, several blocks south of the main tourist area. Rosario’s is renowned for its fish tacos (Texas Monthly featured Rosario’s Fish Taco as the No. 2 "Taco You Must Eat Before You Die."). So of course I ordered this and has a Mexican Handshake to go with it. The Mexican Handshake is similar to a margarita.

The tacos were very good though they didn’t quite stand up to the must eat before you die line. The drink, on the other hand, did. It was just as smooth and tasty as a margarita but not nearly as heavy. I’m going to have to try and make these on my own sometime.

Fortunately the tacos weren’t huge so after a long walk I felt I could give it a go at my last restaurant choice, La Margarita. La Margarita is the first restaurant in the US to serve fajitas. And of all the places I’ve had fajitas, I now consider it the best. Along with my large margarita, I had a mix of steak and chicken. The steak melted in my mouth. I worked through the pain of fullness and loved every bite.

All the Mexican food I had was delicious but it still didn’t stand up to Teotihuacan in Houston.

After another long walk to work off the food, I headed out of San Antonio to my hotel. Tomorrow I head briefly to Boerne, TX and then to Austin.

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Photos

The Alamo Chapel
This is the most famous part of the Alamo, the chapel. Most people think this is the entire Alamo but it's merely a small part of a larger fort.

Menger Hotel
The oldest hotel in New Orleans. Bill Clinton loves the Mango Ice Cream here. I didn't have a chance to try it.

Mounted Heads
Animal heads were mounted throughout the saloon.

Mexican Handshake
Delicious.

Fajitas
Fajitas from La Margarita, the first American restaurant to serve fajitas.