29 women-owned San Antonio restaurants you should’ve tried by now

The Jerk Shack

117 Matyear St, (210) 776-7780, facebook.com/thejerkshacksatx
Since being named one of GQ’s Best New Restaurants back in 2020, chef-owner Lattoia Massey — aka Nicola Blaque — has been a busy bee. The growing popularity of her Jamaican-style eatery The Jerk Shack — known for jerk chicken wings, savory sides and unmatched hospitality — has fostered an opportunity to expand with two more locations by next summer.
Photo via Instagram / natturaveragefoodie

Clementine

2195 NW Military Hwy, (210) 503-5121, clementine-sa.com
Alongside husband and chef John Russ, Elise Russ brings her longtime love for desserts to Clementine, where she serves as an owner and pastry chef. She brings years of experience in the food biz both in the Alamo City and beyond.
Photo via Instagram / clementine.sanantonio

Milpa
5253 McCullough Ave, (210) 990-2349, facebook.com/MilpaFoodTruck
Chef Jesse Kuykendall — also known to colleagues as “Chef Kirk” — helms super sexy Havana Hotel eatery Ocha as well as Milpa, a brick and mortar space which showcases food inspired by her childhood on the U.S.-Mexico border. A recent winner of Food Network’s Chopped competition, Chef Kirk has big plans for her culinary future in SA.
Photo via Instagram / milpaattheyard

Lucy Cooper’s Texas Ice House

16080 San Pedro Ave, (210) 462-1894, lucycoopers.com
The good times roll over at this ice house. Serving 21+ patrons, Lucy Cooper’s is owned by lady boss Braunda Moody Smith. She obviously knows how to party since this drinking spot also serves delicious grub and offers fun events like naughty bingo and live music.
Photo via Instagram / sacurrent

Bakery Lorraine

Multiple locations, bakerylorraine.com
Anne Ng, along with husband Jeremy Mandrell and business partner Charlie Biedenharn, has kept San Antonio happy with colorful and tasty macarons, beautiful tarts and perfectly laminated croissants through Bakery Lorraine’s growing presence across SA.
Photo via Instagram / bakery_lorraine

Bistr09

6106 Broadway St, (210) 245-8156, bistr09.com
Chef Lisa Astorga-Watel shares kitchen duties with husband and lauded chef Damien Watel at this refreshing eatery in Alamo Heights. She also led Southtown favorite Bite before closing the restaurant in 2020.
Photo via Instagram / bistr09

The Good Kind

1127 S St Mary’s St, (210) 801-5892, eatgoodkind.com
An extension of TimTheGirl Catering, The Good Kind is the brick-and-mortar project of Tim McDiarmid, a well-respected James Beard fellow. She also oversees events at the Ivy Hall. Yep, Tim the Girl is a busy girl.
Photo via Instagram / goodkindsouthtown

Go Vegan San Antonio

14530 Roadrunner Way, (210) 729-5400, facebook.com/GoVeganSa
Tara Best has been letting San Antonians enjoy vegan-friendly bites that will have you wondering how it’s not the real thing. After she and her family adopted a vegan lifestyle, she and husband Akeem opened a food truck specializing in vegan twists on mac ‘n’ cheese and chicken & waffles. Made fresh with plant-based products and natural ingredients, consider Go Vegan your best bet to supporting this biracial family and eat tasty, yet healthy bites while doing so.
Photo via Instagram / govegansatx

Viva Villa

905 Dolorosa, (210) 987-8482, vivavillatacos.com
La Familia Cortez, the family behind Mi Tierra, Viva Villa and more, have made their mark in San Antonio’s culture. But Chef Cariño Cortez, a third-generation family member, has made a mark all on her own. She currently serves as the project manager for La Familia Cortez Restaurants — and she’s a hell of a chef.
Photo via Instagram / chefcarinocortez

Chocollazo

Multiple locations, chocollazo.com
Chocolatier Mary Collazo has been delighting cocoa lovers with house-made, over-the-top desserts since her food truck days. She has a flagship sweet shop on Broadway and another in Hemisfair. Don’t sleep on her new ice creamery, either — Black + White Modern Creamery is where it’s at for gourmet scoops.
Photo via Instagram / chocollazo

Luna Rosa Puerto Rican Grill y Tapas

2603 SE Military Dr #106, (210) 314-3111, facebook.com/LunaRosaTx
After a teaching career, Chef Iris Ornelas decided to go into the food business. Consider it a blessing that she did, since the Puerto Rican woman opened up this South Side gem. The Caribbean Nachos are all you need to try to know that Luna Rosa is the real deal.
Photo via Instagram / hungrytravelingmama

Miss Chickpea’s Bakeshop

8065 Callaghan Road, (210) 993-0748, miss-chickpeas-bakeshop.business.site
A new vegan food wave has arrived in San Antonio, and chefs like Tatiana Martinez of Miss Chickpeas Bakeshop are leading the way. She’s all about delicious and beautiful pastries without using animal products.
Photo via Instagram / misschickpeasbakeshop

The Point Park & Eats

24188 Boerne Stage Road, (210) 251-3380, parkatthepoint.com
Led by Denise Aguirre, the food truck park has helped launch several businesses out of their Boerne Stage Road outpost. Aguirre also manages East Side gem Dignowity Meats.
Photo via Instagram / thepointpark

The Bread Box

555 W Bitters Road #115, (210) 277-8612, thebreadboxsa.com
After years in the local food business, Tina Kent and husband Lucas decided to pursue their own venture — The Bread Box. Since its 2015 opening, the bread-only bakery turned café is all about natural ingredients and Texan flours with the Kents at the helm.
Photo via Instagram / wonderphotosa

Rosario’s

Multiple locations, rosariossa.com
Lisa Wong has shared the gospel of Tex-Mex in Southtown, the Northside and at the airport at all three Rosario’s locations. No matter what you munch on, it’s always a good choice to wash your meal down with a margarita.
Photo via Instagram / rosariossa

Ma Harper’s Creole Kitchen

1816 N New Braunfels Ave, (210) 226-2200, facebook.com/maharperscreolekitchen
Owned by New Orleans native Alice “Ma” Harper, who learned to cook when she needed to help feed her 15 siblings, this Creole kitchen has been serving — and satisfying — local diners for decades. If you need any more reason to respect this badass chef, Harper turned to the food business after retiring from the U.S. Air Force. She was a mechanic for 21 years.
Photo via Instagram / sageofthe_ink93

Los Barrios

4223 Blanco Road, (210) 732-6017, losbarriosrestaurant.com
Since its inception in 1979, Los Barrios has been a female-led endeavor first launched by Viola Barrios. Nowadays, Diana Barrios Trevino has grown the restaurant to include La Hacienda, Viola’s Ventanas and La Hacienda Scenic Loop.
Photo via Instagram / losbarriosrestaurant

Délice Chocolatier and Patisserie

946 N Loop 1604 W #145, (210) 545-2200, delicechocolatier.com
Susana Mijares bakes up delicious treats from her aptly-named North Side bakery, Délice. Alongside her husband Nacho Aguirre, Mijares’ desserts taste as good as they look.
Photo via Instagram / delice_sanantonio

Williams Confectionery Crafts

12107 Toepperwein Road #5A, Live Oak, (210) 967-5200, williamsconfectionerycraftscafe.com
Live Oak can mean quite a drive for many locals, but it’s worth it to dine at Williams Confectionary Crafts. With breakfast, lunch and dessert options that truly taste like your mom or granny made it, owner Joyce Williams keeps the authentic homemade bites coming since its 2006 opening. You’ll feel right at home here with these too-delicious servings and of course Williams’ care.
Photo via Instagram / salty.steph.says

The Friendly Spot Ice House

943 S Alamo St, (210) 224-2337, thefriendlyspot.com
Southtown’s Friendly Spot is only as friendly as its leading lady, Jody Newman. She and husband Steve also operate new nightspot Bruno’s Dive Bar — in the space that formerly housed a previous Newman venture B&D Ice House — and Hills & Dales Ice House. So yeah, she knows how to manage a solid watering hole.
Photo via Instagram / skylinedronetx

Cake Thieves Bakery

514 El Paso St, instagram.com/cakethievesbakery
Vegan desserts? Yep, it’s a thing — and these treats are brought to you by Lauren O’Connor and Kia Geronimo. The dynamic duo are co-owners of Cake Thieves Bakery, which serves up vegan desserts that are served at coffee shops throughout the city, as well as their newish brick and mortar space at Hackberry Market.
Photo via Instagram / cakethievesbakery

Pharm Table

611 S Presa St Suite 106, (210) 802-1860, pharmtable.com
Vegetable-forward, Ayurvedic and inventive, Pharm Table is the brainchild of Elizabeth Johnson, a former Culinary Institute of America instructor and perennial boss lady.
Photo via Instagram / marcelafreeman

Ming’s Thing

914 E Elmira St, (210) 570-6318, mingsthing.com
A few years after her husband landed a gig as an instructor at the CIA, Ming Qian launched a new business here in SA, years after owning a restaurant in Beijing. Aptly named Ming’s, the business operates a catering company and noodle bar near the San Antonio Museum of Art.
Photo via Instagram / stephenseating

Cereal Killer Sweets
1031 Patricia, Suite 104A, (210) 753-2032, cerealkillersweets.com
Chef Megan Morales throws her creativity and flair into her sweet treats — cereal-centric and CBD-infused treats, candies and half-pound cookies — daily, with a team and other business owners that share her uber-inclusive, LGBTQ-positive outlook at her downtown-area shop.
Photo via Instagram / texas_made_eats

Chela’s Tacos
Various Locations, chelas-tacos.com
Recently named one of “11 Great Taquerias Owned by Women,” by Texas Monthly, Chela’s Tacos offers unique menu items that are not to be missed. The mag cites owner Celia Davis’ banana leaf–wrapped tamales oaxaqueños and the Costra de Chela — a corn tortilla filled with a slip of fried mozzarella topped with al pastor — as two to try.
Photo via Instagram / chelastacos

Big’z Burger Joint
Multiple Locations, bigz-burgerjoint.com
Her first career path may have been graphic design, but Lauren Stanley — owner of two locations of Big’z Burger Joint and UTSA-area venue The Well — has certainly taken the reins of entrepreneurship. With nearly 15 years of restaurant ownership under her belt, she must be doing something right.
Photo via Instagram / natasburgerblog

Bird Bakery

5912 Broadway St, (210) 804-2473, birdbakery.com
Elizabeth Chambers, a San Antonio native and silver screen actress, opened the Alamo Heights location of Bird Bakery in 2012. The cute-as-can-be shop has grown to include Dallas locations. Peep her Instagram, where she’ll share photos of her visits to the bakery.
Photo via Instagram / the.weekend.foodie

Aldaco’s Mexican Cuisine
20079 Stone Oak Pkwy, (210) 494-0561, aldacosrestaurants.com
Blanca Aldaco undoubtedly helped bring national recognition to SA via the family recipes used throughout all iterations of her eateries. A native of Guadalajara, Mexico, Aldaco’s flair for authentic Mexican flavors is obvious in each dish.
Photo via Instagram / aldacos_stoneoak