By Edmond Ortiz
The latest restaurant and bar openings in the San Antonio area include new franchises from two pizza chains, a Southeast Side barbecue joint, a Pearl-area lounge, and the return of a beloved East Side soul food eatery.
The most notable recent closures on San Antonio’s culinary scene, meanwhile, include a once-heralded restaurant at Pearl, and a collective of bars on the near East Side.
NOW OPEN
Mrs. Kitchen Soul Food Restaurant
The renowned East Side soul food spot reopened Oct. 10 near Dawson Park in the Jefferson Heights neighborhood.
The owners of Mrs. Kitchen, which originally opened in 2011 on East Commerce, have been had a rollercoaster ride of sorts over the last several years. Although it initially withstood the COVID-19 lockdowns, the eatery began to sustain financial challenges, and the owners relocated to Windcrest in 2021.
Three years later, ownership revealed that it was becoming difficult to stay afloat financially and eventually closed Mrs. Kitchen in 2024. The owner/chef, Garlan McPherson, resorted to a GoFundMe campaign in an effort to reopen the eatery, ultimately raising $3,200.
On the grand reopening day, Mrs. Kitchen’s social media featured a video of a crowd of diners ready to enter the restaurant at its new location. Mrs. Kitchen offers classic soul food favorites, including pork chops, fried chicken, fried catfish and homestyle sides.
2351 E. Commerce St., Suite 105. Open 11 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat., noon-6 p.m. Sun. (210-549-4392)
Round Table Pizza
The California-based pizza chain was spending the first weekend of October marking the opening of its third San Antonio location, along Interstate 10 near Huebner Road.
Inspired by the legend of King Arthur, Round Table offers nine types of pizza that are available in five different sizes. The menu also has garlic parmesan twists and wings for appetizers, and various salads.
The new Round Table Pizza storefront was hosting games and specials through Oct. 12. Round Table also has locations near Castle Hills, in Stone Oak and in New Braunfels.
11040 I-10 W., Suite 102. Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.
Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe
Taziki’s, an Alabama-based fast-casual chain offering traditional Mediterranean cuisine, opened its first San Antonio location on Oct. 7 near Encino Park on the far north central side.
Visitors are invited to “build their own feast” centered on spicy harissa chicken, grilled beef, grilled shrimp or falafel or grilled vegetables with a side of rice or roasted red potatoes, and a choice of salad or a Caesar’s salad and pita chips.
There are salad bowls, soups, gyros, pitas, a wide selection of homestyle dips, and family-size feasts. Taziki’s also has a New Braunfels location.
22103 Bulverde Road, Suite 104. Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sun. (210-761-8247)
Smoakwood BBQ
A local family-owned barbecue restaurant opened Oct. 7 on the Southeast Side, offering brisket, sausage, turkey breast, baby back ribs and chicken by the half-pound. Plates come with a jalapeno, pickles, a slice of bread, and barbecue sauce; one plate called “The Smoakie” contains four meats, four sides and a free 16-ounce tea.
Specialty items include chopped loaded potato, chopped Frito pie, brisket tacos, and brisket nachos. There are also sandwiches and desserts.
2204 S. W.W. White Road. Open 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Tue.-Sat. or until sold out. (210-560-2523)
Chicken Ranch
Oct. 7 was the day when Chicken Ranch formally fully took over the spot that has been known as Cooper’s Ice House. Chicken Ranch was created by Philadelphia Chef Chad Rosenthal, who bested Chef Bobby Flay on his own show “Beat Bobby Flay,” and launched Motel Fried Chicken, a popular ghost chicken that delivered Rosenthal’s signature fried chicken.
Cooper’s will continue to own the newly opened Chicken Ranch concept, which will feature Rosenthal’s curated menu of fried chicken sandwiches and tenders, wings, as well as burgers, fried pickles, jalapeno hush puppies, and soft Bavarian-style pretzels. The Chicken Ranch concept initially started as a pop-up at Cooper’s in September ahead of the transition.
8403 State Hwy. 151, Suite 103.
Taco210 Mexico
The restaurant opened its doors Oct. 6 at the Cadillac Plaza retail center near the Deerfield neighborhood, offering a blend of Mexican and TexMex cuisine, including mini barbacoa taquitos and steak fajita taco plates.
14357 Blanco Road. Open 9 a.m.-10 p.m. daily. (210-641-3127)
Babe’s Old Fashioned Food
The venerable local burger eatery opened its seventh location in early October at the northwest corner of Loop 410 and Culebra Road. Like its sister locales, this new West Side spot offers Babe’s traditional menu, which features an array of burgers, such as a chili cheeseburger and guacamole cheeseburger.
Babe’s also provides chicken sandwiches and strips, pizzas, nachos, salads, a children’s menu and more.
7129 N.W. Loop 410. Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.
Crust Pizza Co.
The Woodlands-based, Chicago-style pizza chain opened its first San Antonio-area storefront on Oct. 4 in Cibolo. Crust offers about 20 pizza varieties available in personal 10-inch or large 14-inch options. Pizza varieties include Mr. Potato Head, which features fresh-baked potato slices, and Wyatt’s Barbecue, which comes topped with sweet and smoky barbecue sauce.
Crust also offers pastas, flatbread sandwiches, salads, desserts, and a children’s menu. Appetizers include garlic knots, wings, and tomato basil soup.
Crust Pizza has more than 40 locations in Texas and Louisiana, with one established in New Braunfels, and another restaurant coming soon to Stone Oak.
813 Cibolo Valley, Suite 170, Cibolo. Open 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sun.-Thu., 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Fri. and Sat. (210-537-1657)
Bubbles and Bourbon
A grand opening was held Sept. 26 for this upscale Government Hill lounge near Pearl.
Flashes of pink and purple and Instagram-friendly spaces adorn much of the interior of Bubbles and Bourbon, which will feature pairings of charcuterie with champagne or bourbon on first Sundays.
Bubbles and Bourbon was created by the Ingram Bar Group, which is responsible for the neighboring Stone Oak bars Angry Elephant and Roo Pub, the venerable Alamo Heights bar Broadway 50/50, and The Deuce bar in Leon Springs.
1417 Austin St. Open 3 p.m.-2 a.m. weekdays, noon-2 a.m. Sat. and Sun. (210-815-4615)
The Skinny Pig
The Northeast Side’s newest sports bar opened its doors Sept. 25 in a space that has been occupied by different bars over the years, Black Clover Pub being the most recent watering hole there.
The Skinny Pig offers happy hour 2-7 p.m. weekdays, and a patio with seating.
3030 Thousand Oaks Drive. Open 2 p.m.-2 a.m. weekdays, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Sat. and Sun.
CLOSURES
Thai Cafe
The family-owned Northeast Side Thai restaurant was set to permanently shutter on Oct. 11 after 27 years of service, but a Thai food truck is in the works.
The sister duo of Chim and Lek opened Thai Cafe in 1998, offering authentic Central Thai cuisine. Ownership of the cafe then fell to Lek’s daughters Annmarie and Alissa.
The owners had first taken to the restaurant’s social media in August to announce that they would be closing their eatery at 11318 Perrin Beitel Road this fall.
Annmarie posted on the Thai Cafe social media Facebook page on Oct. 9, encouraging patrons to come by and enjoy the eatery’s buffet once more. She also confirmed that Thai Cafe on Wheels will be hitting the streets soon.
Carriqui
What began as a buzzy Pearl restaurant centered around South Texas cuisine upon its launch in fall 2022 is now closing its doors for good on Oct. 19.
Michael Joergensen, chief marketing officer for Carriqui’s parent company Silver Ventures, announced the news, but did not disclose a reason for the closure.
Named for the green jay, a native South Texas bird, Carriqui instantly got attention from food critics around the nation, and from local foodies and social media influencers, upon opening in the renovated former home of Liberty Bar.
“We value our associates immensely and are committed to helping them transition into new roles within Pearl’s ecosystem,” Joergensen said in a statement. “We will communicate what’s next for the historic Boehler building in the near future.”
There has been no word on the fate of Carriqui’s current home, a late 19th century structure that was located several yards away on Josephine Street before it was moved to and overhauled in its current spot at 239 E. Grayson St.
St. Paul Square bars
Four bars that collectively formed Outpost Junction at St. Paul Square all suddenly closed their doors on Sept. 28. The closure announcement reportedly took many fans of the bars – Blessed Bogside, Vino Veritas, Frankie’s Roundup and The Box, by surprise. The announcement offered no reason for the closure.
Steve Mahoney, owner of the Mahoney Bar Group, originally created the concepts that yielded the bars that became Outpost Junction as part of a larger effort to develop a new entertainment district on the eastern edge of downtown.
Mahoney relocated what had been Francis Bogside, an Irish-inspired pub, from Southside to St. Paul Square in summer 2023, and simultaneously launched an adjoining wine bar, Anne’s.
A few months later, Mahoney opened a neighboring honky-tonk venue, Blayne’s, as a tribute to The Mix’s late owner Blayne Tucker. In fall 2023, Mahoney opened The Box, a follow-up to Blue Box, a longtime Pearl bar that he shuttered the previous summer.
Around the same time, the children of Robert Darilek, Mahoney’s late majority business partner, began assuming control of the Mahoney Bar Group, as reported by the San Antonio Current.
Not long afterward, the aforementioned four bars underwent rebranding under a collective name, Outpost Junction: Francis Bogside became Blessed Bogside, Blayne’s turned into Frankie’s Roundup, and Anne’s became Vino Veritas.
Web House Cafe and Bar
The once-popular hot spot in the Beacon Hill neighborhood north of downtown San Antonio, has permanently closed following nearly two decades of service.
Recent media reports showed how the structure at 320 Blanco Road has been whitewashed, and that the property is now available for lease.
The shuttering of Web House, which had hosted various community programming, such as open mic nights and board gaming, takes place about nine months after the death of the cafe/bar’s founder, Mikhail “Mischka” Timofeyev.
The Russian native and chef’s recipes were renowned among Web House regulars, alongside the traditional pub grub that was served there.
According to social media posts from Web House representatives at the time, the business was closed for one week immediately following Timofeyev’s death as supporters were invited to grieve with bar/cafe staff, Timofeyev’s loved ones and friends and other community members. While the business reopened after the brief closure, social media eventually ceased over the summer, and now all avenues of public contact are dissolved.
