Acenar

Acenar - San Antonio, Texas - April 26, 2008

The GOOD: This is another Lisa Wong (of Rosario's fame) creation. The atmosphere is that of a hip, contemporary upscale bar located on the far end of the Riverwalk. The decor in this multi-level eatery is bright and upbeat with a very large outdoor patio. Although the patio offers a somewhat obstructed view of the Riverwalk, it is semi-private in the sense the tourists walking are not gawking while you eat. I ordered the Carnitas and Dianna ordered the Entomatadas (Fried Stuffed Tortillas).
The Carnitas were average and very, very lightly seasoned. I wish they had more seasoning. I made Carnita tacos using the tortillas at the table. To add some flavor I added sour cream, guac and salsa to the taco I made. The salsa is almost like Rosario's. The Rosario's salsa is my current favorite. After the additions to my self prepared taco I have to admit it was quite good. The amount of Carnitas on my sizzling skillet made two overstuffed tacos. The rice served was your typical Tex-mex rice. The charro beans were served as a plain bean broth cooked with non-smoky bacon. After eating 4 bowls of salsa and 2 large carnita tacos I decided to pass on the sides.
Dianna's meal was very interesting. The menu description of the Entomatadas sounded very similar to flautas. For the most part they were flautas. What made them unique was that they were served with a roasted tomato sauce poured over the flautas. This sauce did not have any hint of chili powder or jalapeno. If I had to guess, this sauce was made from a roasted tomato puree that was lightly salted and seasoned with a little bit of garlic. The Entomatadas were supposed to be stuffed with chicken and sweet potato. The sweet potato seemed to be missing from the filling but, there were finely shredded tortilla like strips on top of the flautas that might have been sweet potato. Nevertheless, Dianna enjoyed the Entomatadas.
I would revisit Acenar but, I think we would definitely try 2 new selections and, a few of the drinks off of the "Latin" menu.

The BAD: Another Tex-Mex eatery without draft beer. There is a large selection of bottled beer and a very appealing "Latin" drink menu, including the Tuna, a prickly pear margarita.

The UGLY: Acenar does not offer corn tortillas. Instead they offer very good homemade flour tortillas and, very doughy gorditas that weren't much larger than a silver dollar. I prefer to eat carnitas on corn vs. flour taco. I did try the gordita but, decided to forgo the corn medallions for some more hot, homemade flour tortillas.

Final Thoughts: We will return to eat here again but, probably not on our next trip to San Antonio.

The RATING:
3 out of 5 Salsa Bowls