5 Quick San Antonio Bites: Puffy Tacos, Two Barbecue Stops, and a Curry-Barbecue Fusion Sandwich

Tex-Mex, puffy tacos

Get: A shrimp plate, a puffy taco, and a guacamole salad

Our first stop, just a few minutes from the airport, and it set the tone for the trip: no lines, local prices, and food that came out in about five minutes. The puffy taco is the specialty, fried until the shell turns almost doughy, like a flour tortilla puffed up and fried, stuffed with well-seasoned ground beef. The guacamole salad, loaded with vegetables, was the priciest thing on the menu at around $20, and even the beans on the side won us over despite not usually being fans. It felt like a locals' spot, not a tourist trap.

Texas barbecue

Get: A three-meat combo: four ribs, two slices of brisket, and a sausage, plus fried okra and spicy creamed corn

An incredible value at $19 for the whole spread. The marbled brisket was tender, smoky, with just a hint of sweetness and never greasy; the ribs had a fattier, smokier side we tried first, peppery with visible cracked pepper throughout, tasting almost like jerky in the best way. The jalapeño cheddar sausage was a highlight too. We called this our second dinner and figured the same spread would run at least double back home in LA.

Czech-Texan pastries

Get: A seasonal pumpkin spice kolache

Kolaches are Czech pastries that are genuinely everywhere in Texas, and we came a little late in the day so a lot of flavors had sold out, but the seasonal pumpkin spice one still held up: fluffy, surprisingly not too sweet, with more cinnamon flavor than actual pumpkin, almost like a denser version of a Chinese pineapple bun. Get there early if you want the full flavor lineup.

Thai-Vietnamese barbecue fusion, sandwiches

Get: A curry chicken salad sandwich and the "Tony Porker" pulled pork sandwich

A genuine Southeast Asian-barbecue fusion spot, and both sandwiches over-delivered. The curry chicken salad, built on smoked chicken with cilantro, onion, and curry powder, was savory with way more complexity than a typical chicken salad. But the Tony Porker pulled pork sandwich was the standout: next-level pulled pork with a curry flavor toasted right into the bread, only mildly spicy, which let the pork itself carry the sandwich instead of the heat.

Texas barbecue

Get: Chicken, brisket, unlimited pickles and iced tea, and banana pudding

A second barbecue stop on the same trip, and a real value: about $25 for enough smoky, juicy chicken and tender brisket for two of us, ready in about two minutes. The brisket here leaned less peppery and more straightforwardly smoky than our first barbecue stop of the day, less sweet and more savory. Unlimited pickles and iced tea were a nice touch, and we closed with banana pudding, creamy, not too banana-forward, with a good wafer-to-pudding ratio.