For those of you watching closely, this year's roll call of nominees for the Tastemaker Award for Best Restaurant has no repeats from 2023. We live in a new San Antonio heyday, and the number of great restaurants has grown from a scant teaspoon to an overflowing cup.

That makes this year's process more difficult than ever. With so many standard-bearers to choose from, we zeroed in on what defines the city now.

Read our reasoning below, then join us on April 4 when we reveal the winners at the Briscoe Museum. (Hot tip: Only a few tickets remain before selling out.) In the meantime, catch up on our special editorial series profiling all of this year’s nominees.

Here are the nominees for Restaurant of the Year:

Bar Loretta
When Bar Loretta took over the former Madhatters Tea House space, it had some big shoes to fill. Months later, it emerged as something just as beloved. While the funky bric-a-brac of the former is long gone, the conviviality still lingers. Though the Southtown spot routinely whips up tony lobster risotto and Frenchy pan-roasted cod, it has not lost sight of humor. Routinely, the cocktail program gets curiousier and curiouser.

Cullum's Attaboy
In a world beleaguered by fleeting TikTok microtrends and tribal bickering, Attaboy offers a gentile escape into yesteryear. The chefs wear paper hats, and the soundtrack swings instead of thumping. Most importantly, the dishes show no signs of the fussy arsenal many contemporary chefs insist is innovation. American fare once had integrity. Chef Chris Cullum argues for a reset.

Curry Boys BBQ
Can we finally rid our language of words like "fusion" and "East-meets-West?" Curry Boys food is a story of how Texan heritage is not a monolith. Yes, "authenticity" is a slippery term for something as ever-changing as food. Chefs Andrew Samia, Sean Wen, and Andrew Ho recognize that the palate is personal — and that barbecue and Thai cuisine are equally American.

Leche de Tigre
There's a sense of discovery in this King William charmer's cebiches, all a far cry from the lime-thwacked fish of its more common cousin. Texturally diverse with immaculate seafood, each challenges the vocabulary to come up with adjectives instead of bright. But bright they are, dazzling in their complex character.

Mixtli
Though this Southtown stunner is nary over a decade old and has only been in its current building for three years, it has become a dining elder. That doesn't mean that it doesn't still skate the culinary edge. The current menu traces the Eastward expansion of Spanish Colonial rule, a proposition that may seem intellectual. We can't deny the approach can read like a dissertation on paper. It's nothing but ambrosial on the tongue.

Naco Mexican Eatery
Naco's two locations — a food truck and a corner of the SA Yacht Club complex — are tiny. But that doesn't quite speak to the owner's ambition. Chefs Francisco Estrada and Lizzeth Martinez have created River City's most current taqueria, mindful of modern eating habits and traditional flavors in measure.

NONNA Osteria
The clamorous dining room is usually filled with oohs and ahhs, especially when giant wheels of Parmesan are rolled out to make Nonna's signature tableside presentation. Truth be told, it doesn't need such stagecraft. With a mighty Bolognese and pull-apart arancini, this downtown osteria saves all the drama for the plate.

Reese Bros Barbecue
San Antonio has gone to great lengths to prove it's not just a barbecue and Tex-Mex town, but maybe that should be more a point of pride than an insult. This East Side joint may not present its brisket in sculptural stacks, but the technique is no less worthy of admiration. And the queso fundido link insists there's still a new height to climb on the city's culinary pillars.

Shiro
The local sushi scene has long suffered from gatekeeping. Alamo City has suffered through limp rolls drenched in Kewpie and gelatinous hamachi because of a cynical belief that Alamo City doesn't know better. This downtown hot spot volleyed a sharp rejoinder with Tokyo-flown fish, electric small plates, and a refusal to utter "good enough."

The Magpie
If it is one's first time visiting this East Austin secret, they should sit at the tiny bar. Watching chef Jungsuk "Sue" Kim work inspires wonder. With the agility and speed of a short-order cook, she cooks up some of the city's most defiantly eclectic fare. True to the restaurant's name, one can twirl a superlative carbonara, then change course with a lively dak galbi.