Pure luck

Authentic Irish pub barrels into Alamo Quarry Market ahead of St. Patrick's Day

Mo's Irish Pub will soon say sláinte to San Antonio.

The luck of the Irish is coming to Alamo Quarry Market. Mo’s Irish Pub, the first San Antonio location of a Milwaukee-based chain, will be opening in the former Joe’s Crab Shack location at 255 E. Basse Rd. as early as mid-February.

Assistant general manager Jeremy Howard tells CultureMap that the exact date is still up in the air. Although the team is making good progress on the buildout, construction delays could push the debut back to March 1.

“We are not missing St. Patrick’s day,” jokes Howard.

Howard says the food menu will be identical to the company’s other four outlets in Texas. Mo’s serves a combination of American comfort food like fried cheese curds and French dip sandwiches along with Irish fare. It’s especially known for the Cheeseburger Shalaylee, ground beef and American cheese stuffed inside a crispy wrap and topped with sour cream and a Guinness barbecue sauce.

The chain's more traditional dishes include a beef shepherd’s pie and fish and chips. A few fusion entrees, including the Reuben Boxty, corned beef, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing tucked into a potato pancake drizzled with a four-cheese sauce, round out the menu.

Like any good Irish pub, Mo’s will also have a good beer selection. While some imports will be available, Howard says that the 32-tap set-up will mostly focus on local craft beer. There will also be a full bar with Irish whiskey.

Once open, Howard says Mo’s will feature frequent live music. Follow the restaurant’s San Antonio Facebook page for the official grand opening date.

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NYT loves AUS

Pastry chef from San Antonio makes New York Times Best Bakeries list

Comadre Panadería/Instagram

Comadre Panadería is known for nostalgic Mexican bakes with feminine flair.

The New York Times has once again shined its spotlight on Austin’s culinary scene. It included Comadre Panadería, an Austin bakery by San Antonio native Mariela Camacho, on its new list of the 22 of the Best Bakeries Across the U.S. Right Now.

Interim food critic Priya Krishna praises pastry chef Camacho’s pastries that include conchas and her signature pink cake. “Despite their saccharine appearances, not one of the desserts is overly cloying, and even the coffee drinks (Texas pecan horchata! Cranberry vanilla agua fresca!) strike the playful tone of the pastries,” she writes.

Comadre Panadería has been widely recognized, including by this publication; Camacho, who is now based in Ausitn, won Pastry Chef of the Year in the 2023 CultureMap Austin Tastemaker Awards. She also earned a 2024 James Beard Award semifinalist nomination for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker.

Camacho and Comadre as a whole are both invested in using baked goods to make a more equitable world, from the bakery's early days as a fundraiser for disaster relief, to a current insistence on charging enough to support ethical and organic foods, and paying staff enough to keep up with rising costs in Austin.

Although Camacho was born in San Antonio and started her baking career there, she also spent a significant time in Seattle, Washington, where Comadre started as a pop-up. According to Austin Monthly, she then moved back to San Antonio, and then to Austin. But no matter where she is, the Mexican cooking traditions of her ancestors take precedent.

Mariela Camacho of Comadre Panaderia in Austin Mariela Camacho, Comadre Panaderia. Courtesy photo

The Times also recognized Houston's Koffeteria. Krishna hails the bakery for pastry chef-owner Vanarin Kuch’s creative fare that includes dishes such as beef pho kolaches, Chinese sausage breakfast tacos, and butter mochi.

“Some of Mr. Kuch’s offerings are rooted in his Cambodian American identity — he makes cornbread with the coconutty, scallion-forward flavors of Cambodian street corn — while others are odes to Houston’s multicultural makeup. But most of the fun of Koffeteria is having no idea what Mr. Kuch will do next, and eagerly awaiting his next innovation,” Krishna writes.

Open since 2019, Koffeteria has been riding high this year. It earned a James Beard Award semifinalist nomination for Outstanding Bakery and a CultureMap Houston Tastemaker Award for Pastry Chef of the Year.

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Comadre Panadería and Koffeteria are the only Texas establishments to make the Times’ list. Only California and New York City, which each have three representatives, earn more recognition.

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