Lime light

Take your best shot at the 7 hottest tequila happy hours in San Antonio

Weekdays are easier with a strong margarita.

On a sunny afternoon, you can make do with a vodka soda or a pint of craft beer, but we all know that the best way to ease workday stress is with tequila. Luckily, some of San Antonio’s hottest bars also have excellent happy hours with budget drinks and snacks that will have you saying, "¡salud!"

Whether you like it in a margarita or straight up with a little lime and salt, try these seven spots for the best deals on agave spirits.

The Fruteria
Chef Johnny Hernandez’s Southtown charmer is affordable regardless of when you visit, but it kicks into high gear on Monday through Friday from 4-7 pm. For only $5, enjoy house margaritas made with El Jimador tequila and fresh lime, pineapple, and orange juice. For an extra buck, dive into one of the house infused ‘ritas like the fiery Six Chiles made with sweet red and yellow peppers, jalapeños, and habaneros.

El Mirador
The revamped classic has one of the most eye-popping selections of mezcals in town, all 25 percent off during the weekday between 3-7 pm. Drinks featuring the smoky spirit are also $3 off, including the Distrito Federal — a punchy cocktail featuring añejo tequila, mezcal, Italian vermouth, and chocolatey Xocolatl mole bitters.

Ocho
You can’t help but feel fancy when you visit the Hotel Havana’s resident restaurant, decked out with a greenhouse roof and oversized chandeliers. Fancy doesn’t have to mean expensive, however — especially when you take advantage of its Monday-Wednesday happy hour from 4-6 pm. The main draw is the Havana margarita — one of the best in town — but make sure you take advantage of the seasonal specials on antojitos.

Paloma Blanca
This San Antonio institution takes tequila seriously, so much so that the menu offers a mini primer on all its various forms. But that doesn’t mean you can't have a little fun. On weekdays between 3-6 pm, get your fill of $3.50 frozen or rocks margaritas and $5 appetizers like small queso and guacamole, tacos al pastor, and nachos.

Sanchos Concina y Cantina
Bring your best friend to this bar and grill, one of the best Alamo City spots for dogs and humans alike. For post-work drinks, go between 4-7 pm, Monday though Friday and enjoy $2.75 frozen margaritas and $3.50 wells. If you are more of a night owl, Sanchos has you covered with a reverse happy hour running Sunday-Tuesday from 9-11 pm.

¡Salud! Ultimate Tequila Bar
What’s better than a bar that offers happy hour all week? A bar that offers something new to look forward to every day. Salud’s daily specials include a rotating selection of tequilas from top producers like Milagro, Republic, Dulce Vida, Herradura, and Cazadores for only $5. The happy hour is also one of the longest in town, lasting from 3-9 pm on Monday-Friday, and noon-9 pm during the weekends.

Tito’s Mexican Restaurant
This casual King William restaurant is most known for its mango chamoy margaritas, a perfect mix of sweet, salty, and sour. Enjoy $2 off every marg on the menu during the weekday happy hour from 3-6 pm. Deals on snacks include $7 mini tacos al carbon, $5 mini bean and cheese chalupas, and discounted nachos.

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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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