The Best Burgers of San Antonio

Image courtesy of Wikipedia

This Thursday, the 27th is Burger Day! San Antonio has no shortage of amazing burger places to suit your needs. Whether you’re looking for a burger so big you’ll need two hands, the juiciest burger around or the Best Burger in America, you can find it in San Antonio.

Considered the “mecca for burger lovers”, Chris Madrid’s, originally opened as Chris Madrid’s Tacos and Burgers, quickly had burgers become the favorite menu item. With a hamburger as your main course you have 6 different varieties to choose from and two sizes as well. Along with your burger you have the option of fresh cut fries, chalupas, nachos, and a 6 oz. grilled chicken sandwich if the burger isn’t what you’re feeling that day. Located in an old gas station only 15 minutes away from the Residences, Chris Madrid’s has the burgers you’re looking for.


The Whataburger logo is unmistakeable and the burgers are definitely worth the hype. Recently named the Best Burger in America by Fast Company, Whataburger has been cooking up their delicious burgers for 60 years! It started with a simple idea: to create a burger so big you’d need two hands to hold it and with the first bite the customer would exclaim, “What a burger!” They’ve certainly accomplished that goal! With 9 different kinds of burgers to choose from and multiple other (non-burger) items on the menu, Whataburger is definitely living up to their title as Best Burger in America. The nearest Whataburger location is only a 5 minute drive from the Residences at La Cantera and there are many more in the area. To find other Whataburgers check here.


Just like Chris Madrid’s, Longhorn Cafe started off with an inclination towards tacos. It was later purchased and remade into a burger joint. The kids can enjoy their kid-friendly menu as well as arcades, a sand pit and play-scapes while the adults enjoy their Big Juicy Burgers and beers. Not only do they serve burgers, there is chicken, sandwiches, chili and hot dogs, salads and so many appetizers to choose from. (We recommend the jalapeno poppers!) Longhorn Cafe is only a 9 minute drive from us at La Cantera so you can have your Big Juicy whenever you want!


Even though Whataburger was voted the best burger in the United States, we’ll leave you to be the judge! It’s hard to compete with the burgers on this list and that’s only a small sampling of the deliciousness you’ll find if you go looking for it.


What’s your favorite burger place? Let us know on Facebook & Twitter!

Sample the Best: San Antonio Restaurant Week

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From August 15 through the 29 is San Antonio’s Restaurant Week. During the week, you’ll find deals available from so many amazing restaurants throughout the city. This is your opportunity to try out restaurants that you otherwise might not have give a thought to. Each restaurant is offering a 3 course, prix-fixe lunch and dinner for the duration of Restaurant Week. Participating restaurants are organized by 2 tiers. Tier 1 restaurants offer lunches at $15 and dinners at $35. Tier 2 restaurants offer lunches at $10 and dinners at $25. For each meal purchased, restaurants will donate $1-$2 towards the Culinaria Festival.

Acenar (Tier 1) is a contemporary Mexican restaurant located along the San Antonio Riverwalk (only 20 minutes from the Residences at La Cantera). Each Texas regional Mexican dish will bring with it flavors inspired by the history and traditions of Mexico. Acenar’s lunch consists of 2 choices for each course. For the first course you can pick between their special house salad and Chicken Tinga Empanadas. For round 2 you’ll have either beef short rib tacos or a chipotle chicken dish. For the finale you can have either caramel flan or pink cake which is orange flavored with pink icing and fresh berry compote.

At the Bavarian Brauhaus (Tier 2) you can get authentic German cuisine without straying too far from home (a 15 minute drive from La Cantera). The founders grew up in South Germany studying alongside the best German chefs so you know what you’re getting here is real and really good! For your first dinner course you can choose between 2 salads or a pea soup. For the main course you have the option of a Reuben sandwich, Maultaschen (pasta dough shell with meat filling) or Schnitzel. To round it off you have the choice between peach/raspberry strudel or bread pudding.

Both of these restaurants sound so amazing that I don’t know how anyone could possibly choose and these are only two of the many options! To see the full list of participating restaurants head here. San Antonio Restaurant Week is such a great opportunity for those who want to branch out in their tastes but aren’t willing to shell out loads of cash to try things out. Reservations aren’t required but they are definitely recommended as tables go quickly during San Antonio Restaurant Week.



Sources Cited
Acenar
Bavarian Brauhaus

Roller Coaster Day at Fiesta Texas

Image courtesy of Wikimedia

This Sunday, August 16th, is Rollercoaster Day! How else would you spend a holiday dedicated to intense thrill rides than experiencing them for yourself? San Antonio is blessed with a spectacular park right next door to our home at the Residences. Six Flags Fiesta Texas has enough roller coasters to knock your socks off, in the best way of course! Here are 3 of the most death defying coasters the park has to offer.

This one is gargantuan. Some rollercoasters are big. Some are huge. This one is Goliath. The swinging, overhead track coaster is a gut wrenching experience, not for the faint of heart. With a 360 degree flip and a 10 story climb then drop, this one will leave you a little shakey. Follow that up with a few zero-g rolls and you’ll be dizzy for days afterwards. If you want a preview of what it could be like check out this video before braving it for real.

This half-mile trip on the Poltergeist begins with one crazy fast launch that takes you from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds! That launch means you won’t have to sit through any long drags of climbing slowly up hills; you’ll be thrown right into the action! Poltergeist has been described as looking like a big bowl of spaghetti and the name really fits. This tangle of twists and turns and bends looks daunting but is definitely worth the heart stopping!

The largest roller coaster in Texas shares colors with one of the biggest super heroes in the world: Superman! Superman: Krypton is a floorless coaster that will let you experience everything the way Superman would. With the quarry walls as your backdrop you’ll soar 168 feet into the air before zipping through 4,000 feet of stomach dropping twists and turns. You will also get to experience the world’s second tallest 360 degree loop! This coaster will make you feel like the superhero you are.

Fiesta Texas is one of the greatest parks and we have all the proof to back it up. These three coasters are some of the biggest and baddest in the world and you’ll be coming back for more from each of them.

What’s your favorite roller coaster? Let us know on the Facebook or on Twitter.

International Beer Day

Image courtesy of TheNerdPatrol - Flickr

This Friday is International Beer Day, one of the MOST important holidays of the year. Whether you’re a lover of lagers or a keg connoisseur, there is a way for everyone to celebrate. International Beer Day has 3 sole purposes:

1. To gather with friends and enjoy the taste of beer.
2. To celebrate those responsible for brewing and serving beer.
3. To unite the world under the banner of beer, by celebrating the beers of all nations together on a single day.

San Antonio has an amazing selection of breweries and bars to wet your whistle. So take a brew journey with some friends and enjoy a cold one or two.

The idea for Alamo Beer Co. was taken from a brew back in 1884 by the same name. The beer has evolved since then and is now brewed by Real Ale and distributed in HEB grocery stores. They currently have 4 beers available for your tasting pleasure: a golden ale, an amber lager, German pale ale and a pilsner. The brewery is also eco-friendly, with solar panel art in the shape of the Alamo on the roof.

Freetail Brewing Company has so many different beers to choose from you’ll have to come back every weekend before you can sample them all. Their newest beer, Velocihopter IPA, is an India Pale Ale made with natural, limestone filtered water and crystal & kiln Amber malts. On top of delicious brews, Freetail also crafts amazing food. Their specialty pizzas are to die for and you can’t leave without trying some Green Chile Mac n Cheese.

The Blue Star Brewing Company has been crafting delicious beers in San Antonio since 1996. With a short but definitely sweet menu of brews on tap, you are sure to enjoy their selections. Not only do they have amazing beers for you to sip, they have a great selection of food for you to snack on. They have everything from pulled pork cheese fries to fish tacos with pico de gallo. You won’t be able to resist their BBQ Chop Brisket.

These amazing breweries can’t be missed this weekend for International Beer Day on Friday. If you want to celebrate properly, you’ll have to visit at least one of these places. All of these breweries are within 30 minutes of the Residences at La Cantera Apartments so you don't have any excuses not to check them out! Don’t forget to bring your friends, commend the beer craftsmen, unite with others under the common love of all beers.


Additional Sources: Wikipedia