SHOCKING SHUTTERS

San Antonio's only location of cult wing chain unexpectedly closes

Native Grill & Wings' sole San Antonio outpost has shuttered.

San Antonio’s only location of Native Grill & Wings has suddenly vanished from the city’s dining scene. Sharp-eyed members of the San Antonio Restaurants Facebook group first noticed the shuttered outpost at 3238 Wurzbach Rd. near Ingram Park Mall, a closure that CultureMap has since confirmed.

“This location has closed,” read a sign taped at the entrance. “Thank you for your support and patronage.”

The decision to fly the coop appears to have been abrupt. Social media accounts for the location were active as recently as April 25. No updates have been made to the location’s landing page, and the store has not issued an official statement through any public channel.

The concept was founded as Native New Yorker Restaurant at the height of the disco era, taking its name from a dance hit recorded by Frankie Valli and Odyssey. In 1978, the owners packed up for the Southwest, opening the first location in Arizona.

Under corporate owners Wingtime, LLC, the company rebranded to Native Grill & Wings in 2014 and opened its first San Antonio location. FAT Brands, the owners of Twin Peaks, Great American Cookies, and Fazoli’s, acquired the brand in late 2021.

FAT Brands still operates several franchises in the San Antonio area, including Johnny Rockets and Marble Slab Creamery. In August 2024, it opened its first shared location of Buffalo’s Express and tentpole brand Fat Burger. In 2022, it debuted Round Table Pizza in the city, with a new location at 4272 TPC Pkwy #103 expected to arrive later this year.

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FIRED UP

Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chão to open new San Antonio restaurant

Fogo de Chão/ Facebook

Fogo de Chão is firing up a new San Antonio location in late May.

Now may be a good time for San Antonians to stock up on stretchy pants. Fogo de Chão, a popular Brazilian steakhouse chain known for its all-you-can-eat grilled meats, is opening a North Side location, at 5546 N. 1604 W #160, on May 26, according to a company bulletin.

Following the lead of other Fogo outposts, the new restaurant will bring theatrical flair to the dining experience. Servers, dressed as guachos, will slide picanha (prime top sirloin), roasted chicken, and lamb chops directly onto the plate while guests enjoy the hectic action from the open live fire kitchen.

Many of the restaurant’s fans are just as enamored of the huge salad bar as the never-ending assortment of grilled meats. The Market Table (in Fogo-speak) features leafy greens, seasonal soups, cold-smoked salmon, black pepper candied bacon, feijoada (black bean stew), and pão de queijo, Brazil’s famous cassava-based baked cheese rolls.

$Fogo de Ch\u00e3o$ Fans love Fogo de Chão's Market Table as much as its meats.Fogo de Chão/ Facebook

The location will also have Bar Fogo, serving smaller a la carte small bites and cocktails. The menu mixes Brazilian classics like caipirinhas with mocktails, South American wines, imported beer, and tropical takes on standards like an old fashioned made with muddled caramelized pineapple.

First founded by brothers Arri and Jair Coser in 1979, Fogo de Chão has since grown to over 70 locations in Brazil, the United States, Mexico, and Saudi Arabia. The first San Antonio outpost in the Shops of Rivercenter, at 849 E Commerce St. #393, opened in 2009.

San Antonio has had a mini churrascaria boom in the 2020s. Locally owned chain Chama Guacha is building a new location on Houston Street, already home to Texas de Brazil. In 2021 Mexico-based chain Bovino’s Churrascaría chose San Antonio for its first U.S. location. It never reemerged after a supposedly temporary closure in 2023.

After its late May debut, the new Fogo de Chão will be open Monday through Thursday, 11:30 am-10 pm; Friday, 11:30 am-10:30 pm; Saturday, 11 am-10:30 pm; and Sunday, 11 am-9 pm.

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