Chef Andrew Weissman, who owns a slew of restaurants in San Antonio, doesn't just travel for fun, he travels for food. "I don't have friends who don't travel for food," he tells Huffington Post Travel from his home in San Antonio.
With the town heading into its third day of Fiesta, a nearly two-week, city-wide party that no one really remembers the origins of ("I think it comes at the end of Lent, but if you asked people on the street, 9 out of 10 of them wouldn't know what they're celebrating," he tells HP), Huffington Post Travel talked with the San Antonio-reared chef about his favorite (and least favorite) spots in and around town, as well as his favorite destinations around the world.
On his favorite eats in San Antonio:
"I'm hugely into ethnic foods. My favorite is this super-off-the-radar Mexican place named after a metro stop in Mexico City called Metro Basilica. I also really like an Indian/Pakistani place called Kohinoor, that's owned by a family. The eighth grade daughter is a waitress and I always tell her 'make me whatever your dad wants.' They have this pickled mango that's a condiment, but I'll eat it in and of itself."
He has a few other favorites, including an unnamed taco truck on Commerce Street. And some new discoveries, too, such as the Monterey, a gastro-pub "with really delicious braised pork belly", and The Friendly Spot, with outdoor furniture on granite that serves beer and margaritas, tacos and other Tex-Mex type food.
As for his favorite hotels, he puts his family up in either of the "boutique-y" hotels, Watermark or Hotel Valencia, which sits on the River.
For more of his tips for San Antonio travelers, as well as his favorite spots around the world, check out the slideshow below.
