Things to do in San Antonio

[betenoire]

Hi.

So me and oneye will be in San Antonio for 5 days in July. It's a combo vacation/anniversary trip/oneye has to go to a conference thing.

We're staying at the St Anthony Hotel (old, allegedly haunted, 5 min walk from the alamo) and I'm wondering if there is anything that we absolutely must do while in town?

I'm mostly wondering about:

1 - Shopping. Nick (oneye) will be busy for some chunks in the morning/early afternoon so I have to entertain myself. Are there any cool (non-chain) 14+ stores worth checking out? Local independent shops? Record stores?

2 - Things to do in the evening. Most of what we've mapped out for ourselves (zoo, etc) is stuff to do during the day. We're not big dance club people, so that's out. But other suggestions (even homa-friendly sit-down bars would work) are so totally needed.

3 - Taxi Company. All of the taxi companies on yelp that actually got reviews got really bad reviews. I'm taking that with a grain of salt, cuz everybody loves to complain about taxi drivers. But I'm wondering if there is one that anybody is familiar with? We will be taking a cab back to the airport so I need someone who will show up within a reasonable amount of time once I've called.

4 - Foooooooooooooood.

5 - Anything else you're dying to tell me?

Thanks in advance.

[Charming Texan]

Hi betenoire!

Glad to hear you and Nick will be staying downtown because you'll be in the center of everything that is important and easily accessible.

Shopping - well, there are smaller shops around, but the Rivercenter Mall is right there as well. Not really my thing either, but it's massive and you can spend quite a few hours in there.

The San Antonio Riverwalk - this is a high recommendation. Here is a map where you can see everything - restaurants, clubs, shopping, the museum district, etc.

http://www.thesanantonioriverwalk.com/

I honestly am not too familiar with the taxis, however I would think that the hotel would be able to provide you with some.

Food - It will be everywhere, but I highly recommend Mexican! Bourdo's Bistro, County Line (for Bar-B-Q!), and Iron Cactus are a few good places I have been. There's also the usual touristy spots like Hard Rock and Rainforest Cafe, but I recommend anything but those.

Just remember too, it's going to be hot as hell here in July. Be comfortable, and I hope you guys enjoy your stay.

Here's the SA chamber of commerce site also - www.sachamber.org

And see the Alamo.

Kellen

[Thinker]

Do yourself a favor and eat the sour cream chicken enchiladas at La Margarita!!

I ain't lyin'...

http://www.lamargarita.com/

[Okiebug61]

If you are going to be there 5 days you really should take a trip to Gruene TX, it's about 45 minutes outside San Antonio and you will love it. Here is link http://gristmillrestaurant.com/ . This restaurant is awesome and the town is very cool.

[Canela]

Originally Posted by Okiebug61

If you are going to be there 5 days you really should take a trip to Gruene TX, it's about 45 minutes outside San Antonio and you will love it. Here is link http://gristmillrestaurant.com/ . This restaurant is awesome and the town is very cool.

Yes, and if you're wanting to have some cool fun, grab a tube and head down the Blanco River...there are plenty of places you can do that there....Oh, Gruene has some wonderful shops.
You'll like that...good call Okiebug!

http://www.gruenetexas.com/

[betenoire]

Originally Posted by Charming Texan

Food - It will be everywhere, but I highly recommend Mexican! Bourdo's Bistro, County Line (for Bar-B-Q!), and Iron Cactus are a few good places I have been. There's also the usual touristy spots like Hard Rock and Rainforest Cafe, but I recommend anything but those.

Poifect, thanks. I've got the address/intersection for a few places that I found on Urban Spoon that sound promising (Druthers Cafe is within walking distance and have good sounding sandwhiches, the Original Blanco allegedly has the best enchiladas in San Antonio) but I was def looking specifically for a BBQ place. When in Texas, right? I haven't been to Texas since 2004 so I've been dying for some good BBQ....I'll look up Country Line for sure.

And you can trust me to not eat at the stupid Hard Rock or Rainforest. If I wanted to eat at those places I'd stay in Ontario.

Just remember too, it's going to be hot as hell here in July. Be comfortable, and I hope you guys enjoy your stay.

I purchased a few new sundresses and about a litre of sunblock this weekend just for the occasion.

Originally Posted by Thinker

Do yourself a favor and eat the sour cream chicken enchiladas at La Margarita!!

I ain't lyin'...

http://www.lamargarita.com/

My. Hero. Thank you.

Originally Posted by Okiebug61

If you are going to be there 5 days you really should take a trip to Gruene TX, it's about 45 minutes outside San Antonio and you will love it. Here is link http://gristmillrestaurant.com/ . This restaurant is awesome and the town is very cool.

Originally Posted by Canela

Yes, and if you're wanting to have some cool fun, grab a tube and head down the Blanco River...there are plenty of places you can do that there....Oh, Gruene has some wonderful shops.
You'll like that...good call Okiebug!

http://www.gruenetexas.com/

I'll have to look into distance buses for stuff like that, as we will not have a vehicle with us. I presume we'll be pretty much just keeping to San Antonio proper though....cuz Nick has never taken Greyhound before and now is probably not a great time to start.