If you’re looking to break away from “sad desk lunch” or predictable dinners without breaking the bank in this new year, look no further than Culinaria’s Restaurant Week, Jan. 18-23.
Restaurant Week offers diners a chance to try out the best restaurants in San Antonio for a fraction of the regular price.
More than 60 participating restaurants will offer hungry patrons a three-course prix fixe menu. Each menu costs between $10 to $15 during lunch and $25 to $35 for dinner.
This is the perfect time to check out the city’s best new restaurants including Alchemy Kombucha and Culture, Folc, La Botanica and Rebelle. A single “big plate” at Sustenio at Eilan Hotel can cost upwards of $30, but the Restaurant Week dinner menu offers a three-course meal for $35. The portions may be smaller, but there are more options to enjoy.
Restaurant owners will donate $1 from every lunch menu and $2 from every dinner menu to Culinaria‘s not-yet realized Urban Farm project, a San Antonio-based nonprofit dedicated to food and wine education.
These are but a few suggestions for new places to eat, drink and share. For more information on Restaurant Week and other coming events, visit CulinariaSA.org.
Grayze on Grayson
The casual American eatery opened just a week ago at 521 E. Grayson St., but the restaurant was already packed for lunch on Monday.
Led by Chef Pedro Cuellar, formerly of Arcade Midtown, and TBA owner James Moore, the restaurant aims to become the neighborhood’s go-to spot.
“A lot of the menu came from the idea of ‘grazing,’ which applies to many different cultures,” Cuellar said. “It brings in a lot of dishes and flavors, and it’s fun.”
The Restaurant Week menu includes bites like Banh Mi chicken slider, soups of the day like rich curried black bean with cilantro crema, and fresh salads.
Restaurant Week will be the first time many diners visit Grayze, but the regular menu will also provide fun food and drink options like the “Lambshank Redemption” or the cocktails and cream sodas made in-house.
“People are hungry for this,” Cuellar said. ” This is a really good introduction to what people can try and expect to see on the menu.”
Zinc
Chef Robbie Nowlin, former executive chef at Hotel Valencia, has led Zinc and Boudro‘s since late last year.
His take on Restaurant Week dinner includes an impressive foie gras torchon, braised beef short rib and a Meyer lemon-blood orange curd with pistachio streusel.
Nowlin plans to unveil several new menu items at Zinc, 207 N. Presa, next month, but they will continue to reflect the restaurant’s food culture passed down by previous chefs.
“This could be seen as a small glimpse of what’s to come,” Nowlin said. “We’re not looking to replace what’s been done before, but we’re trying to build on that.”
*Top Image: The confit chicken Banh Mi slider at Grayze on Grayson during Restaurant Week. Photo by Lea Thompson.
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