News you can eat

6 things to know in San Antonio food right now: Local breakfast cafe flips into Cibolo

Say "good morning!" to Magnolia Pancake Haus' new Cibolo location.

Editor's note: We get it. It can be difficult to keep up with the fast pace of San Antonio's restaurant and bar scene. We have you covered with our regular roundup of essential food news.

After months of anticipation, Cibolo residents will wake up to a treat on December 18: some of the area's best pancakes. Famous for a wide range of indulgent flapjack offerings, including their award-winning organic buckwheat pancakes, Magnolia Pancake Haus has served San Antonians for two decades at its Embassy Oaks and Medical Center locations. According to the company’s Facebook page, Magnolia’s forthcoming third outpost, located at 17730 N. IH 35, is set to open just in time for Alamo City residents to enjoy such seasonal favorites as eggnog French toast. Starting Friday, Magnolia Cibolo will be open daily for dine-in service from 7 am - 2 pm.

Popular health-focused eatery is downgrading to a food truck — at least for now. Pharm Table, the health-focused downtown restaurant known for chef Elizabeth Johnson’s wide array of Persian salads, kale pizzas, and other vegan/paleo plates, will cease operations at its current space at the Radius Center event venue on December 19. While the closure is in service of the operation’s planned move to its new Southtown brick-and-mortar at 812 S. Alamo St., Pharm Table will temporarily operate out of a food trailer on the space’s patio. Beginning December 29, the trailer will serve lunch and dinner fare along with natural wine, beer, and three craft cocktails from the Southtown locale's forthcoming mixed-drink program. An opening date for the brick-and-mortar has been pushed back from its original November project, with the company’s Facebook page saying its food truck will operate “until the restaurant fully opens for both safe indoor and outdoor dining”.

San Antonio’s Medical Center has something "damn good" to look forward to. Austin’s taco-truck-turned-empire Torchy’s Tacos has officially signed the lease for its fourth area location, which is set to open at 8435 Wurzbach Rd. in February 2021. Like the chain’s other Alamo City operations at Lincoln Heights, The Rim, and Sonterra, the company’s forthcoming Medical Center restaurant will offer a menu of cult-favorite, craft casual tacos as well as its divine green chile queso and fresh-made margaritas. The news comes just a month after the company received a flaming $400 million investment from a group led by private equity firm General Atlantic. That’s a lot of taco money, even if you’re ordering off Torchy's fabled “secret menu.”

Our fair city welcomes legendary Filipino fast-food operation, Jollibee next year. The company’s recently announced 28-store expansion, which for the first time ever will bring such beloved offerings as peach mango pie and the pineapple bacon cheeseburger to San Antonio, represents the multinational company’s largest North American addition to date. When the Alamo City’s first location finally opens for business in mid-to-late 2021 (an official date has yet to be given), the operation will only offer pick-up, drive-thru, and delivery options in response to on-going pandemic concerns.

Other news and notes

Scooped Cookie Dough Bar is looking for a major 17-location expansion. Three years after opening its first location in the Alamo City, the local company is bringing its safe-to-eat gourmet cookie dough flavors – including gluten free and vegan options — to California, Nevada, Arizona, Georgia, and Florida. No word yet on where those no locations will be or if the sweets shop will also consider expanding in Texas.

Whoever said “singing loud for all to hear” was the best method of spreading Christmas cheer has clearly yet to try San Antonio-based Taco Cabana’s new limited holiday menu items. For the first time, customers can now order breakfast tortas (available all day, everyday) filled with either chorizo and egg or bacon, egg, and cheese, as well as the company’s new TC Torpedoes aka fried corn masa filled with chicken tinga or cheese and poblano. For more indulgent tastes, the San Antonio-based chain is also debuting a churro desert option as well as rum tea punch and two new margarita flavor offerings (candy cane and apple spice).

news-you-can-eat

IN MEMORIAM

Beloved San Antonio Tex-Mex joint fries its last gordita

Photo courtesy of Lala's Gorditas

Lala's Gorditas will shutter December 24.

When Steven Pizzini opened Lala's Gorditas, it seemed like his birthright. Not only was the tiny Southside joint named after his maternal grandmother, but it was built on generational restaurant know-how that dates back to the 30s. After five turbulent years, that legacy is being cut short.

Via Facebook, Pizzini announced he would shutter Lala's after service on December 24. Although the post does not fully explain the reasoning behind the closure, it capped one of the restaurant's most turbulent years.

"We hope everyone will come by and share a laugh or tear and send Lala's off in grand style," Pizzini writes. "On behalf of my staff and myself, it's been an honor and a pleasure to serve you these last five years. You'll see my staff in other great dining places, no doubt, and I plan to enjoy my retirement."

Opened in March 2019, Lala's continued his family's long history in the San Antonio hospitality community. His aunt Ernestine Pizzini Chapa founded Teka Molino in 1938. His father and uncle, Herman and Eddie Pizzini, established Taco Hut in 1958.

The simple menu was aptly time-honored, offering San Antonio favorites like guacamole cups, bean rolls, puffy tacos, and signature gorditas. Pizzini didn't take shortcuts, nixtamalizing corn on site. It was, at first, a formula for success.

Unfortunately, Pizzini faced challenges from the get-go, including a lack of parking and an outdoor dining space. The COVID-19 pandemic hit before he could celebrate his first year. In 2022, he told the San Antonio Current that supply availability and costs were wreaking havoc on his business.

In the past year, the restaurant has twice appealed to the local community for support. The most recent plea, on June 11, admitted many of the restaurant's shortcomings. Despite the struggles, Pizzini expressed no sour grapes.

"On a personal note, I will miss the wonderful community Lala's has created with our authentic food and friendly service," wrote the longtime San Antonio chef. "It's been an extraordinary experience getting to know so many of you and sharing my family's legacy through our traditional Tex-Mex recipes."

tex-mex southside closings