sarah's sustainable life

this past saturday i decided to wake the whole family bright and early and venture out to the farmer’s market at the pearl brewery downtown. though the selection was small, the atmosphere was pleasant. i had some wonderful tea, richard sampled a shot of bantai civet, and josiah squirmed and fussed through a bbq demonstration. i could not have done all my shopping here, but what they had was very nice.

i enjoyed the farmer's market more than josiah!

san antonio has a reputation for having a poor selection of farmer’s markets. richard and i recently attended a cooking class focused on cooking with local ingredients where we received an exhaustive list of area farmer’s markets; i was impressed with how many there are! i have passed that list onto you here with a word of encouragement to visit your nearest farmer’s market and give it a try. support your local farmers and spread the word that san antonio is a greener city than most believe!

walking at the pearl brewery

*pearl brewery farmer’s market association
*san antonio farmer’s market association (7 locations)
*south texas farmer’s market association (8 locations)
*tri-county farmer’s market association (2 locations)

when the special occasion comes to eat out, how do you choose your restaurant? price should certainly be a factor, but not the only factor. one of the features of san antonio that richard and i have enjoyed the most is the abundance of local, independent restaurants. coming from an area of the country that was almost exclusively chain restaurants, it has been an exciting adventure to try new cuisine. here are a few of our top choices:

the cove – located very near downtown san antonio, the cove has a unique ambiance. it seems quite like an old bar with live music most nights of the week (not the type of place i would usually enjoy), but the food is amazing! they specialize in local, organic food, and many of their disposables are 100% recycled corn plastic. they are known for their fish tacos. if you visit there, i recommend the vegetarian sampler plate with two types of hummus, pita wedges, falafel & tzatziki, and a moroccan sweet potato salad that i would probably kill somebody for.

texas farm to table – this little café is right next to the historic pearl brewery and the new section of the riverwalk. just as the name implies, here you will be feasting on local, organic meats, dairy, fruits, and veg. they also have an impressive selection of hot teas. this is a great place to visit on saturday; you could shop the pearl brewery farmer’s market, then feast! i recommend the roasted veg sandwich with hummus.

green – san antonio’s only exclusively vegetarian restaurant, green is so named because of its business practices. an admirable venture, this is a restaurant that deserves a try, even if you are not a vegetarian. richard loves the veg burger with sweet potato fries, while i prefer the neatloaf, kale salad, and brown rice.

twin sisters bakery + cafe’ – touted as the best veg burger in san antonio, twin sister’s has two locations. I’ve only ever visited the alamo heights store. i’ve yet to try the veg burger, but was highly unimpressed with the tofu rancheros.

what are some of the unique, local restaurants in your area? any with green business practices?