san antonio best food |

They say everything is bigger in Texas. After my last vacation, I tend to agree.

My family and I recently had the pleasure of traveling down south to San Antonio, Texas to visit some family. Not only was this vacation a wonderful break from the dismal, poor excuse we have had for a spring, but it was very pleasing on the tummy as well. It was, what I like to call, a foodcation.

We spent our first day in San Antonio visiting the Alamo, walking the RiverWalk and heading down to Market Square. If we didn’t have the little one in tow, we likely would have feasted on the fabulous smelling street fare. We decided to dine at Mi Tierra. This mole was one for the books. It is by far the largest restaurant I’ve ever dined in (again with the bigger in Texas saying) and it hosted a menu of delicious traditional Mexican dishes.

Upon arrival, I told my brother-in-law I was interested in visiting some of the places I’ve seen on various food shows on cable TV. He did not disappoint. The first food destination was La Hacienda, home of the puffy taco. Bobby Flay visited La Hacienda and threw down on this San Antonio favorite and lost! A puffy taco is made by frying corn tortilla dough for the shell. I ordered the puffy taco in both beef and chicken. If I had to do it all over again, I would just order the beef. But the meal was great and the ambiance was even better. We sat outside at the largest outdoor eating area I’ve ever sat in (again, the biggest) and listened to a local singer cover some good tunes on his guitar.

The following day we headed to Shiner, Texas to tour the brewery of one of our family favorite brews, Shiner Bock. Shiner, Texas is an adorable, quaint Texas town. The Spoetzel Brewery pops up right along side the road. A free, short tour of the facility lands you four tokens to sample these tasty beers. If you enjoy beer, adorable Southern towns and beer, Shiner is worth the trip.

The second of our food show stops was to Lockhart, Texas to visit Black’s BBQ. Black’s was featured on the Travel Channel’s Barbeque Paradise. A friendly, rustic place, the smell of Black’s invites you in. They do not add sauce to their brisket and there is a reason for that. It doesn’t need it. Smoky and savory, like nothing you can get in Wisconsin.

If that weren’t enough, the following morning we headed over to Lulu’s to complete the food trifecta. Lulu’s was visited by Man v. Food host Adam Richman, who conquered not only a whole chicken fried steak meal but topped it off with a small 3 lb. cinnamon roll dessert. Don’t go to Lulu’s looking to try a small cinnamon roll. This is Texas. They don’t have small ones. It’s 3 pounds or nothing. For only $7.99, we had to try it.

We thought that perhaps a cinnamon roll this large would be too dense and too sweet. Not the case! It was warm, fluffy, and bursting with ooey gooey cinnamon goodness.

Four adults and one Lincoln (who may have counted as two adults, quite frankly) finished about three-quarters of the roll. The rest was delicious the next morning zapped in the microwave. The other breakfast items at Lulu’s are to die for as well. The chorizo and egg breakfast taco helped balance the sweet taste buds in my mouth.

Overall, it was one fantastic foodcation. San Antonio does not disappoint when it comes to cuisine. The best part is, there are plenty more places we want to try the next time we visit! But I may be going back for the cinnamon roll.