Cigar smoking in San Antonio

[jgbutler]

The wife and I are going to be in San Antonio next week for a much needed getaway. Just curious what the smoking situation is along the riverwalk for a place indoors or just a table next to the river to enjoy a nice cigar. Mad Dawg has already clued me in to Swig Martini Bar. Curious if any of our local brothers know of any others or any additional info for nice cigar friendly spots to enjoy a drink and a fine smoke.

Also are there any "you gotta go eat here" places that should not be missed. The wife's birthday is the second day we're there so it would be nice to take her out to dinner and an evening that will be both enjoyed and remembered!

[gumby]

Paging jefslat, paging jeslat!

[jefslat]

This may ramble a bit, and it may get somewhat fragmented as I edit in other places I can think of. I'd offer to show you around, but I don't know what our schedule will be (start of the school year is hectic for my wife), and my ability to get out much varies from day to day.

I'm not sure about smoking inside at Swig, but they have a stellar martini and single malt menu. Every Club Humidor has a smoking area or room; I have a card for the one on Thousand Oaks, which is far from downtown (but about 5 minutes from the house). There is a store at the Menger Hotel, next to Rivercenter Mall, and they have a lounge area. Humidor lounges are just places to smoke though, no bar or kitchen. Other than that, you can smoke at the outside tables and get drink service if you go to the Landing, and the music is piped outside (probably other places too, just be prepared for a lot of foot traffic). I think all of the indoor places have gone thanks to anti-smoking rules...jerks.

Unless there is some new player along the river, most of the restaurants cater to the tourists, but Iron Cactus Tex-Mex is good, and Paesano's Italian is stellar, just be ready for the prices. If you go to Paesano's, get the Shrimp Paesano, the "signature" dish. Avoid Casa Rio. At one point it was good, but unless they have changed drastically, the food is mediocre now. Street level above Casa Rio is Shiloh Deli, which is very good for lunch if you want deli style food. And Morton's of Chicago has a place outside the mall, opposite side of the cigar shop, if you want high-end steaks. Same with the Palm, although it's a little bit off of the river on Houston St.

If I think of other places, I'll add them in.

[jgbutler]

Thanks for the info Jeff! It's been a long time since we've been to San Antonio so my memory of specifics was pretty sketchy. We're staying at the Omni the first two nights there and then on to the Menger. When we were looking at hotels I told my wife a bit of the history about the Menger and her interest was peaked. I've debated on whether or not to pack plenty of my own smokes. or just grab some from a shop around there. I'll probably bring plenty just in case. Any idea how the pricing is at the shop there at the Menger?

I was pretty sure that all along the Riverwalk outside was still smoke friendly from what I had read but wasn't dead certain that was in fact true. I was a little worried based on the forecast that any outdoor activities the end of next week might wind up being a rain out but it looks like now the rain has been taken out of the forecast. No rain probably isn't what the locals would prefer but it would make our trip more enjoyable!

[jefslat]

Club Humidor is the dominant brick and mortar vendor in SA. The prices are pretty typical.

[AKDiscer]

Not sure how relevant this is, but my love of cigar smoking was born in SA. Also, I was born here and love them Spurs!