News you can eat

San Antonio chef brings Southern comfort to Government Hill, plus more food news

Eastside Kitchenette features a menu of Southern-inspired comfort food.

Eastside Kitchenette/Facebook

Editor's note: We get it. It can be difficult to keep up with the what’s what and who’s who of San Antonio food. But we have you covered with our regular roundup of the freshest local restaurant news.

Eastside Kitchenette, the newest addition to the red-hot Government Hill dining scene, will debut January 9, according to a Facebook post. The new eatery comes from former Boiler House chef Jeff White and his wife/Brindles Awesome Ice Cream owner, Jenn White. The all-day eatery features a menu of approachable Southern fare like wedge salads, meatloaf sandwiches, huevos rancheros, and grilled, bacon-wrapped jalapeño skewers served with green goddess dressing.

Looks like Issla St. Brewing has struck a chord with San Antonio’s beer lovers. The brand-new taproom, known for puro San Antonio brews like Chola Blonde with cumin, cantaloupe, and tamarind and the Selena tribute stout, Concha la Flor, hit a snag January 5 when the brand-new company sold out of all of its beers on opening day due to an outpouring of support from the community. In a Facebook post, owners Josh and JD Peña said they are regrouping to keg more product and will return to the scene on January 12.

Southtown’s Villa Rica closed on January 6, but it won’t be gone for long. According to a release, celebrity chef Johnny Hernandez is retooling the space to create a more laid-back atmosphere inspired by Mexico’s beachside seafood joints. The menu will be slightly change with more taco offerings and ceviches inspired by the cuisines of Veracruz, Baja, Yucatan, and the Pacific. The eatery is aiming to reopen in March.

La Familia Cortez, the folks behind Mi Tierra and La Margarita, are opening a mysterious new restaurant in The Rim. In a release, the company revealed an address (18403 Interstate Highway 10) and an estimated opening date (summer 2019), but kept all the other details. Will this be the group’s first foray into French haute cuisine? San Antonio foodies will have to wait until an undisclosed date early this year to find out.

breakfast brunch chefs closings craft-beer lunch openings dinner news-you-can-eat

NEWS YOU CAN EAT

Seafood shutters and global cuisine trawl San Antonio restaurant news

Pescado Bravo/ Facebook

Pescado Bravo is closing its Maker Ready Market space.

Openings, openings, openings (and one closure)! This week, San Antonio reaches into an international grab bag to put French, Ethiopian, and health-conscious cuisine on the table while saying goodbye to a promising young concept. We'll get the bad news out of the way first — the departure of a food hall favorite.

Openings and closings

One of Make Ready Market's founding concepts has thrown in the towel. Pescado Bravo announced the closure of its food hall kiosk via an Instagram statement. Though the business did not give a reason for the shutter, it did offer hope for a revival. The seafood-focused street food joint wrote, "Stay tuned for new adventures ahead."

Oh là là! San Antonio's prolific Empty Stomach Group is opening a French bistro in the former home of Hands Down at 1012 S. Presa St. Petit Coquin's website and Instagram profile are now live, but include no details on the menu or opening date. The name roughly translates to "little rascal."

The former home of Saucy Birds, née Sangria on the Berg, is also enjoying renewed joie de vivre. As first reported by MySA, Amen Cafe is now serving customers at 5115 Fredericksburg Rd. It's unclear when the Ethiopian and Eritrean restaurant first debuted, but its first social post went up in early January.

Project Pollo founder and Shark Tank star Lucas Bradbury has a new brainchild. According to a release, the entrepreneur will soon launch a new concept, EVO, at 2501 Nacogdoches Rd. The fast-casual concept, set to arrive in March, has a cross-cultural menu focused on conscious consumption. The bowls, wraps, and flatbreads eschew seed oils, artificial dyes, and high-fructose corn syrup.

Lion & Rose's on-and-off-again relationship with Alamo City is on again. After a "sneak peek" and two soft opening engagements, the British Pub is finally set to officially reopen in the upcoming days. The bar has been a part of the local scene since 2004 but shuttered for good in 2021. In a Facebook comment, a rep said only a few point-of-sale system tweaks stand in the way of a full opening at 23330 I-10 in the Dominion.

openings closings food hall fast casual bars nightlife tex-mex news you can eat