Recreation

Brackenridge Park Golf Course

By Drew Henry

Are you looking for the perfect tee time in San Antonio? A little birdie has the scoop on the best time and courses for everyone from duffer to pro. Splurge on a cart, because we’re going to share the easiest way to book the best tee times in the city and at the best prices. Plus, we’ll be visiting a historic golf course that serves as home to the Texas Golf Hall of Fame, a rocking course built in a quarry, and a driving range that soars into the sky! Get your clubs; it’s time to hit the fairway.

Quarry Golf Course

ROUND OUT THE PAR-FECT DAY! Brackenridge Park contains over 300 acres of fun just north of downtown, including a driving range and putting green.

ALAMO CITY GOLF TRAIL Alamocitygolftrail.com

Alamocitygolftrail.com/brackenridge

Quarrygolf.com

Topgolf.com/us/san-antonio

Quarry Golf Course

Alamo City Golf Trail is the ultimate resource for the San Antonio golfer. Here, you may book at any of the city’s eight public courses, including Brackenridge Park, Cedar Creek, Mission del Lago, Northern Hills, Olmos Basin, Riverside, San Pedro, and Willow Springs. Additionally, you can easily research and compare courses for green and cart fees, slope ratings, the course architect, and maybe most importantly, if they have a snack bar. You can also purchase a membership that provides access to all eight courses at a discounted rate. Membership starts at $64.95 and is a great investment for the fun-seeking weekender. Hey, how about the gift of membership for the golfer in your life?

One very special course along the Alamo City Golf Trail is the Brackenridge Park Golf Course. This historic course is the oldest in San Antonio. “Old Brack” was designed by the famous golf course architect A. W. Tillinghast in 1916 and was restored to its former glory in 2008. It now reflects the original layout along with course condition upgrades that rival premier courses across the country. Now you can enjoy the classic sport as intended all those years ago. Old Brack is the perfect course for die-hard golf aficionados who love the history of the sport.

Brackenridge Park Golf Course is also the home of the first Texas Open. How cool would it be to play where the original pros played? It is also home to the Texas Golf Hall of Fame. Tour the beautiful trophy room located inside the clubhouse for some pregame inspiration. To add your name in the trophy room, you simply have to beat the odds of 12,000 to 1 of the average golfer making a hole-in-one.

Time for the next hole! The Quarry Golf Course is something truly special that golfers won’t find anywhere else. Keith Foster designed the course in 1993 in the hollowed-out grounds of San Antonio’s old cement quarry dating back to 1908. The quarry dig created striking views and challenging terrain. It is one of the top-rated courses in the city, has been featured on the Discovery Channel, and is rated the seventh most unique course in the entire ROUND OUT THE PAR-FECT DAY! The Quarry Golf Course is located next to the Alamo Quarry Market, which features upscale shopping and entertainment. Browse the shops, grab an ice cream cone, and catch a movie after the game.

Topgolf

United States. This course truly offers a luxury experience that is unlike any course you’ve played before.

The front nine holes play in a links-style format and feature rolling hills, immaculate greens, and native Texas foliage. Now the back nine is where things get interesting. Get ready to enter the original quarry, where your shots will fly over large expanses with striking rock formations and smokestacks in the background. In addition to challenging greens and beautiful views, this course offers a high-end country club experience. You can dine at the Cementville Grille, which features a chef-inspired menu and views of the expanses. Cheers to the greatest game ever played!

Are you a bit of a golf novice but looking to get in on the fun of the game? Topgolf offers a bowling-ally-style driving range experience that is perfect for pros looking to work on their long game or newbies looking to have a good time. This is definitely an elevated golf experience, as the bays tower into the sky! There are four-floors with over 100 airconditioned driving bays where you can team up with friends, order cocktails, appetizers, and mouthwatering meals like juicy burgers and crispy fries. Take turns shooting into holes from your hitting bay, as you chill out and watch TV, have a bite, and a drink or two. ROUND OUT THE PAR-FECT DAY! Topgolf is near La Cantera and The Rim. These are two of San Antonio’s premier shopping destinations. Stroll through luxury department stores as well as some of your favorite fashion go tos. Then, take the opportunity to wrap up your day with delicious meals from Texas favorites like Whiskey Cake. Word of advice, you have to get the whiskey cake dessert! (You will thank me later.)

The fun doesn’t stop there. You can also check out the rooftop terrace, the arcade, and fan-favorite party games like giant Jenga. Kick back and relax as you bask in the sunset with views over the Texas hills. We don’t think it can get much better than this! This golf experience is great for friends, families, business groups, and more. No matter the crowd, it’s sure to be a hole in one.

Drew Henry is a writer, content creator, and founder of the Design Dudes blog. When he’s not writing, he’s out exploring all Texas has to offer. View his work at DrewHenryWrites. com and get some home design tips at DesignDudesLife. com. Follow on Instagram: @design_dudes.

After two decades, the incredible team at Biga on the Banks is feeling grateful.

Twenty years ago, Chef Bruce Auden opened the doors to a place that has become a staple of the downtown San Antonio food scene. Over the years, those same faces have consistently been a part of birthdays, anniversaries, engagements, and holiday celebrations; and are still the faces greeting guests, serving food as well as hospitality, and building friendships tableside. And although they may have a few more wrinkles and grey hair, those same smiles still light behind the eyes of a team this city has come to think of as family.

Even 2020 hasn’t been able to stop the Biga team. In a year filled with uncertainty, Biga on the Banks has remained a welcoming space to feel that sense of warmth and reliability that guests truly appreciate.

“You don’t get to 20 years without creating relationships,” said Director of Special Events, Perny Shea.

Shea said since the restaurant reopened this fall, guests have been calling to book reservations for everything from birthday parties and weddings to intimate tastings with chef-selected five-course customized menus and wine and tequila pairings. The bar has returned to life with friends meeting for drinks and light bites, and she said guests have been eager to return because Biga has always been a place they can count on—and that matters now more than ever.

With intimate two-top tables with privacy curtains and outdoor fresh-air dining, guests feel safe sitting down to the comfort foods they’ve missed. There’s more to the slowcooked beef short ribs and smashed Yukons than flavor. There’s an unspoken element of familiarity and continuity.

Biga on the Banks is also one of the only downtown dining spots with the capacity to hold socially distanced large parties. With an expandable banquet room, Biga can host up to 60 people while keeping space and maintaining an inviting, but private, atmosphere.

And new Biga fans—or BigAmigos—are born every day. The $35 three-course prix fixe menu is the perfect way to ease into the waters of fine dining, offering a taste of refinement before diving into duck confit on your own.

And if you manage a way to look up from your plate, you’ll be hard-pressed to find better riverside views than the open-air seating on the Biga balcony. Time slows down a bit when you’re sipping a hand-crafted cocktail and enjoying light bites from the bar while

overlooking the city and the iconic San Antonio River.

After decades in the industry, Chef Bruce has created a culinary incubator at Biga, mentoring some of the best and brightest young chefs in the business, who, in turn, have brought distinct flavor and inspiration from across the globe to the plates and palates of Biga guests.

At Biga, things are ever-changing and yet reassuringly consistent. The apple-smoked salmon chalupa may pop on the menu, but guests know that at the end of it all, the sticky toffee pudding — and the team they’ve come to know as family — will always be around with the warmth and comfort of a place we know and love, as Biga.