San Antonio’s dining scene has come a long way since Paul McCartney last toured San Antonio in 2014. Where rock’s most famous vegetarian might have been limited to cheese enchiladas a decade ago, Alamo City restaurant scene now boasts diverse vegan menus and top-rated vegetarian cuisine, showcasing everything from Tex-Mex to fine dining. Macca, if you’re reading, we have a few spots to add to your itinerary when you swing by October 25.
Ladino
While this Pearl showpiece might not be strictly vegetarian, the Mediterranean's wealth of traditional vegetable dishes makes it a can’t-miss spot for creative plant-based cuisine. Start with the dips section and pile on extra orders of pita to scoop up whipped feta spiced with Fresno peppers and an impossibly creamy hummus. Herbivore’s only have one choice for an entree, but it happens to be one of the restaurant’s best dishes — a mushroom shawarma served with roasted root vegetables and drizzled with a zippy take on salsa matcha.
Plantaqueria
Soundchecks, costume changes, and shuttles to the airport all require eating on the go. In San Antonio, that means a steady diet of tacos. This downtown taqueria’s four pack of mini tacos fits the bill with a choice of portobello fajita, vegan carne asada, and jackfruit barbacoa. Maybe he should pack an extra shirt in case of the inevitable salsa drips?
Impossible potstickers for a band on the run.Best Quality Daughter/ Facebook
HASH Vegan Eatery
Although McCartney is known to throw back a tipple, he has famously stopped drinking before performances to make sure he never forgets his lyrics. San Antonio’s sole sober bar has the solution with a zero proof version of one of the singer’s most beloved cocktails, the margarita. It’s a no-brainer pairing with the South Side restaurant’s Tex-Mex inspired cuisine. The pozole, swimming with jackfruit, will soothe the throat before all those “na nas” in “Hey Jude.”
Best Quality Daughter
Almost half of the menu at this Pearl jewel box is either vegan or vegetarian, most of it made with locally sourced produce. The smashed cucumbers and Korean corn cheese spring rolls, served with a luscious salsa cremosa, are a must for every visit. But chef Jennifer Hwa Dobbertin also knows how to finesse meat alternatives. Try the two Impossible Foods’ standouts: a gingery potsticker and a crispy riff on mapo tofu with pickled mustard greens.
Vegan Avenue's tacos don't have a shred of meat.Vegan Avenue/ Facebook
Pharm Table
The Beatle’s famous 1968 trip to Rishikesh, India, was a watershed moment for McCartney, reportedly helping inspire his lifelong devotion to transcendental meditation and vegetarianism. We’re guessing he also had a taste of the subcontinent’s ayurvedic cuisine. He’ll find superlative examples on Chef Elizabeth Johnson’s Southtown menu filled with dazzling colors from rainbow carrots, chilled beets, and oyster mushrooms in turmeric leche de tigre.
Vegan Avenue
We’d be remiss if the Wings songman jetted out of Texas without experiencing the singular pleasure of plunging tortilla chips in molten cheese. While McCartney does eat dairy, he might prefer this Tobin Hill mainstay’s cashew-based version of the official state dip. He’d surely want to dive into a plate of ceviche that ditches the fish in favor of cucumber, avocado, and tender hearts of palm.
