My office shut down around noon'ish today so it was a perfect opportunity for the whole family to get out and do some errands - you know, buy some replacement underwear for my son at WalMart and stuff like that.
We found ourselves downtown San Antonio and in the Mercado, the little shopping area that is open year round, but really only busy during Fiesta and Cinco de Mayo and such. Oh sure, there is a steady stream of tourists all the time, but how the shops there make it during the off times is beyond me. But what do I know.
The good thing is, since NAFTA, there is no real reason to go to Mexico (unless you just have a hankerin' to get kidnapped or shot, or both), because you can get all of your authentic Hecho in Chino Mexican items for about the same price. Just a thought: Once you have a dozen blankets, ponchos, a tortilla flattener, and that little rock bowl you display to make people think you grind up your own spicy salsa fixin's, what else could you need? Oh yes, large over priced beers and a few t-shirts.
But it is fun and I never get tired of watching the grandfathers and fathers stand outside the stores as their wives look at the same traditional Mexican dress in different colors that they will surely wear once they get back to Wisconsin or Minnesota, just to impress friends. Even my son gets in on the act, practicing I suppose.
This caught my eye. At first, I only saw the top part of the sign, and I though for a minute we had moved into an R-rated section of the place.
And of course, you know it is almost time for a festive Christmas in San Antonio when El Mercado busts out the pink Christmas tree display.
We were all pretty excited about taking the kids to Augie's Barbed Wire BBQ for a late lunch. We pulled into the lot and I thought to myself that this was perfect timing. We had missed the lunch crowd and there were only a few other people in the lot that would be ahead of us in line.
We all got out and started to walk in when I noticed the people parked a few feet from us were getting back in their truck. Then, I noticed a few folks standing in the entry way of Augie's, drinking a cool mug of beer. A lady said, "We're closed." And the guy hoisted his beer and said, "It's beer time." I chuckled and said to myself, "Okay, I'll play your little game." We continued to walk toward the entrance. "No, seriously, we closed at 3 today" the guy said, and we all just turned, totally dejected, just like the people parked a few feet away from us, and left.
Since we were there, my wife said she had wanted to take the kids to Broadway 5050. I've told you about our last lunch there. We liked it, though I know several other readers were not impressed.
Today, my wife and I both ordered the Memphis style pork sandwich with the slaw on. It was good but just not the same as the pulled-pork I planned on getting at Augie's. And I have to put my foot down here and now. People of the food industry: Quit serving those stupid little hay stick/shoestring french-fries. They just do not work for me.
My daughter had the brisket sandwich which she absolutely loved. It is good and for what is really just a bar, they do serve a good brisket. She did not care for the potato salad and upon inspection, I did not either. I'm pretty sure it was better the first time we went.
My son got the same fish & chips platter I got on our first visit and we was pleased with his, just as I was back then.
In the end, it was all good. We had solid service, the price was very reasonable, good food and I still just like the feel of the place inside. Give it a shot if you are in the area.
We were in Alamo Heights and in need of some vittles so what better opportunity to mark another restaurant off the list by stopping into Broadway 5050 for an awesome lunch. Oh, do I give it away too soon? Well make no mistake, we were some happy campers.
Parking is on Broadway (hence the name) and it caused me a little nervousness when I pulled in to the spot. I immediately started contemplating how I was supposed to back out of the parking place in busy traffic. The parking places are angled so you can just pull in from the busy street. This is sort of like in the old horse and buggy days where you didn't have to worry about everyone in town owning a vehicle. Now, things on Broadway are busier; even the house staff own cars. But, let me set you at ease; the stop light will accommodate you and when you are done stuffing yourself, you can easily pull out of the slot and mover along.
Had I figured this out sooner, I would have stopped in a year ago. Honestly, we have driven by and marked other places off our list simply because the parking looks like a nightmare. Now I know. And now you know.
I had no idea what to expect on the inside. This place could easily be set-up anywhere in San Antonio; it isn't some ritzy Alamo Heights thing. It has the feel of a 50's diner (sort of like the Pig Stand, only cleaner). If you are so inclined, they have a fully stocked bar and loads of beer on tap as well as a huge collection of bottled brews. Oh, and honestly, the iced tea is out of this world.
Some booths had the same checkerboard pattern seen on the front of the building while the one we sat in had some sort of Quentin Tarantino theme going on with nifty cutouts from Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs and Dusk till Dawn.
The menu is full of good options including daily specials. My wife finally decided on a pulled-pork sandwich. It is served on toasted bread and comes with baked beans, Cole slaw and shoestring fries. Instead of fries (she gave them up for lent) she substituted onion rings.
Yea, the cook sent her plate out with fries, but then made up a special order of rings for us. And the rings were outstanding. Have I had better? Sure. Were these wonderful? Absolutely.
The beans were good but what really stood out was the barbecue sauce that accompanied the pulled-pork sandwich. Look, I'm not going to sit here and say that the sandwich was better than Augie's, but this is a diner, not a BBQ place. Having said that, if you order it at 5050, you will not be disappointed. The sauce, as we found out, is made on site by the 5050 folks. We told the waitress that they should bottle it and sell it. Dip your onion rings in it and you will be very pleased.
The daily special was fish & chips and so I ordered me some. In spite of the good iced tea, I forced myself to also order a Newcastle Dark Brown, on tap to assist me in getting in the fish & chips mood.
In addition to the expected fish & chips, the plate comes with a tiny salad (about half a cup worth) and some of the aforementioned Cole Slaw. Before I could even think about using the tarter sauce, our waitress asked if I needed some Malt Vinegar. Just fabulous! While she grabbed that, I started on the Cole slaw. I am telling you that we have had Cole slaw at a lot of places. I don't know if this was made at the restaurant or purchased from a supplier, but it stands right up there with among the best, creamiest, most flavorful slaw's I have ever experienced.
The fish was fried with a crispy texture and it was in nuggets, almost like you get with some catfish. Unlike the fillets I had at the Rams Head (which was excellent), these were a little more crispy and could easily be picked up for fast eating. I did try the tarter sauce and it was good, but to be honest, the malt vinegar was hitting the spot for me. I'm not a huge fan of shoestring fries, though they were not bad, but my wife needed help with the onion rings so between the two of us, we left enough fries to feed several families in Ethiopia. Hopefully, they will get them while they are still hot.
We eat at a lot of places. More often than not, we seem to leave thinking that it was going to be better, based on what people told us or what some advertiser claimed. I have no way of knowing if we were simply lucky, hitting the place during a slow time (it was about 2:30 in the afternoon), but we were totally pleased. My wife was doing the Happy Dance over pulled pork, so you know it had to be good.
If you are in or around Alamo Heights and need some vittles, skip Good Time Charlies and the Pig Stand and head directly over to Broadway 5050. Or eat at all three and have a heart attack. Your call.
Either way, Broadway 5050 is a Tasty Treat.
The good thing is, since NAFTA, there is no real reason to go to Mexico (unless you just have a hankerin' to get kidnapped or shot, or both), because you can get all of your authentic Hecho in Chino Mexican items for about the same price. Just a thought: Once you have a dozen blankets, ponchos, a tortilla flattener, and that little rock bowl you display to make people think you grind up your own spicy salsa fixin's, what else could you need? Oh yes, large over priced beers and a few t-shirts.
But it is fun and I never get tired of watching the grandfathers and fathers stand outside the stores as their wives look at the same traditional Mexican dress in different colors that they will surely wear once they get back to Wisconsin or Minnesota, just to impress friends. Even my son gets in on the act, practicing I suppose.
This caught my eye. At first, I only saw the top part of the sign, and I though for a minute we had moved into an R-rated section of the place.
Since we were there, my wife said she had wanted to take the kids to Broadway 5050. I've told you about our last lunch there. We liked it, though I know several other readers were not impressed.
Today, my wife and I both ordered the Memphis style pork sandwich with the slaw on. It was good but just not the same as the pulled-pork I planned on getting at Augie's. And I have to put my foot down here and now. People of the food industry: Quit serving those stupid little hay stick/shoestring french-fries. They just do not work for me.
My daughter had the brisket sandwich which she absolutely loved. It is good and for what is really just a bar, they do serve a good brisket. She did not care for the potato salad and upon inspection, I did not either. I'm pretty sure it was better the first time we went.
My son got the same fish & chips platter I got on our first visit and we was pleased with his, just as I was back then.
