Food

Cooling Cocktails

Summer is already hitting, and these San Antonio-sourced mixed drinks can tame the heat

BY NINA RANGEL

It’s not yet summer in San Antonio, but everyone’s sure feeling it.

Higher-than-normal temperatures are baking the Alamo City, and there’s a good chance you’re already calling your friends with pools to beg for a quick dip.

However, there’s another way to beat the heat that doesn’t rely on someone else’s pricy backyard amenity or paying to have your own installed. Quenching cocktails can make the summer bearable, and all you need is a glass, some ice and a relatively well-stocked liquor cabinet.

We sourced these delightful drinks from a trio of San Antonio mixology masters specifi cally for their summer sippability.

La Cantera Resort & Spa off ered this fresh

and spicy bourbon cocktail, called the Honey Badger, specially designed for warm-weather sipping. It utilizes Alabama-born Clyde May’s Straight Bourbon, which is aged in oak barrels and fi nished with a hint of apple. Jalapeño-infused honey provides an earthy sweetness while lime and agave nectar scream “summertime!”

Honey Badger

1.5 ounces Clyde May’s Straight Bourbon 1.5 ounces jalapeño-infused honey 1 ounce fresh lime juice 1 ounce agave nectar Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and give them a vigorous workout. Pour into a rocks glass and garnish with fresh jalapeño slices.

Maverick Whiskey Distillery and Brewery

this month released the new tequila-inspired spirit Agave Blanco. Technically, the liquor can’t be called tequila, but it off ers similar fl avors including agave, green fruit, vanilla and honeysuckle. Like its Mexican inspiration, the new liquor also makes a hell of a paloma cocktail, which Maverick Chef and Beverage Director Joshua Albert serves with a salted rim.

“The paloma is a fruity, super-refreshing and easy-to-make twist on a margarita,” Albert said. “It is a perfect cocktail to enjoy poolside because you don’t need any bar tools to make it. Just add a few ingredients to your favorite glass with ice, and you’re ready to enjoy a tasty cocktail.”

Maverick Paloma

1.5 ounces Maverick Agave Blanco 1 ounce grapefruit juice .5 ounce simple syrup .25 ounce lime juice Sparkling water or club soda Agave Blanco, simple syrup and lime juice in a cocktail shaker and go after it. Strain over fresh ice in a salt-rimmed Collins or rocks glass and top with soda.

Bar Loretta, a newish Southtown spot with a fl air for seasonal cuisine, off ers the Jungle Bird cocktail for keeping the Texas summer at bay. A hot-weather favorite for home bartenders, this tiki classic is easy for amateurs since it contains only fi ve ingredients: rum, Campari, pineapple juice, lime juice and simple syrup. The pineapple and lime smooth any rough edges created by bi er Campari and add an expected tropical vibe.

Courtesy Photo / Bar Loretta

Jungle Bird

2 ounces Santa Teresa 1796 Solera Rum .5 ounce Campari 1.5 ounces pineapple juice, fresh, if possible .5 ounce fresh lime juice .5 ounce simple syrup

Fill a hurricane or pint glass with pebbled or crushed ice. Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake briefl y and briskly with a small amount of crushed ice to foam the pineapple juice. Dump all ingredients into your waiting glass and add a dome of fresh crushed ice atop to make it look enticing. Garnish, serve and enjoy.

For garnish, Bar Lore a drink chief Michael Neff suggests “anything fun.” He adds: “We use two pineapple fronds. An umbrella and some mint work as well.” If you don’t have crushed ice at your disposal, Neff suggests making your own by wrapping cubes from your freezer in a clean towel and hi ing them with a hammer, mallet or rolling pin. “Watch your fi ngers!” he warns.

Find more food & drink news at sacurrent.com

food

Ron Bechtol

Spice of Life

Fresh ingredients, techniques help Milpa at the Yard deliver on new insights to Mexican cuisine

BY RON BECHTOL

If you’re curious about the history of tacos árabes, the specialty of Chef Jesse Kuykendall’s Milpa in The Yard, the well-trained staff will be happy to oblige.

Just as a teaser, they involve the city of Puebla and Lebanese — some say Iraqi — immigrants reinventing a traditional Middle Eastern food in a new se ing. While we’re at it, we might as well also discuss the term “milpa.” It refers to a cornfi eld in which squash and beans may also be planted in a kind of synergistic mix.

None of that is essential to the enjoyment of the food at this modest dining spot set in a literal boxcar — there’s also a food truck that can regularly be found at Amor Eterno in Southtown — but it does help explain a holistic menu that has no trouble featuring both ultra-meaty carnitas and dried hibiscus blossoms.

Returning to the árabes, I can’t resist adding this commentary from the Serious Eats website: “It didn’t take long, in a country already enamored of wrapping meats and other savories in a soft corn tortilla, for the taco and the shawarma traditions to collide. The lamb quickly became pork, and the classic Middle Eastern yogurt sauces were joined (and then, often, replaced by) spicy Mexican chipotle sauce. The marinade for the meat, meanwhile, remained fairly similar to the Levantine original, heavy with cumin, oregano and onions. It’s hard to say whether the taco was shawarma-fi ed, or whether the shawarma was taco-fi ed — that’s perhaps an existential question with no real answer …”

Milpa comes down more on the shawarma side of things. The sauce is like a tzatziki with crisp, chopped cucumber blended into tart Mexican crema. The small fl our tortillas, custom made by Adelita’s Tamales and Tortillas, contain no lard, though you’d never know it. The pork they cradle is saucy and herbal. A bright fl ash of the house’s incendiary chile de arbol sauce adds welcome contrast.

I wasn’t quite as impressed by the tacos de carnitas, presented on puck-sized corn tortillas — also by Adelita’s and made from Texas corn. The rendered pork had good fl avor, and it was nicely balanced by mar-

MILPA AT THE YARD

5253 McCullough Ave. | (210) 990-2349 | Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 5 p.m.-9 p.m. milpasabor.com

Price range: $10.99-$12.99 Best bets: Tacos árabes, tacos de mollejas, spicy mushroom tacos, tacos de Jamaica, quesadilla frita, esquites. The skinny: Street tacos with a college education are the stars of chef Jesse Kuykendall’s food truck spinoff , located in the boxcar-based culinary incubators at The Yard. Don’t miss the specialty tacos árabes with their marinated pork bathed in a creamy sauce with cucumber and get bold with the vegan tacos de jamaica that make best use of dried hibiscus blossoms.

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inated onions fragrant with Mexican oregano, but it came across a li le dry after the lush creaminess of the árabes.

Carnitas are available at multiple places around town, however. Tacos de mollejas, not so much. Grab Milpa’s while they’re hot out of the fryer. The plump morsels of sweetbreads manage to be both crispy and creamy at once, and they’re irresistible with another jolt of that salsa roja. The tomatillo-based salsa verde is also perfectly fi ne, just not as tongue-tingling.

Moving away from meats, the quesadillas with Oaxacan cheese are a logical fi rst step on the way to a vegan fi nale. Milpa mixes its own masa for these, then fries the half-moon parcels for a crunchy bo om that contrasts appealingly with the sturdy cheese fi lling. It’s also available with a vegan, cashew-based “mozzarella.” If you order the quesadilla with chorizo, as we did, the crumbled sausage will cap the package in a way that doesn’t leave a rusty trail of grease in its wake. Sprinkles of corn and lashings of crema complete the composition.

The corn that accented the quesadilla can, and should, also be enjoyed with a full side of esquites — lightly grilled to a pleasantly chewy texture, slathered with crema and mayo, and dusted with queso fresco. Vegetarians — and curious carnivores — rejoice.

The accompanying charro beans made no a empt to be anything other than bacony and lacked the conviction of most other menu items. No yawns greeted the spicy mushrooms, however. They’re grilled until almost caramelized, make for a good vegan option, and are fi ne on both corn and fl our tortillas.

But for a full-on plunge into the vegan universe, the quartet of tacos with fl or de jamaica are a must-try. Many South Texas diners are familiar with jamaica in the form of an agua fresca. Cocktailians may also know that a syrup made from the dried blooms adds both magenta color and a tartly fruity edge to harder drinks.

But rehydrated, sautéed and paired with caramelized onion, a li le avocado and sliced radishes? Count me among those unaware the fl ower could star in a savory dish. There’s a nice “tooth” to the texture, and the fl avors skew lightly fl oral, although the onion adds the requisite bass notes.

Have these tacos. They’ll surprise you and may even open a door to further adventure in the corn patch of life.

Ron Bechtol

OPENINGS

Owners of drinkeries Green Lantern and Box Car have opened Witness Sporting Club, a new UTSA-area nightspot in the space that formerly housed Study Space. 7280 UTSA Blvd., Suite 101, Instagram.com/witness_satx. Antonio. Construction is expected to wrap up in six months.

Southtown’s Bar Lore a is up for a Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar honor at Tales of the Cocktail, a major mixology conference held in New Orleans.

Downtown San Antonio bar El Honky Tonk is now open and serving up Urban Cowboy vibes daily until 1 a.m. 316 N. Flores St., elhonkytonk.com.

New tapas and wine spot Hola! is now open in Southtown, off ering a small but cozy bar and dining room along with a patio with a view of the Tower of the Americas. 603 S. Alamo St., holatapas.net. The Rim shopping complex will gain two new fast-casual dining concepts later this year: pizza restaurant Via 313 and fried-chicken spot The Crack Shack.

Texas institution Shiner Beer has released ¡Órale!, a new Mexican-style Lager made with premium malt and lager yeast and brewed with agave.

This summer, San Antonio will become home to the fi rst Texas location of California-based burrito chain Iguanas Burritozilla. 4205 Fredericksburg Road, burritozilla.com. San Antonio-based Roadmap Brewing and Second Pitch Beer Co. snagged medals at the World Beer Cup, often referred to as the “Olympics of Beer Competitions.”

Early Bird Coff ee will trade in its vintage Airstream trailer digs for a brick-and-mortar location on the Northwest side this summer. 11745 Interstate Highway 10, Suite 527, instagram. com/earlybirdcoff ee.sa.

NEWS

Bar America owner Brian Correa has broken ground on Texas Dog Co. & Beer Garden, a new canine-focused drinking spot in Northwest San New pizza concept WonderSlice will open at the Pearl complex’s Bo ling Department food hall next month. It will showcase pies from acclaimed chef-owner Ben Schwartz.

The Nestle Toll House Café location in Culebra Commons has permanently closed.

Southtown barbecue joint Bandit BBQ shut its doors Sunday, May 8.