By: Paul Stephen | From: San Antonio Express News

 

The past few years  have been a major bummer, to put it mildly, for the city's dining scene. The COVID-19 pandemic upended any sense of business-as-usual in 2020, and that indignity was chased with rampant staffing shortages, skyrocketing food costs and supply chain headaches that ultimately proved terminal for many restaurant operators.

But it's hard to keep a good city down for long. And San Antonio, it's among the best.

This year welcomed a wide range of new properties to the city's food game, from out-of-state coffee chains launching multiple locations, mom-and-pop food trucks that took the brick-and-mortar plunge, ambitious cathedrals of fine-dining grandeur and everything in between.

There were casualties along the way. Venerable institutions such as the Pig Stand, Earl Abel's, Grady's BBQ and Twin Sisters Bakery & Cafe all locked the doors for good this year. Those four business alone had a combined 308 years of service to the city.

2022 RECAP: These are the San Antonio restaurants that opened and closed in 2022

But it wasn't all bad news for beloved San Antonio institutions. Several have expanded their footprints. Bombay Bicycle Club, which debuted in 1973, launched a new location in Hemisfair in October. Tycoon Flats, with 40 years of burger-slinging experience on the St. Mary's Strip, added a new spot on Austin Highway earlier this month.

Whether it’s a relaxed wine bar amid the ruins of the historic Hot Wells resort, a swanky ramen shop with California-street cred, a taste of sliders done Michigan-style or a good, old-fashioned enchilada combo plate, you can find it all at the city's Top 50 most notable restaurant openings of 2023.