Tomfoolery at the Alamo! A clean comedy adventure through one of America's oldest cities

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0:10

Welcome back to Tomfoolery in Hullabaloo, the podcast designed to make you laugh and think.

Man, today we are going to be talking about one of life's journeys, one of our favorite parts of our lives.

And you know, it seems like it's been a long time.

0:26

I'm actually glad to be back in studio talking with you and we get to talk about something that we're both super passionate about.

Absolutely.

So today we're going to take you to San Antonio.

San Antonio, TX Let's go.

It's a town that both Scott and I have lived in.

My roots run really deep there.

So, Scott, tell us a little bit bit about your connection to San Antonio.

0:43

Well, if someone were to ask me where I'm from right now, I would say Del Rio, TX because I've lived here the longest.

But if somebody wants to know where I grew up, I always say San Antonio.

My dad was in the Air Force.

We got stationed there when I was in 7th grade and we lived there until I enlisted in the Air Force.

And when I moved away, I only moved three hours away to Del Rio.

1:02

And my parents stayed up until 2015 just recently, but then we moved back to Del Rio.

And so it's San Antonio is where I say that my, my roots are.

That's where I really became a an American was in San Antonio, TX.

That's right, my my grandparents are both from San Antonio and they they grew up in separate parts of the city, very different lives.

1:23

They let my grandmother grew up on a dairy farm outside of Helotes with her twelve siblings and rodeo arena and they lived a Country Life in San Antonio and at that time it was outside of the town right The.

Lotus was very far away then.

1:40

It was and then my grandfather grew up in Alamo Heights, which is dead center.

It's it was vibe, A vibrant community.

His dad worked downtown for southwestern Bell.

He went to Alamo Heights High School.

His sister went to Incarnate Ward College.

1:57

And so they they they put down their roots there.

They met because my grandfather rode Bulls and Bronx at my grandmother.

So they had to go out they.

Had to go out of town to the rodeos every Sunday that my great grandfather hosted and then I lived in San Antonio two years after I graduated from college.

2:14

I love the city, it's one of my favorite places.

Yeah, I mean, I'm from San Antonio like 1995, like that's, that's the San Antonio I know, but it's growing so much.

Speaking about where your grandmother was from Helotes, it's now a a suburb really of San Antonio.

You don't know you're out.

2:30

You've left, right?

You have barely left the city.

I went back to San Antonio for a funeral for a high school friend of mine and my friends were like where when are you going to move back to San Antonio?

And I said, well, at the rate San Antonio was growing, I already live in the suburbs 3 hours away here in Del Rio.

2:47

Yeah, it's our nearest large city, so we growing up, we've made weekend trips all the time.

Just go spend a couple nights, go to the mall, go downtown, make the.

Drive from here to San Antonio is just.

It's not bad part of life, it's straight, it's where we play all our sporting events.

3:04

But I I now could not see myself moving back.

It has grown so much.

Since Oh yeah, it would be very hard for me to to move back as well it But I mean, I have a lot of roots there.

You know, I graduated from high school there.

I met Kristen there.

She was working there.

We got married there the first year of our marriage.

3:21

I commuted right from Del Rio back to San Antonio.

I was driving there two or three times a week.

She stayed there, Yeah.

So let's start with some rapid fire questions.

OK, let's go.

Puffy tacos or traditional tacos?

I mean, I'm a traditional Taco.

Ohh man I love a puffy Taco.

Yeah, I I mean, I do love the puffy Taco, but and for me, just a street Taco is, is the way.

3:40

To go.

You do love a street Taco, the puffy Taco, if they take the raw corn tortilla dough and they drop it in oil and it puffs up.

Yeah.

And so it cooks into this almost like a ball, and they pull it out of the fryer and stick a spatula in it and then fill it.

3:56

So you've got this airy, bubbly fried Taco shell.

Yeah, it's like a sopapilla, but not really.

Yeah.

So it's yeah, you can't go wrong with puffy tacos.

So if you haven't had one, San Antonio is the only place I've ever seen them.

Well, me too.

I mean that puffy tacos is just a San Antonio San.

4:12

Antonio thing.

Yeah.

All right.

What is your Do you prefer the River Walk or the Pearl District?

So 1990s me River walk for sure.

Because the Pearl District was a, was a, was where you dealt, dealt the drugs.

That's where everybody went to go do bad stuff.

4:27

That's right.

But when we go to San Antonio now, we very rarely go down to the River Walk.

We usually land at the Pearl.

If we're going to meet somebody in San Antonio, we invite them to the Parole because it's just it's more modern, it's more vibrant, it just feels more different.

Yeah, yeah.

4:42

And it's not overdone yet.

It will, I'm sure at some point.

But I agree, growing up, I remember driving by the Pearl and just imagining what that looked like in its heyday.

Yeah, and I never thought it would happen.

But thank goodness downtowns get revitalized.

4:59

People are seeing the value in these old historic.

Structures they turned the the Pearl District is an old beer brewery and they turn part of it into a hotel and that's really nice.

And there's a bunch of places to eat.

There's a culinary school that's there.

Super cool.

5:15

The stable of the horse stable, because back in the heyday of the Pearl they were carting beer around the city by horse and buggy, is now a concert venue, and I've been to a concert there.

I had a friend have her wedding reception there.

5:30

Yeah, we took our our dog Jewels down there because in the little dog park we found out Jewels is not a dog park kind of dog.

So.

She's not a dog.

She's an inside dog.

She's not a real dog, she's more like a stuffed animal.

She is a stuffed animal.

She just wanted to be carried around and didn't want anybody to touch her so.

Yeah, but the Pearl District and I was living there as it was resurging.

5:49

And so at first there was one restaurant and one little shop as they kind of built it out.

So by the time I moved away, it was not vibrant.

And going back to visit it, I just, I love seeing what it's become.

Yeah, for sure.

Hit up the farmers market there on Saturdays if you're ever in town.

So what is your favorite Fiesta event?

6:06

So this is a hard, hard one for me because I love Fiesta.

I mean, I grew up, I was in marching band and we marched the Fiesta parade every year and it really kind of set me up for failure for other parades, you know, just marching the whole thing, playing music the entire time.

I really like NIOSA now as an adult.

6:25

As a kid, I would fantasize about going to NIOSA, which is night in Old San Antonio.

And I, I just, I love all of the Fiesta things.

Absolutely.

It's like our Mardi Gras.

Right it is that's a that's a great and we'll talk more about it on the episode.

If you aren't familiar with Fiesta, but the battle of flowers parade is is pretty incredible.

6:43

But the whole 2 weeks is amazing and I love it.

That's great.

Well, let me throw this one to you, OK?

I didn't even know how to answer it.

SeaWorld over Six Flags.

So I've been to Six Flags, I don't know, 25 times, and I've been to SeaWorld twice.

6:59

Yeah.

So it's really hard for me to compare because the last time I went to SeaWorld, I was pregnant with Hudson, so I didn't do anything.

The first time I went I was 3 and I don't remember anything so I was going.

To make a whale.

Joke.

No, there was Shamoo spottings everywhere.

7:16

I in Hudson used to call him shampoo, which I just love.

And those are those things you don't want to correct your kids.

Like the other one he always said was gobbles.

Mama, wear my gobbles for goggles.

Goggles.

Yeah.

So, honey, put on your gobbles and let's go see shampoo.

7:32

Well.

Since you're embarrassing Hudson, Jack used to say Sketty for spaghetti and then smooly for smoothie as so adorable we never fixed.

It no.

Is he still do that?

We do it now I'm going to take him to smooly king after his golden day.

Oh, I still do.

I'm like, boys, get your gobbles and they're like stop.

7:48

Yeah, I can't.

And he used to call Kate.

His older sister used to call her Yaya.

And so we still address Kate to Jack as Yaya.

Like, go get your Yaya and let's go.

I love that.

Yeah.

Pretty cute.

What about you?

As a teenager, we had season passes to Six Flags, but that was before it was Six Flags.

8:06

It was just Fiesta Texas, right?

And so.

And it was great.

It was so great the the Rattler roller coaster there was.

My neck is still messy like.

Literally killing people on it.

And I, I went back with my kids just a few years ago and I was telling them, oh, this is going to be so lame.

8:24

And Will, my 18 year old leaned because I just freaked out because the rattler was so much fun and I wasn't expecting it to be fun.

And I was like, oh, this is so cool.

This is so great.

And Will was like, you've never been more old.

I was.

Like, oh.

8:40

Thank you because I was just enjoying it, but I have a lot of memories of SeaWorld as well.

We used to go at Christmas time when they would Christmas slides.

You've talked about that on this.

And we would have, you know, kids singing during the Shamu show.

And it was, it was great.

8:56

And we didn't do Kate very well.

And she had oral surgery and then we took her in a wheelchair.

The whole time and bless her heart.

Apparently she remembers the whole thing, so I feel really bad about that, but.

Where?

Where do you like to take out of town visitors first in San Antonio?

I mean, I would have to be the River walk.

9:12

I mean, it's just, it's so iconic.

And then taking them on the River walk and then coming out to the Alamo because you can walk a certain way and they're renovating it now.

So maybe the same way I used to walk doesn't exist anymore, but you used to be able to walk right out of the Riverwalk, through a hotel and up facing the Alamo.

9:28

Because Alamo, if you don't know, is right downtown, between all the skyscrapers and.

Supposedly there's an ordinance that prevents a building from coming up behind it so you can continue to take great pictures of it unobstructed.

Yeah, so the Crockett Hotel is directly behind it, and so they can't really build anything that close anyway.

9:47

But I've heard the same thing, yeah.

I I agree you the Riverwalk.

And what's amazing is it's other cities study the Riverwalk.

Yeah, no one can reproduce it, right.

That was in Oklahoma City downtown.

They have a Little River and they're called.

Bricktown.

And I love Bricktown.

10:03

It's not the Riverwalk.

It is not.

It's great for its own reasons.

But they had a river through it and they had like the river boats, but it's not the same because of the Cypress trees and the history and the huge buildings around the Riverwalk and.

City and those riverboat tours are so informative.

10:18

They really are.

That's what wrote.

This podcast was my last riverboat tour.

I used to tell Kristen that I would retire out of the Air Force and become one of those river guides.

You would be so good at that.

I would be.

Pretty good at it, maybe that'll be my second.

Return.

I could do it too.

But truly, like, if you go to San Antonio, don't sleep on a riverboat tour, you got to do it.

10:38

They're free and everyone has their own little spin on it, but you got to get the history from them.

What is your favorite San Antonio restaurant that is not Tex Mex?

If it exists, I don't know.

That's hard, because when we go to San Antonio now, I only want the Tex Mex, but I would.

10:55

All right.

I'm going to be a little cheesy, I guess.

There's a little place that's called Easy's Cafe and they do like brick oven pizzas and milkshakes like it's A and it's probably not even nice anymore.

But in 2001 I took my wife, my future wife there on our first date, so I.

11:12

And asked her three questions.

I did.

Questions.

We talked about that on the podcast.

She's still with me 23 years later.

We've been married now for 23 years, together for 25 years.

I don't know how, but it works.

But yeah, Easy's would have to be my favorite because of that, I think.

Yeah, my favorite restaurant that it's a must eat at is called Boudreaux's and it's not Tex Mex, but it's Southern influence it's.

11:35

Butt paste.

No, it's spelled differently than the butt paste.

It's like a Cajun Tex Mex place.

Great steaks, the best margaritas, tableside guacamole, the shrimp and grits is outstanding.

That sounds amazing.

11:51

It is, but bar none, I mean, we've been eating there for over 20 years.

Favorite restaurant on the Riverwalk?

And then second to that would be Paisano's, which is like an Italian restaurant on the Riverwalk.

And they have a dish called shrimp Paisano that is incredible.

My mom has made it.

12:07

She has the recipe and I need to do it because it's it's an outstanding restaurant.

Kristen and Kate really like an Italian restaurant that's in, I don't even know what it's called anymore, The Rim.

Maggiano's.

Maggiano's Yeah, they.

But that's a chain.

You can eat it at Maggiano's anywhere in the.

12:23

World.

I did not know that.

Yeah, they got that's like, it's like saying Johnny Carino's is her favorite fish.

Don't even know what that is.

Well, those are out of business, but yeah, no, Paisano's I think is specific to South Texas.

OK, yeah.

12:39

So anyways, that's y'all, y'all need to go to Boudreau's sometime.

We're gonna.

But, you know, we've got to do better at coordinating our schedules and taking a.

Family trip, yeah.

To San Antonio.

Where was that place that we did eat at?

I know there's one in Houston as well, but it had like, it was like a open venue.

12:58

Oh the yeah, the rustic.

The Rustic yeah, that was really nice too, because they do like live music and tapas and is just is just a good that's a.

Cool place.

Agree.

All right, final question.

I'm going to do Breckenridge Park or Hemisphere Park.

13:15

OK, so I'm going to say Breckenridge Park because I love the zoo and maybe it's beautiful.

It is beautiful.

It's a great zoo.

And you know, the dad and me loved taking our kids to the San Antonio Zoo, but I also love Hemisphere Park.

Like at New Year's Eve, my, my brother and my best friend and I used to get a hotel room and every New Year's Eve we would go down and we would just have a blast at our own little, you know, San Antonio party.

13:44

Well, and so him is Breckenridge Park has got part of the river in it.

It has the the zoo, the zoo train, it has the sunken gardens.

Museums.

The witty Museum, I think the witty.

Museum is nearby.

All of that is fabulous, but the the Cypress trees around it have grown up.

14:04

You can hardly see the sunshine and it's a beautiful park.

Kristen is crawling through, which is why our cameras are jumping.

That's already doing this, Yeah.

And then Hemisphere Park was.

They tore down a bunch of old German homes, wooden homes.

There's a few still left to host the World's Fair.

14:22

Yeah.

And they created. 1968 I think.

Yes, the 1968 World's Fair and they they constructed the pavilions in that area.

Again, it was kind of desolate the last 20-30 years and it's had a resurgence.

14:38

There's still some of those old German homes that are preserved that had ice cream in one ice cream shop in one.

There is an old, now there's a pizzeria dough pizzeria.

It's one of our favorite pizza places in San Antonio is in one of those old buildings and they've put in a kids splash pad park so that we often get a hotel right across the street from that park because it's a great, like we're not in a tourist trap.

15:02

We don't have to spend money to go to a museum and the kids get to play and have a good time, so they're both great.

So you got to check them both out.

They're both amazing.

OK, this is going to be the top ten list for today and I man this was a hard list to write.

15:17

Scott and I are doing our best to get you some hidden gems about San Antonio.

But there's so many things like to narrow down to 10 is almost.

We may have to have a second episode, or at least this will create some offshoots.

Well, let's just say this is our first love letter to the city of San Antonio.

That sounds great.

15:33

Yeah.

OK, so the top ten historical facts about San Antonio Antonio, in no particular order.

We'll start with #10 you go ahead.

OK, so San Antonio is one of the oldest cities in the United States.

If you did not know this, I love this about San Antonio.

It was founded on May 1st, 1718 by Spanish explorers and missionaries.

15:54

The missions in San Antonio was one of my favorite things.

That's almost 60 years before the Declaration of Independence.

That's crazy.

That's how old we are.

And we weren't like part of the United States, right We.

Spain.

Spain got us.

Right.

San Antonio was founded by Spanish missionaries.

16:12

We were part of of Spain and the the mission that started it was the San Antonio de Valero, which is now called the Alamo, and then the Presidio San Antonio de Behar, which Behar is the county now it's Bear County, but BEXAR Bear and it's named for Saint Anthony.

16:31

And you're going to have to say the last part of.

It of Padua.

Padua.

That's not how I would have said that at all.

And part of New Spain, yeah, right.

Because that's what it wasn't called Mexico.

It was.

It's not yet Mexico, New Spain give it 100.

Years.

So it was a Spanish colony and the influence is still visible, is still a big part of it.

16:49

Spanish, German, just all things Texan.

That's right.

Wonderful.

So #9 the San Antonio missions were established and they were more than just churches.

So getting back into your early colonization history, the Spanish were coming over and trying to convert indigenous people to Catholicism.

17:07

They, it's a, it's a twisted and torrid history, but right or wrong, they were trying to convert the indigenous people to Christianity and Catholicism.

And the missions were a way to fortify themselves against attacks.

They created farms, they created schools.

17:24

They were communities, communities within themselves.

And, and this was a really heavy concentration of them, almost like it was a border of missions, probably trying to prevent the Comanche, which were a western, very tough indigenous tribe, which is why I think we see so many forts here in San Antonio, five of them.

17:43

And they were calling Mission San Antonio de Valero, the Alamo from early on.

And I don't know why we should have looked that up, but it was does the Alamo for for an early time.

So the when you come to San Antonio, you can bike, you can walk, you can just drive.

18:02

Even do like 1/2 marathon where you run by all of them, yeah.

Yeah.

So you've got to check out all 5 missions.

They're all different, They're unique.

There is the Mission San Jose, which is the largest.

It was the most successful of them.

It's a beautiful.

18:17

Hands down my favorite one.

Yeah, it is so cool.

I liked Mission Espada which is the smallest one and.

It was just kind of in a field and it's.

The furthest had the.

Bells had.

An aquacia, a little Aqua duck that ran to it because it's not on the river, so it had water coming from the river to it.

18:35

And four, including Espada.

So all of them but the Alamo are current active Catholic parishes today.

And it was set up as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2015, saying that it gives outstanding value to humanity.

18:52

The reason I love San Jose so much is that it still stands as as close to as it could have in the 17.

Hundreds.

They preserved it.

Beautiful.

Still has the wall, still has the Chapel, still has all the outbuildings and stuff.

And so it, it's what I was expecting the Alamo to be when I was a 13 year old and we were going to see the Alamo.

19:10

It was what I was expecting.

I wasn't expecting to just see a Chapel and that's all.

The Alamo.

And so I'm just for the historical context, not the Alamo was used in the Battle of the Alamo.

Which is why it's more famous than.

Other, that's why we all know that one, but also the city of San Antonio was closest to it right via San Antonio, which is where NIOSA kind of is now.

19:33

All of that, I think the reason that it grew up more urban than those other missions was just its proximity to where the city was establishing.

Right.

And it was just building around it, not thinking about the historical value.

Of they were not thinking about.

This is it's right on the main part of the San Antonio River, huge water flow.

19:50

I mean, that's just where.

It is.

This is part of it.

Yeah, so let's talk about the Alamo.

So #8 on our list is the Battle of the Alamo.

And if you didn't know, it actually lasted for 13 days.

There's.

Quite a few movies about this battle, but you know none of them are quite accurate.

20:05

I love the John Wayne one but it's probably the most inaccurate of how they all went down.

But February 23rd through March 6th of 1836 during the Texas Revolution, 200 Texians and Tejano defenders and 1000.

I thought it was 6000.

20:22

Yeah, 6000 estimates of thousands.

Yeah, by a General Santana and he which is.

Santana Anna, which is.

Really.

Cool, not the musician.

Musician Santa Anna.

Santana was not.

Leading to not sound as white as I actually am.

I was going to say Santa Anna, but what Sarah and I actually doing the the research for this episode, we both kind of nerded out here recently because of the path that he took from Mexico City up to San Antonio.

20:51

He was pretty close.

He came like through the Eagle Pass area, which is only 45 minutes away from here.

So it's not far at all.

I'm rereading a book called The Gates of the Alamo.

Yeah, not for young readers, it has some adult content in it, but for all of you adults who are looking for a book, it's one of my favorites.

21:08

It is historical fiction, but it takes like 8 players some some real.

A couple were fictionalized and it weaves their story together in the year leading up to the siege for Stephen F Austin was imprisoned in Mexico a year before the Battle of the Alamo and you get to see him in Mexico City interacting with Santa Ana.

21:34

And you see Travis in East Texas meeting up with his wife to give her a divorce so he can move on.

Oh, it's it's my favorite.

Highly recommend it.

I read it 5 or 6 years ago and I wanted to reread it because I did remember enjoying it so much.

But my favorite point of this movie, I mean of this book, which was it snowed in northern Mexico and Texas in February before this battle, that is February 23rd to March 6th.

22:03

And the Mexican army was not revisioned.

They were, they were already very poor.

They were bankrupt from their independence from Spain.

They they all wore sandals.

They didn't have wool coats.

And they got a hit by a snowstorm in northern Mexico as they were trying to come up, which I think is why the siege lasted so long.

22:23

The fighting lasted 90 minutes at the Battle of the Alamo, but they the guys had to rest and recuperate and get rid of some frostbite right before they were able.

Santa Ana came with 1000 troops, and then he had two other generals come on and meet him.

And that's when they decided, OK, we're, we're going to, we're going to actually take it.

22:42

And there's, you know, some political debate about whether it was right or wrong for us to defend the Alamo and what the motivation from William Travis or even Davy Crockett or Jim Bowie, who are all very famous guys.

Victory or death is what William Travis wrote in his letter.

22:59

Such a good letter.

Such a good letter.

He was asking for reinforcements and he said we're going to defend it.

Victory or death, please send you know the the troops.

Which it just to backtrack, a lot of people don't realize we took the Alamo from the Mexican and then they came back and took it again.

23:17

But that's a part of the story.

Like we weren't camped out in the Alamo unscathed.

We want a battle that no one ever talks about because there weren't as many folks in in there.

That's when Santa Ana was like, OK, we got to come get this thing under control and First things first, we're going to take the Alamo.

23:33

Back, right, well, and Sam Houston actually sent Travis there to demolish the Alamo, right?

And he said, I want you to take it down and then come meet me back in San Jacinto.

And when he got there, he saw the state of the the people.

And he just made that command decision there.

We need to defend this and that decision, right or wrong, whether we took it from the the the the Texans took it from the Mexicans, right or wrong, fighting for your own independence.

23:59

That battle galvanized the Texans against the the Mexicans.

Maybe there was a before then there was an opportunity to.

Negotiate.

Negotiate and stay part of Mexico, but that battle and what you know, the 2000 to 6000 Mexicans taking out 183 Texans, just everybody's like, Nope, remember the Alamo?

24:19

We're not we're not going down.

And I mean, part of the Texas culture and the pride in the our big shoulders, you know, comes from that.

And then the first battle where we stole a Mexican cannon and they asked for it back and they said come and take it.

Our first flag had one star on it and a cannon that says come and take.

24:36

It Yeah, we love that flag still.

Well, I I think it still should be our Texas flag.

I had a soccer coach in high school that had moved here from Minnesota and we I was a goalie and she was doing a warm up drill.

She was new to town and we're more.

She's warming me up in the goal and she's just talking and she's teaching history at to high school and coaching soccer.

24:54

And she goes, what's the deal with the Alamo?

And I was like, yeah.

Let me.

Tell you, I'm so sorry, what is kind of a question is that and what what history have you learned?

It was just so funny to have a person.

I was like do y'all not have state pride like this in Minnesota?

Like you guys, you.

Don't have a story like this?

25:10

You don't have people with a tattoo of your state on their arms everywhere.

I don't think you can coach me soccer if you can.

Well another little piece of the Alamo it to our little local history here in Del Rio 25 miles outside of town is another town called Bracketville and John Wayne came out to Bracketville and built Alamo village out on a ranch out there and filmed on location here and.

25:34

He built a historically accurate set.

He built the Alamo, the size that it was, and even me, I think you were able to go.

And I was when I was young.

And young and then I was able to go in my early 20s and they they closed it down because of insurance reasons.

You can't tour it now, but it's so cool, I mean.

25:51

It was so.

Cool.

And they filmed a whole bunch of other movies there.

And Lonesome Dove, which is a big mini series, was filmed here.

A lot of Del Rio folks are extras in in those.

And they talk about running into the actors in town and different things.

26:07

So yeah, we've got a bit of a really cool cinematic history in our region.

Yeah.

San Antonio has been part of six different nations.

Yeah.

First Spain, 1718 to 1821.

France, briefly.

They did it.

26:22

The 1700s, they never really controlled it, but they did lay claim to this part of Texas Mexico after Mexican Mexico won its independence.

Longer than you think. 1821 to 1836 is pretty good.

Pretty.

Good.

Republic of Texas, Yeah.

26:38

And we were our own country for a little while.

Then we became part of the United States from 1845 to 1861.

Then we seceded from the Union.

We.

Went that way and you know not you're welcome.

26:54

But Juneteenth, the reason we get that day off is because of Texas history.

Was the last the actual real battle of the Civil War?

Because we didn't.

We didn't.

Know it was over, so we were still fighting.

Fought one more battle.

I mean, it took a long time to get that news here.

27:10

And then we rejoin the United States again.

And all these influences are what makes San Antonio so unique.

There's visible culture, Spanish language, history, architecture, Mexican traditions and food, the German immigrants, and then ultimately a Southern influence.

27:27

It's like a historical layer cake.

Yeah, it really is.

And I mean the German, And then I think there's even like like the Czech Republic or whatever, or Czechoslovakia or whatever, there's a big influence right near San Antonio.

And so like brats, we, we call them kolaches.

27:43

It's like a breakfast food.

It's, but that's a German influence of like a pig in a blanket, but for breakfast.

But it's delicious.

The the the German architecture, there's a lot of old beautiful homes that are that have this design that's German influence there's food, there's beer.

27:59

Then there's the Spanish influence, which you know The funny thing is Spains influence was a 1700s influence.

It was not a more modern day influence.

And so the first time I went to the governor's palace, the Spanish Governor's Palace, I was like, we've, I've never been to the Spanish Governor's Palace.

28:15

I need to go see this dude.

It looked like my Adobe home here because it was the Spanish governor's palace in like the 17. 1920.

Yeah, and I was like, this looks like my home.

Yeah, it's so, so little.

But it's cool.

The furniture in it now is hand carved and beautiful.

28:30

But the house is for real. 18 inch Adobe, no square doors.

It is no palace.

Yeah, it's barely a palace.

It's just just a little house.

Maybe palace means something else in Spanish?

Number six on our list is the the Chili Queens of San Antonio.

The 1880s to the 1940s.

28:46

Women set up outdoor chili stands in the Plaza, which is the Military Plaza or Alamo Plaza right there in downtown San Antonio.

And they serve chili, con carne tamales and traditional dishes.

And I mean, I, I love this about our culture because this is about these ladies and their specific thing.

29:04

But we are still doing this like Church's Chicken started in this Plaza across from the Alamo as a little tiny.

This little food stands, a little food stands.

It was like the original food trucks, like these women were entrepreneurs in the 1800s and 1800s.

They were feeding workers that were in the area there.

29:22

I just love the name Chili Queens.

Like what a cool, cool vision.

And not Chili's the restaurant, but like, no, no.

Like a Frito pie.

Yeah, kind of without Fritos.

Frito pie without Fritos.

And.

And each chili queen had her own recipe, her own loyal customers.

29:39

She'd pass these traditions down to her daughters.

I had a book I bought in college called It Happened in San Antonio.

And it was like little excerpts of history.

And that was the first time I had learned about the Chili Queens and their influence.

Well, they were so successful that San Antonio was actually dubbed like the Chile capital of the.

29:56

World.

Where else would it come from?

I don't know.

I mean, they, these women invented Chile.

Chile, the country I don't know.

Yeah, I think that means something different.

But the little, you know, sad, sad story.

And I have a feeling it had to do with money and politics.

30:11

But the women were chased out of the plazas in the 1930s forties, they said, under the guise of food sanitation.

And but I guarantee you it was like the delis around there were like, we gotta get these chili Queens out of here.

They're.

Putting us out of business.

30:27

That's right.

Yeah, it's just a great story.

Number six.

This one blows my mind.

I know it's such a sad but happy story.

The San Antonio River was almost paved over.

So in the early 1900's, the river flooded regularly.

30:43

And in 1921.

And you OK, This comes directly from my riverboat tours because this is like the highlight of the riverboat tour. 1921, there was a devastating flood.

It killed 50 people and did millions of dollars in damage.

So the city officials, what did they say?

30:59

Let's pave over it, making a storm drain.

Put all this water underground.

Underground.

We can't do this anymore.

And Robert Huffman, who was a young architects, fought back with a different vision.

His proposal was let's make this a shops and restaurants.

Let's do the literal opposite.

31:14

Let's.

Do the literal opposite.

Let's do, let's make these walkways below the street.

Let's build the buildings up higher, and let's do some beautification, put some trees, some outdoor dining.

And in 1938, under the Works Projects Administration of the Great Depression, the WPA, the city started implementing this plan.

31:34

And in 1941, the River Walk was officially over.

It went from almost being paved over.

Open.

Officially open.

Open.

Yeah, the project was over.

Yes, it was open.

That's right.

And it went from almost being paved over to becoming the city's single greatest asset.

31:53

Now it generates billions of dollars in economic activity.

And it just shows the, the, the foresight and the, the brilliance that they had because of this, that decision branched out into things like the Pearl and you know, just the, the mission district or whatever it's called now.

And it just.

32:08

Well, it would look San Antonio would look like any other downtown if this hadn't happened, and now no downtown looks like it.

Yeah, when I remember, like San Antonio was my only city reference.

I'd never really lived in a city before.

And so when we went to Houston, I was like, there's so much concrete right here.

32:27

Like, where are all the gigantic trees?

And Yep, where's your water source?

And why isn't it running through the middle of your city?

And.

It's just, it's so refreshing.

Yeah, and New York too.

I know they have Central Park and I know that's great, but if you're not in Central Park, you are just in concrete.

Yeah, and even Chicago, which has a river that winds through it, doesn't feel anything like this.

32:46

This is just such a unique place.

A lot of cities.

Milwaukee, you know there, there's lots of Miliwaukee even.

Miliwaukee.

Yeah, but it just, it just has a it.

Does it was done so well, and probably because it was done so early and with such intention, they were able to create an an experience unlike anybody else.

33:06

Yeah, my grandfather, I think.

Venice is probably the only other thing you could equate it to.

No, in that like water.

Not Venice, CA Venice.

No, not Venice, but just the the the, the what is the word?

I'm looking for the not cooperation, but the.

The intentionality of water in land, yeah, it's.

33:24

Just done so well where it feels like it was intentional and it works together, not competing.

Yeah, so #4 on the list is a San Antonio military heritage.

That's why I gave you this well.

Thank you very much.

If you did not know, San Antonio has several Air Force bases.

33:45

That's actually what brought us to San Antonio.

My dad was stationed at Randolph.

It's no longer called Randolph Air Force Base.

It's called Joint Base San Antonio, which includes Fort Sam Houston.

Lackland Air Force Base, which is we're all Air Force and I think Space Force right now.

Basic trainees go through basic.

34:02

Kristen's dad went through basic training at Lackland.

He went through dog handler school at Lackland.

My grandfather in 1952 went through.

My dad in 1974 went through Lackland Air Force Base.

It's just, it's such a historical place, but it didn't start with the US military that this, the Spanish presidio that was started in 1718 started that military heritage and it's just expanded out.

34:26

They, they call it retire the retirement capital of the world because they have so many military hospitals in downtown San Antonio, so.

It's something like more 4 star generals per capita than anywhere else in the country.

It's a, it's a lot.

It's it's a SO.

Much military.

And there used to be more bases.

34:43

So when we were there in the the 90s, there was Brooks, but that was they, they call it Brac.

I don't know what that stands for, but they every once in a while go around and they'll close Air Force Base because they're not meeting the mission anymore.

And that was bracked in 2011, but they're still using it.

34:59

It's still government.

Kelly Air Force Base, which was another Air Force Base, kind of became part of Lackland Air Force Base.

But now the like it's a Boeing maintenance center.

So all the 740 sevens, 760 Sevens at Boeing makes, they fly them into San Antonio.

When they do repair, sometimes you can see Air Force One or it's backup or whatever being worked on as you drive through.

35:19

It's it's pretty cool.

Yeah. #3 I wanted this one.

The invention of Fritos happened in San Antonio.

That's a corn chip if you if you're not familiar.

If what you're really not familiar with is how much Sarah loves Fritos.

35:36

I always have a bag of Fritos in this house, but they must go with a can of bean.

Dip that's I wasn't going to bring that up.

I'm so glad that you did.

She eats bean dip out of a can like she like cracks the can open and she puts Fritos in a can of like refried beans.

I just.

35:51

Hey England.

Hey England, get off your high horse.

This is what everybody does.

No, not everybody.

Dude, there's 6 feet of of bean dipped in the grocery store and it's not because I'm the only one eating them.

I know it's because all Texans.

36:08

Not all Texans do it.

You're not a Texan.

I am a Texan no that.

Well, maybe our debate today should have been how do you define a Texan?

Yeah, I'm a Texan like Davy Crockett.

I wasn't born here, but I'm willing to die here like.

This.

And he did.

He didn't live here very long.

Yeah.

I lived here longer than Davy Crockett.

36:24

So in 1932, the Great Depression Elmer Doolin ran a small cafe down in San Antonio.

Elmer doing the Doolin.

He's probably the reason there's no Chili Queens down there anymore.

He bought corn chips at a local cafe, and he loved them.

So he bought the recipe from the Mexican cook who was moving back to Mexico for $100.

36:45

Yeah, she's.

Probably a chili queen. $2000 in today's money he got a hold of this recipe.

I mean that's a pretty $2000.

It sounds way worse if it's.

Only it's now a billion dollar brand.

Yeah, I don't know.

So he also included 19 retail accounts that this guy was selling chips to in that $2000.

37:06

So he made his chips in his mother's kitchen using a potato ricer, and he called them Fritos, which is Spanish for fried Fritos.

He sold them from his car store to store throughout San Antonio, and he eventually partnered with Herman Lay to create the Frito Lay Corporation.

37:23

It is now owned by PepsiCo, and it's one of the biggest snack food companies in the world.

But it all started in a San Antonio kitchen.

Now, if you have not had a Frito pie, I encourage you to go make one of these #1 you need Fritos, you need chili, you need cheese, and you need a little bit of onions to sprinkle on top.

37:42

Where?

How do you How do you eat it?

You put it in a bowl, Sarah.

You can, or you get an individual sized bag of Fritos.

You open the top, you pour the chili directly into the bag, then you put your toppings and your cheese, and you eat.

37:58

Them.

I mean if that is what makes.

You a Taco in a bag, I'm.

Not a Texan, I have.

How many Frito pies have you eaten in your life?

Well, it all depends on how you define a Frito pie.

Out of a bag.

Only once?

What?

Because it makes them have.

You never been to a baseball game in this city?

I have, but I don't get Frito pies I but I do put Fritos in my chili.

38:16

I yeah.

So if I'm having chili, I put Fritos in there.

But.

What?

How else are you supposed?

To eat them I.

Don't know.

I don't know either.

Rice.

No corn chips.

No, Cincinnati.

There's no rice with your chili.

There's also no there's also no noodles with your chili Cincinnati.

38:32

Oh yeah, I don't do the noodles with it.

I started doing rice with it when I married someone from Pennsylvania.

OK that explains it, but never had rice with my chili.

Fritos was the the go to for for many many years for chili only.

Because I didn't know there was another way.

Well.

Anyways, you call it a walking Taco, a Frito bag, Frito bag.

38:52

Now there was you can also call it a chili bag is like the sling for it.

Like, oh, I want a chili bag.

That means a Frito pie in the bag.

And we had a softball coach growing up here.

I don't know his real name.

We called him chili bags.

Oh boy, because one time he ate 13 chili bags at a baseball game. 13.

39:11

He didn't live very long, well, I bet, but he was an adult.

A grown adult whenever.

That poor lady.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

The gas coming out of that bedroom.

But I just always love like used chili bags.

They had chili bags and he would ref sometime be like oh we got chili bags as our ref but that was his name that was.

39:30

Chili bags.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

All right.

Number two, Number two, Teddy Roosevelt.

Theodore Roosevelt recruited his Rough Riders in San Antonio.

Scott Who are the Rough Riders?

The Rough Riders are Teddy Roosevelt's like theme during the Spanish American War in 1898.

39:50

So he was the assistant Secretary of the Navy and he was commissioned to go get volunteers to go and and fight.

And where do you find the roughest, toughest dudes in America?

San Antonio?

San Antone.

That's right.

What and what's cool about this Teddy Roosevelt connection is that he was actually stationed at Fort Clark, which is in Brackaville, which is 25 miles from here.

40:12

Patton was also stationed here as the evolution of the Rough Riders became the US Cavalry and all that kind of stuff.

And he was stationed here too.

So I just think it's it's really cool.

All of the connections that happen in our history coming right out of San Antonio.

40:30

The most famous battle or whatever that they had was the charge up San Juan Hill and so.

And who made-up this team of people?

Who did he end up recruiting?

Well, I mean.

It was a mix of.

It was, it was everybody.

So it was Cowboys, it was minors, it was law enforcement, Native Americans, Ivy League athletes.

40:48

I mean, it was literally.

I mean, that sounds like the greatest team ever assembled.

That's.

Right.

I mean, he wasn't, he wasn't like, I don't want you because you look a certain way or I don't want you because you act.

If you could do what he needed you to do, you're you're on the team and we're going to go, we're going to go fight.

Absolutely.

And I mean, I, I think we could do an entire episode on Teddy Roosevelt.

41:06

He's amazing.

Just all this stuff that he accomplished and that his ideas I just very fast.

We'll have to do that.

I I want one of the famous memes that I love sending to people is you might be cool, but you're not Teddy Roosevelt riding a moose cool or something like.

41:23

I mean, Teddy Roosevelt was giving a speech and got shot and then continued to do the speech.

Kept talking.

Yeah, I mean.

He was a bad Mamma jamma.

Connected to the the Alamo Again, though, the the the myth is that there's a hotel that's just adjacent to the Alamo called the Manger Hotel and.

41:39

That's where he was staying.

And he was staying there, so they say that he recruited everybody out of the bar.

That's right.

Yeah.

And there's a his and they.

So when I was of, when I finally turned 2122, I had been waiting my whole life to go have a whiskey at the Manger bar.

They have Teddy Roosevelt's uniform.

41:57

There's a bullet hole apparently in the wall from him, you know, talking about being drunk and recruiting folks.

And at the when I turned 21, you could still smoke indoors, so you'd have a whiskey and a cigar And just in the and it's dark and there's a lot of woodwork.

42:13

It's the coolest.

Bar it is.

It's a pretty cool hotel.

It's one of the like most haunted places in Texas, they say.

Yeah, if you believe in that kind of thing, it's.

But the bar is cool.

And so if you're if you're of age and you're popping around San Antonio, go have a whiskey and cheers to Teddy Roosevelt.

42:30

Well, yeah, and there's even a high school in San Antonio called the the Roosevelt Rough Riders.

I love it.

I mean, that's if that's not a great name, I don't know, but the the bar looks almost like it did in 1898.

Yeah, you got to stop it.

It's a pretty cool aesthetic.

It does a great aesthetic, the ambiance, ambiance #1 So Fiesta San Antonio started as a one time event, but it has become a defining tradition for the city of San Antonio.

42:55

It started in 1891 as a single event, the Battle of Flowers Parade, and this parade happens on San Jacinto Day, April 21st, to commemorate the victory against Santa Ana's army.

It's part of our Texas independence.

It's our Texas Independence Day and the flowers are they throw flowers instead of bullets or something was what?

43:16

They hurt less.

They hurt less, poke less, eyes out.

And it's the only parade in the US that is produced entirely by women.

And it is to to commemorate the heroes of the Battle of of the Alamo and San Jacinto.

And it was so successful it became an annual tradition.

43:35

So now it's a two week citywide celebration.

There are over 100 events that commemorate these things.

The parades, festivals, concerts, food events, parties and.

When I said it's it's like Mardi Gras, it's not as crazy as Mardi.

43:50

Gras No, no, no.

It's kid friendly.

But it is.

It's a city coming together for two weeks to just celebrate the city.

It's wonderful.

So battle Battle of the Flowers Parade is a must see.

It's a beautiful the parade float floats are completely decorated in flowers.

44:10

It highlights all the duchesses and and Queens and kings of Fiesta.

We were lucky enough that a few years ago a girl from Del Rio was a Duchess and it's a multi year training that she goes through.

Her dress is handmade, hand sewed.

44:26

They're often put on display at the Witty Museum.

They have trains on these dresses that are miles.

I think there's a whole a whole section in the witty museum that's all of like the historical duchesses dresses.

Yeah.

And it, it's almost like a debutante ball is kind of the the idea behind it.

44:42

And, and it's, it's quite, quite a neat thing.

Nyosa night in Old San Antonio is in the the La Vita area.

It's the traditional old village of San Antonio.

That's Scott's favorite event.

You want to talk anymore about?

That, I mean, it's, it's just like a big concert.

44:59

Like they have people, they come in and they sing and it, they typically don't even bring in big names.

It's it's usually like local San Antonio people and it's just your.

Food vendors wander around.

Yeah, and, you know, I mean, there's cornhole, there's all sorts of stuff.

It's just, it's just a, it's.

A night in old San Antonio.

45:15

Yeah, and when the oyster bake too, I also love that.

Oyster bake's fun, and that's over at like Saint Mary's University, I believe.

Pretty much any reason to eat.

I'm a I'm in.

There's a river parade which San Antonio does multiple river parades.

45:30

My favorite is the Christmas parade, which happens after Thanksgiving.

It's like the first Friday after Thanksgiving, they light up the Riverwalk for Christmas.

And I took the boys to that when Sydney was like 3 and we had front row seats on the river.

45:50

And I was, he was wiggly, wiggly little 3 year old.

I was so afraid he was going to fall into the river the whole time.

So I'd love to take him back as an older child because 3 year old on your lap on the river was a little stressful.

Yeah.

But the only other thing I really wanted to talk about here was the Fiesta medals, which it's really fun.

46:07

People wear sashes and businesses have their own medals.

There's a medal every year it's it's decorated differently.

People collect them.

And you collect them and you walk around and, and it's a really fun addition to the day.

And there's always a poster advertising it.

I found one in an antique shop.

46:23

I have it hanging in my kitchen from Fiesta, like 1996.

So yeah, it's got a huge economic impact.

It's not just for tourists.

The locals love celebrating Fiesta.

Well, yeah, I would say it's almost not even for the tourists.

I didn't know it was a tourist event either.

46:39

Quite.

Frankly, tourists are welcome to celebrate it, but you kind of.

Makes sense you.

Have to explain to them what we're doing, but we're just hanging out and celebrating our city.

I mean it's.

Just different thing every day, yeah.

Well, and what I think is really cool about the Battle of Flowers is that it doesn't, it doesn't spread outside.

46:54

Like, it's not like New Orleans is celebrating the Battle of Flowers on behalf of, right?

Everybody celebrates Mardi Gras.

Right.

It is a unique San Antonio identity thing.

I I I love it.

Would you rather San Antonio edition?

Let's do.

It #1.

47:12

Oh, let me take it.

OK, Would you rather eat only breakfast tacos for every meal for a year or never be allowed to eat the breakfast Taco again?

Oh no, every meal for a year, I'll do that.

And I think it would be super easy.

I think it would.

You can vary your breakfast tacos.

Yeah, I agree.

47:28

And you know, a very defining way to know that you're not from San Antonio is you call it breakfast.

Burritos, burritos.

I almost think that's just a demarcation in the state.

Maybe it may be San Antonio and South.

It's a breakfast Taco and then N is breakfast burrito.

They call it breakfast burrito in Del Rio or in Dallas.

47:44

Yeah, in San Angelo.

Breakfast burrito, Midland breakfast burrito.

Get out of here.

No, I think it's I think it's a Hwy. 90.

If I get a breakfast burrito, I expect it to be a burrito.

Not a Taco Taco.

I know, I know.

That's another debate for another day for sure.

48:01

Would you rather spend an entire summer day walking the Riverwalk in the Texas heat or all day exploring the five missions in the Texas heat?

Oh, that's tough because I love the history.

I would probably say the River Walk if I had to choose you.

48:17

Jump into a bar.

Probably you are a restaurant.

Yeah, there's more places to be inside and there is a little bit more coverage because all the all the trees and stuff.

All right, let me do this one.

Attend Fiesta San Antonio every year for the rest of your life, but never be allowed to attend any other festival or celebration.

48:34

So this is it.

That's the only one.

Or never attend Fiesta again.

I'm going to go with attend Fiesta only #1 I don't even know what festival I want to go to because I don't like crowds that much.

Yeah, and there's over 100 events, so even if I was like just jumping around, there's something to do every day for those two weeks.

48:53

Yeah, and I think that Fiesta is the safest one.

It's the three hours away and we could celebrate it.

It's super easy.

Yeah.

Yeah.

No.

And I don't like crowds that much, so I'd hate to.

Like, in my mind, I'm like, oh, do I want to go to Rio de Janeiro for whatever their Carnival is?

Yeah, sure, it's lovely.

49:08

But Nah, I'm sure I'd hate it.

I definitely don't want to go to Mardi Gras.

I was in New Orleans a week after Mardi Gras, and the cab driver, I was like the weekend after Mardi Gras, and the cab driver was like, y'all hear from Mardi Gras?

And we're like, absolutely not.

He goes great.

Because you would have hated our city.

Oh, OK.

Good.

49:24

Yeah, I'm sure it's nuts.

Yeah.

Would you rather have the Spurs win the NBA championship every year?

But you can never attend a game in person, or Spurs never win another game, but you have courtside seats for life.

Oh, that is tough.

I know.

That's tough.

49:39

So the first time the Spurs ever won the championship, it was an out of town game, but I was still downtown San Antonio.

It's one of the bars had moved the TV outside.

I was still underage.

The whole city went insane.

49:54

The energy was so crazy.

Cars driving down the street was like a parade.

Everybody was honking, everybody was celebrating.

It was so exciting.

So since I don't live in San Antonio anymore, I would say I'd rather than win the championship and then not be able to go to a game.

I haven't been to a game recently really since they left the Alamodome.

50:13

I think I've only gone to two different games.

Kristen used to teach the owner of the Spurs Daughter and we got some tickets and that was pretty cool.

Awesome.

But I do love it when the Spurs win.

I love it when the Spurs are good, when they're not good, that's all.

We've had those years.

Last season.

50:28

You weren't rough.

Yeah.

Yeah.

And you didn't live through the early 90s.

It was terrible.

I was in San Antonio in the early. 90s What year did you come back?

19920.

My God, I keep thinking you were a 7th grader in the same year I was a 7th grader, but you weren't.

50:44

Never mind.

You got the you got the bad years too.

I got to, I got to go watch some of the bad.

Years.

Yeah, I did all.

The good years in the Alamodome.

And the good years were great, I agree.

And I watched.

I saw those games very rarely in person.

But after we won the championship, yeah, nothing like being a Spurs fan winning championships.

51:02

Oh man, it was so exciting.

I agree.

All right, last one, would you rather have to convince someone that San Antonio is better than Austin or Houston?

What's the harder sell?

I think the harder sell would be Austin because Austin is just this whole vibe.

51:21

It's a different.

And if they're already convinced that Austin is great, I don't think there's anything that I could say that San Antonio has uniquely that Austin it doesn't also have.

The weather stinks in Houston.

Like, yeah, San Antonio gets hot and humid enough, but.

And for me, like I know a lot of people love Houston, I don't.

51:39

It is not my jam though.

It is so.

Big.

It's too big for me.

It's always rainy.

The traffic is atrocious.

So many leads.

Yeah, it just.

Yeah, I think it would be hard to argue San Antonio.

When I have to drive to Baton Rouge, yeah.

I would almost drive through Mexico.

51:55

I would rather.

Drive around Houston, then go through it.

I think it would be an easier argument to convince somebody that San Antonio was better than Fort Worth or Austin because there's at least similarities to those identities that San Antonio has.

Houston is just a completely different.

52:11

It's a different.

Beast.

Yeah, there's nothing like it.

Maybe Lai don't know.

Yeah, from the news desk.

This is a good one.

I am so excited to share these stories with you.

Again, these are obscure.

These are not.

These are off the beaten path.

But we're going to let you in on some of San Antonio's more unknown news.

52:30

All right, right.

We've got the Great Train Robbery.

Yeah, this isn't something you're going to be finding on the Wikipedia page for San Antonio.

On July 18th, 1970, so 50 years ago, San Antonio became the site of the last known Train Robbery in the entire state of.

52:49

Texas.

So this is a true story.

And the kicker is it was not a big freight train.

It was the little passenger train that is in Breckenridge Park.

You.

Still write it you.

Can still write it today.

Associated with the San Antonio Zoo.

53:05

My dad always told me the story so I wanted to share it with you guys.

So this is a tiny tourist train.

Two masked gunmen held up the Breckenridge Eagle and robbed all the passengers.

I can't even believe this, this is just so crazy.

And so picture this.

53:20

It's a sunny Saturday afternoon in Breckenridge Park.

Families are riding the little train, kids are having a great time and suddenly two guys with masks jump out and hold up the train.

What are you trying to get?

Like they're going getting beer money.

53:36

Yeah, they ended up stealing $500 from the passengers and in 1970 that was roughly $4000.

I.

Mean, I guess it's a good hall.

It's not a Stagecoach full of gold, but it's 4 grand.

And how do you even rob a miniature train you ask?

53:52

Well, every year there was a fundraiser that happened in Breckenridge Park on the train.

And that's why this went off without a hitch.

Big robbers would stop the train and the donations would be taken to like the San Antonio Food Bank or the Battered Women's Shelter.

54:08

So they would stop the train and be like, hey here, you know, we're masked robbers, You donate to a good cause.

So the people all thought they were donating to a good cause.

Yeah, they thought it was part of it.

They thought they were part of this donation ploy, but they were actually robbed.

54:24

So crazy.

It's so it is simultaneously audacious and ridiculous.

And and then they ran off into the park.

And this is the best part.

The robbers were eventually caught, and it turned out they were soldiers from Fort Sam Houston.

Yeah.

54:41

And it's hard.

I mean, I don't know what they were thinking.

Was it beer, Money.

What?

But the fact that they knew that the fake robbery took place annually and then they piggybacked on it to do.

I mean, it's a little brilliant.

I think it's really brilliant.

I mean, we're dealing with evil genius type type stuff.

54:57

So the great little Train Robbery of 1970 the the Wild West era did not end with a bang, but with two guys in mass stealing $5 bills from families on the tiny Breckenridge.

When they gave the money over willingly, right, It was they, yeah.

Because they were like, oh, take my $5.

55:13

Well, I mean when you say that the last Train Robbery took place in 1970, I mean that seems like too recent to have you.

I always picture like Old West movies and stuff like that.

What a silly silly.

Yeah, I'm sorry.

So you were talking earlier about being afraid that your 3 year old Sid would fall off of your lap into the San Antonio.

55:33

But fear not.

Our second story of the day is the San Antonio River gets drained every year.

Every year.

Well, that would have taken too long for me to find Sydney.

Well, that's true.

I'm sure he couldn't hold his breath that long, but let's see what we can find underneath San Antonio River waters.

55:51

What do you think trash?

Definitely trash.

Probably a lot of trash.

So every year they drain it in mid January and they cruise, pull out phones, laptops, folding chairs, Mardi Gras beads or Fiesta beads, bike parts, scooters, those stupid.

56:09

Scooters.

Oh, I bet there's a bunch of those in there.

Yeah, I mean, you name it.

I mean there are a lot of bars on the River Walk.

There are a lot of people are throwing stuff and dropping stuff.

A different kind of tomfoolery happens there after dark.

That that's true, you got to be ready for.

It I'm going to keep this anonymous, but I did have a friend intoxicated fall into the San Antonio River when we were in college, but I wasn't there.

56:33

But I heard the story second hand and the police tried to find her and they hit her in Dirty Nellies.

Oh, they hid her.

Yes, because they knew it's a crime but you'll not talk about.

Yeah, but so she fell in or he fell in.

But you, I mean, you could drown in the San Antonio River.

56:50

No, no, no, she was at waist.

It was.

Waist it's all waist deep.

They they have like we talked about earlier, it is a it's a man made portion of the the river walk where they, you know, leveled off the the the depth.

So if you do fall in, you could just you.

Should stand up a child may not be.

57:07

Able to, but don't hear that as oh, I'm going to go jump into the San Antonio River because swimming and wading in the river carries a $500 misdemeanor fine.

And then if you do it again, you're out.

And then being intoxicated it it would be from other fines and public intoxication and and other things.

57:27

That that that's right.

But it also says that the San Antonio River has a higher than desired level of E coli.

Sure don't.

You don't wanna be in that water and you can see it.

It's not super clear.

It's we can't.

See the Euclid, but you can see that it's dirty.

57:43

If you see it, it's a problem, but there's obvious ton it's got a great canopy and here a nerd alert.

It's got such a canopy that E coli is killed by sunlight, UV light, but because it's not continuously penetrated with sunlight, often times that bacteria.

58:01

So different waterways contain different levels of E coli.

But yeah, I think that's one of the things protecting it.

It's not a severe flow.

It's not a fast flow.

It's a really trickle.

It's a trickle and stag, so it's kind of stagnant.

They've.

Extended the River Walk since when I was a kid because it was really just confined to downtown.

58:17

But now it goes all the way out to the Pioneer Mills, which is where they make pioneer flour.

The gristmill, not the gristmill.

What is it called?

And I'll eat there for breakfast all the time.

It's it's wonderful.

I'll it'll come back to me.

In the Pearl, they've extended it down to the Pearl and up to the missions, and I'm probably saying the UPS and the downs wrong.

58:37

Ups and downs.

We're we're talking about the one way and the other, but it's great now.

And you can see like fish, turtles, crawfish, snakes, my favorite birds, all sorts of birds on the river walk.

Yeah.

So it it, it's really, really great.

And so they're draining it to protect it and protect the little ecosystem that we have.

58:57

So.

And the the there is an invasive species of snails.

And they're so gross.

Yeah, gross.

And then they're huge.

So they.

They clean out the invasive species.

I'm sure they relocate them.

I'm not trying to bring any animal cruelty to them.

59:14

Yeah, well, they're removing the invasive species and taking them back to where they're.

Supposed Brazil.

I believe they're from.

Well, and they think that somebody that the the snails came from like a bird, like a bird flew one in and dropped it.

In like a Pelican had it in his mouth.

Yeah, or something like.

59:29

That well, that's how it's amazing how quickly an invasive species can take over.

Can just invade.

And can just invade.

We have the armored catfish, which is the the suckers in your fish tank that you have.

Somebody dumped them into our San Felipe Creek and now there are thousands of them and they're eroding the bank and it's a real problem.

59:52

So don't dump your wildlife or your pets where they don't belong.

Well, and then there's an invasive like plant as well in the in the Creek too.

So it's it's just amazing how quickly all that all that stuff happens.

So during the last river draining, the river authority installed an exclusion.

1:00:11

Device.

Device which is basically a barrier for the river wall below the waterline that prevents those snails from climbing up and then laying their eggs.

Because when they lay a clutch, when a clutch lays an egg, it's thousands of eggs.

1:00:27

It could be up to 2000 eggs from 1 snail.

One snail that's.

Quite fertile, Myrtle.

That's a lot like when you say like like cats and dogs, I think we should be saying like snails.

There are no rabbits.

It rains cats and dogs.

They reproduce like rabbits.

1:00:43

Yeah, that's right.

No, it's going to be reproduce like apple snails, Brazilian apples.

Brazilian apple snails.

We're going to start our own idiom, right?

Here, well, I'm glad they're doing that to try to combat this invasive species.

I love hearing that.

Well, and it's not like they're just coming in and like killing them.

They're just trying to.

Relocate them.

1:00:59

Relocate them and prevent them from.

Reproducing.

Proliferating.

I agree.

Well, you know that there's one story where a woman dropped her phone in the water and went to rescue it and, you know.

Came up covered in snails.

Well, no, but she got fined and people were like, don't jump in that water after your phone.

1:01:17

But when you think about it, like, I have pictures of my babies on that phone.

Yeah.

And so that that my mother heart would be like, I have to retrieve it.

So back them up to the cloud.

Don't go in after that phone.

It's disgusting.

And you won't incur a $500 fine or get a bacterial infection.

1:01:34

Right.

Yeah, or so be infested by 2000 babies.

Snail babies.

So that's it from the news desk.

That's all we've got, miniature trains and river draining.

I mean that is that that's some hard hitting news folks.

You're welcome Yeah, finally the hullabaloo debate for today.

1:01:52

Let's do it I dugout which historic restaurant reigns supreme So two there are two restaurants that we're going to debate about 1 is called Skilo's Deli.

I unknowingly called it Shilo's until the owner corrected me that it was Skilo's and me, Tierra.

1:02:13

So that's what we're going to debate today.

So here we go.

I am on team Skilo's.

It is the oldest continuing continuously operated restaurant in San Antonio.

It's right in the heart of downtown.

It lot of people don't even know about it.

1:02:29

I was, I think I was about a 7th grader the first time I ate at it.

So it's over 107 years old.

It predates MI Tierra by 24 years.

But is that?

I mean, that's your opening argument.

Because it's old, it's got to be better.

1:02:44

It will if, if a restaurant can last 107 years, it's got to be good like that.

That feels like it goes without.

Saying, I mean, that is that is a pretty good argument.

The way you just crafted it right there, that's pretty good.

But MI Tierra is like the identity of San Antonio.

1:03:01

Like when you come to San Antonio, or at least for me, I'm looking for Tex Mex and going to this restaurant.

It was started in 1941.

It's 24/7 365 and has never.

Closed, which is the coolest?

1:03:17

Not about it.

It is always open. 365247 y'all you can go get a plate of steamy.

Don't go to Danny's.

Don't go to IHOP if you're in need of a Christmas morning meal, 3:00 AM, you're going to meet Tierra that that is where you where you need to go.

1:03:35

So an experience.

Both of these restaurants, again, I mean, you're not a historic restaurant.

Obviously the food is going to be good if you can stay open that long, but they're family owned for four generations.

Skilo's has been, it's in its same location from the beginning on Commerce St. which interestingly, you walk straight down Commerce St. and you tee into the the Mercado where MI Tierra is.

1:03:56

So they're not that far apart.

They're walking distance if you can walk a mile.

Commerce St. is the exit that you take off of 3735 combined to get into downtown to go to the Alamo.

I mean, it's all.

It's all right there.

And what I love about Skilo's is it is like a time capsule.

1:04:14

They're these old wooden booths.

You walk in, it's a German deli.

There's tap beer on the wall.

I mean.

The, the Reuben is amazing.

So my order when I go to Skilo's, I, I, I don't have a specific order at me Tierra, but I have an order at Skilo's.

1:04:32

You go in, you order the Reuben, you order a cup of piece soup that you dunk your Reuben in, and you order their homemade secret ingredient, root beer.

It is made on site, it is cold, it's coming out of the kegerator, and it's like drinking candy.

1:04:50

I have never had anything so sweet, so delicious in a glass.

Yeah, I mean, it is, it is pretty, pretty iconic.

But what I like about Meteor is the the identity, like it's so many colors.

They have like music on occasion, it's just the energy.

1:05:08

They have murals.

They got Christmas lights all year round.

It's amazing.

The seat, you can't see the ceiling.

It has Mexican papel, picado flags.

Yeah, Christmas lights.

Every room is a different kind of color.

They have a full Mexican bakery, so you don't even have to go to the restaurant.

1:05:25

You can just walk up.

It is like a 40 foot panaderia counter.

You can get your pandulses, you can get your conchas.

It's.

So, so many things.

They have a mariachi band coming in you.

Can get breakfast, lunch or dinner all day.

1:05:40

Like it's amazing.

It's so great and the portions are insane.

Bigger than your face.

Bigger than your face.

Like when I get a burrito like it's.

Big as your face.

It big as your face burrito.

I mean it is and the sopapillas.

They're to die for.

1:05:55

I mean, if you've ever eaten at a Mexican restaurant, it's like a dessert.

It's it's a fried tortilla puffed up, and you drizzle it with honey and cinnamon sugar.

Sugar.

Yeah, man, it's.

So what's neat about the location?

Especially making my mouth.

I know I'm hungry too.

1:06:11

We're doing this over lunch the wrong time.

So the, the, the Mercado district, which we have not talked about in the San Antonio episode because there's just, there's not enough time is it feels like the old San Antonio, all the buildings are beautiful.

They're only like 2 story.

1:06:27

It's a bit away from downtown.

But by by and large, Meteora is the best restaurant in that district, best margaritas in that district.

So if you're going to go to San Antonio and you're going to eat locally, you got to hit both of these spots up.

For sure.

And I just, the only reason that I think that Meteora is it is because I feel like when you walk in, it's the soul of San Antonio.

1:06:48

Yeah.

And like when you think of San Antonio, it's not just one thing.

It's all of the things all at the same time, and I just really feel like that they hit that identity hard.

Yeah, definitely the German, the German immigrant influence is there, but it does not slap you in the face like the Mexican influence does in the city.

1:07:08

And part of that is just, I think over time, the assimilation of America looking more like German, the German influence than America looking like the Mexican influence.

So those things have.

It just wasn't the identity of the city.

We all talk about it and everybody who knows St.

1:07:25

Antonio knows there was a huge German influence.

You can see it everywhere.

The roads, there's German roads.

German names of roads, there's the breweries.

All of that is the.

German.

I remembered that breakfast place.

It's called the Gunther House.

Oh, that's German.

And that's.

Right, Gunther.

And that was a hotel as well, that most of the development around downtown was German LED.

1:07:47

Right or wrong, it probably had to do with segregation.

And that's why the Chili Queens were probably kicked out.

Again, an ugly part of the history.

And yeah, discrimination that that happened, but by and large, the Mexican heritage has flourished and prevailed.

1:08:03

And for sure, it's such a vibrant city.

But you to get the best of both worlds, you kind of got to eat at both of these restaurants.

For sure, and you know, with the the Mexican influence, I I always think about the San Antonio Spurs in the 90's, the the colors of the uniform represented our city way more than like the black and the silver do right right now, because they were it was like teal and.

1:08:25

Orange and pink.

And pink was beautiful it when you wore a a Spurs jersey in the 90s, you it was vibrant.

You looked like what our city looks like.

Yeah.

And then, you know, I like the black and silver too.

I'm more likely to wear that jersey now than I would one of those more vibrant colors.

1:08:41

But I don't know.

I just, I love the, I think amalgamation is the word I'm thinking of, but the the molding that the, the blending, the true melting pot of culture that San Antonio is.

They say that Austin is the heart of Texas, but I think if you really look at a map, San Antonio is the heart that the middle of Texas.

1:09:02

It's got the best of all worlds.

It's got an amazing rodeo, it's got our cowboy heritage, it has our Mexican heritage, it has our German influence, and there is literally no place like it.

There's not a more diverse city.

Again, I keep thinking to LA as being super diverse, but it's it's its own animal and corrupted by everything that is Hollywood.

1:09:23

Whereas San Antonio is just a fun, friendly, vibrant place that everybody really needs to experience.

In the 90s they called it the biggest small town in America.

Yeah, definitely.

It's just just just how it is.

It's a great description.

So my grandparents, the other reason so Skeelos is going to win is they had their first date there long.

1:09:41

Oh, I mean, that's pretty.

That's pretty good.

Yeah.

Easies for for Kate, Will and Jack.

But Skeelos is pretty good.

First date I would not say, but I think Meteor wins.

But just you know.

Well, again, you got to eat at both of these places.

I think it's fair for this to be a draw, but.

1:09:57

Yeah, I would say that you're actually not losing.

I don't think you'll lose by going to either of these restaurants for sure.

Well, I think that's all the time we have for today, Scott, as we talk wrap up our talk about San Antonio.

Thank you for listening to Tomfoolery and hello, Baloo.

Give us a like, give us a share.

1:10:14

Yeah, this is been so much fun today, talking about one of our favorite places.

When we really do appreciate all the feedback and if you can hear it in Sarah and I's voice, We are very passionate about San Antonio.

We love our our little or a big little town.

And if there's something else that you want us to talk about, what we will do our best to be as passionate, but it probably won't be as much as we are about San Antonio.

1:10:34

Absolutely.

Yeah, y'all have a great week and we'll see you next time on Tomfoolery.

And hullabaloo can't wait.

Bye.