Very nice, quaint  restaurant. A respite from the Riverwalk. Great salad, burger and ham/cheese/ asparagus sandwich. Everything was tasty and reasonably priced. We sat on the patio - nice breeze once the sun went down. I guess you have to ask about happy hour specials- our waitress did not tell us. I would seek this spot out! Plates with crab cakes and shrimp looked delish! Not a large menu, but great quality.
Review Source:Very nice atmosphere.. the prickly pear was great! Â Sweet and just the right amount of alcohol. Â We didn't stay too long as the heat cut into our dining extravaganza (we had an early dinner), but would have loved to tried the food here. Â Great bartenders-- very personable and give good suggestions.
Review Source:I went during happy hour, so the specials may skew my review, but I loved this place! My main obsession is that they don't make you sit at the bar to get happy hour specials. That's awesome because sometimes there aren't any seats at the bar, and I am a gal always in search of cheap booze and drinks.
I had a champagne cocktail which was tasty, as well as some type of augratin appetizer that was amazing! I am a picky eater, and I was thrilled with the food. The pita bread was yummy, too.
Our waitress was super nice and attentive without being annoying. Can't wait to go back! :) The vibe was definitely casual cool so anyone should feel comfortable going here.
We went to Zinc Bistro on Saturday night and although we made reservations a week in advance, we still had to wait 15 minutes to be seated. Additionally, when I ordered I asked the waitress about my food allergies to make sure I was OK to order anything from the menu and after she left to ask the kitchen, she forgot to return... Overall the service was sub-par.
The food was good though, especially the Zinc burger. It had a bit of a kick to it. The BRIOCHE APPLE BREAD PUDDING SOUFFLÉ was also amazing and I would highly recommend.
It was our first time visit Zinc for its happy hour. I can say that I was impressed with their prickly pear margarita; however, I was not too impressed by their food.
I absolutely love their prickly pear margarita!!! It is so pretty in its pink and white swirl with a ring of spicy salt. The mixture of tequila just made the drink so much better. If you stop by at zinc, you must try their prickly pear margarita!
Their happy hour offers half-priced appetizers which have wide variety of food. We ordered escargot, calamari, and their fries. Calamari was pretty good with thin breading outside and spicy sauce. Escargot was prepared in garlic butter which was pretty tasty too. Fries tasted really good but I felt its fries was short and broken up. I would love to have long and quality fries at a place like this. Overall, I enjoyed their happy hour deal and would definitely return for their prickly pear margarita. However, I really wish they can improve on their happy hour food.
Nice looking place but after I have the lamb sliders (just OK) I get my bill and notice that the beer that the waiter had recommended is more than my dinner cost. Â When I mention to my waiter he says 'that's what menus are for'. Nice. Â Won't be coming back. Â Please ask for the price of all beers before ordering. Â Some are very expensive.
Review Source:Overall, I liked Zinc Bar very much. Friendly service and a laid back atmosphere however the food I ordered (pizza) was so-so and very flavorful. I should've tried the Zinc burger in all honesty but I was drawn in by the pizza. To top it all off I (gasp) ordered beer at a wine bar (nothing on tap obviously) but the bartenders all seemed to know their stuff which was a plus
Review Source:I travel a lot for my job and try to get out and try as much local cuisine as I can. Â I have to say that if I was just rating on the food (their Zinc burger is delicious) or the atmosphere (which was awesome), I would easily give this place 5 stars. Â The service however was severely lacking. Â
I was seated and waited for about 15 minutes without a drink, water, or anything before the person who seated me finally came back and asked if my waitress had come by, she had not. Â Thankfully, he was willing to take my order at that time. Â
Both my drink and my food came out quickly, but was dropped off by a person who I can only assume was my waitress, because she barely said a word to me during my entire time there. Â I have heard more from a "server" at the second window of a McDonalds drive-through. Â
As I said, the food was excellent, and maybe I have to give them another chance when I am back in the area. Â I just hope it will be with different staff.
While visiting San Antonio, my family and I enjoyed a savory lunch at Zinc. Â
First off Zinc is a difficult spot to find because it is not near the river walk. Â The entrance is through the narrow bar which you must pass through to get to the other parts of the main dining area this was a little awkward. Â We opted to sit outside on the patio. Â I had the ZINC BURGER, which was excellent and costs $9.00. Â The burger is huge, topped with cheese lettuce, tomato, onion special sauce, and what appeared to be a fried zesty cheese cracker. After I had gobbled up every last bite, the waiter informed me that the burger had recently been named the best burger in San Antonio!
I also enjoyed a prickly pear margarita, which was very tasty. Â
The rest of my family ate the following dishes, lamb sandwich and lamb sliders. Â Â These dishes were just "ok" Â It seemed like they were missing something to me. Â
If you come to Zinc make sure you get the Zinc burger, I would stay away from the hyped up lamb sandwich and the lamb sliders.
This is an excellent place. With good food at extremely reasonable prices this is as good as it gets !!
We loved the Pasta and Shrimp. The drinks was awesome and the Dessert was great. They make guacamole in fornt of your table "FRESH" and it is tasty. The ambience is great and the waiters are helpful.
Highly recommended.
The tableside guacamole at Zinc Bar is the best that we have had in San Antonio. Â We have been to the restaurant several times and every bite of food has been very good - the kitchen is doing a wonderful job.
We have had good service every time also - the servers are pleasant, take the orders promptly and are always available if we need something. Â The only negative has been a snarky hostess - last midweek, an older lady with a ribbon in her hair was quite rude. Â We arrived about 4:30pm - the restaurant had a few customers but none in the main dining room. Â
The rude hostess promptly attempted to seat us at the worst table - near the hall, restrooms etc. Â When we objected she told us that we would have to make our visit short because she had a large number of reservations. Â But we took our time with dinner. Â Of course, the restaurant was still quite empty when we left - the "large number" of reservations did not materialize.
Zinc Bar would be a five-star restaurant if they had a more congenial and welcoming hostess.
I didn't quite know what to expect at this place until I opened the menu. Â Wow, you know it's a good sign when you want to order everything on the menu!!!! Â I had a Shirley temple and they don't use maraschino cherries but rather these dark purple ones. Â We had the guacamole for an appetizer which they make fresh at the table. Â It was absolutely delicious but the portion size is tiny. Â I had the lamb sandwich which was actually a wrap. Â Yummy!!! Â There is definitely a kick in the sauce that I was not expecting. Â I ended up eating half and picking out the meat in the other half but yummy! Â Service was very slow and the patio furniture is crooked and slanted. Â Also, the patio is in the alley in the back so there's really no people watching to do and it's an interesting atmosphere. Â Nice place to go for a quieter conversation and good food.
Review Source:Atmosphere: perfectly suited for a special occasion, especially with a beautiful outdoor patio area surrounded by lush greenery and a water fountain.
Food: I loved my Zinc burger and the dipping sauce for the fries that accompanied it. The portion size was huge, and the meat juices were bursting with every bite I took. So of course I looked very messy but was too consumed with my burger to care. Fries were average but elevated to another level with the spicy tomato aioli. I also had the prickly pear margarita which I will now proclaim as the best margarita I've ever had. The drink is light and slightly sweet with the brim flecked with some kind of chili to give it a twist. The alcohol taste is not too strong either.
Service: Sorely lacking. Our waitress took about 20 minutes to finally come back to take our order and never once refilled our water. For a more upscale restaurant, I was surprised by the lack of attentiveness.
Verdict? Go for the food but expect mediocre service.
Service good and quiet enough setting in dining area for business discussion. Â Food just ok though. Â Veggie chips from a bag should not be considered a side dish?! Â Have been here before for meetings over drinks and think I will limit my future to such here as bar area very vibrant.
Review Source:I love this little bistro! Its away from all of the hooplah on the river and is nice and cozy. The atmosphere was great and it has a quaint courtyard with plenty of space, crawling ivy, and a water features. Great for date night, small luncheons, etc. Now... the food!
The food was great! I had the shrimp skewers and rice. The grilled shrimp was the perfect blend of spicy, sweet, and savory. Just enough char to give it a nice smoky flavor and crispiness but still juicy. The rice was a sort of pilaf... I should have written this review soon after I left because now I cant remember what was in it. Just know that is was good! I tried a bite of my friend's burger and it was delicious. Dont know what was on it but it had a "top dollar burger" taste to it (without the top dollar price!).
The service was good as well. The waitress was nice but not overly friendly. Im the type that hates to be bothered a million times during dinner so I was satisfied.
Overall the atmosphere was nice. There are many different seating options which is good to know.
Service wise I was not impressed. Not sure if they were short staff this night but it too forever to order, get the food and then resolve the check. Going here for a business dinner was not ideal. Maybe a casual dinner out but not business.
Food was ok. The menu was ok -options felt really limited.
Overall probably won't go there again.
I was in San Antonio on a business trip by myself and stayed at the Marriott Riverwalk. Zinc was recommended by the concierge of the hotel and was a easy walk to this restaurant. Â I was early and beat the dinner crowd. I had the dining area all to myself for the first 30 minutes. The dinner room is small but long. Â There is also a bar area that seemed nice and in hind sight wished I had sat in the bar area for dinner due to being alone.
Service was good. Great wine selection and variety on prices. Had 2 glasses of wine.
I started with the daily soup (gumbo). Was delicious and I wished I had ordered a bowl instead of a cup.
I had the dinner entree with churrassco gulf shrimp. Shrimp was cooked perfectly and did not have that taste of being frozen. Basmati rice had lots of flavor and wished I had more of it. Â I usually don't like getting rice with a meal because lacks flavor but this did not!
For dessert I h the brioche apple bread pudding souffle. Â I got it "to go" so I could eat later in my hotel. They made the extra effort to separate the ice cream and pudding so wouldn't melt as fast. I appreciated the effort. It was delicious.
I recommend for dinner alone or with others. Â I will be back if when I come back for more business trips.
Came here several times during my short trip to San Antonio.
During these trips, I tried the table-side guacamole (which is also the main feature at its sister restaurant, Boudros), escargot, antipasto, lamb sandwich, grilled shrimp, and the faux gras (Chicken liver pate served with sun-dried cherry marmalade and pistachios). Faux gras was my favorite -- I couldn't get enough, and ordered it every time I dined here. My mouth still waters thinking about it today!
Will definitely come back if ever in San Antonio.
OMG yum! Â The burger and the zinc salad are amazing. Â I have tried many other things though and they are all good. Â The truffle fries are worth the money too. Â they also have fun drinks. Â I recommend sitting on the patio if it is nice outside. Â If this place wasn't located downtown than I would go here all the time.
Review Source:Went there last Sunday, and I will not be returning for the food. Â It took 40 mins. for our orders to come out and most of the food was not as good as the last time I was there many months ago. Â The prickly pear margarita was fantastic, however.
I would recommend this place for drinks only, when the weather is nice. Â The outside patio is great on warm evenings.
After a walk along the river walk with the in-laws, we stopped off at Zinc Bistro. Â We had a party of eleven and they were very accommodating. Â The calamari was delicious and the home made guacamole really deserves all the good reviews it is getting. Â
I was most impressed with the prices of this hidden gem. Â Very reasonable and the food was impressive. Â The service was a tad bit slow. Â Probably due to our table size, so I can't really be upset. Â We did have to remind the server to refill our drinks.
End Result: Â Reasonable prices, above par food, get the guacamole.
Happy Hour lovers look no further! I tried this restaurant after a co-worker recommended it and was not disappointed. During Happy Hour, house specialty drinks and appetizers are half off. If you are a fan of margaritas please try the Prickly Pear and Partida Margaritas. Both are refreshing and delicious! You will not be looking for brandy in the Zinc Sangria (it's definitely there!) and the 10 Cane Mojito is awesome. The calimari is fresh and has a great spicy taste! You can't beat the Zinc Salad at $3 - this salad is so YUM. Mixed field greens with goat cheese, cherry tomatoes, crispy onions, pecans, nectarine and a delicious orange-sherry vinaigrette.
For an entree I recommend the Zinc Burger - aka the "Crack Burger" - you will think of burgers differently after trying this one. The Zinc Burger comes on a brioche bun with quality juicy beef, cheddar, a crispy parmesan tuille, bibb lettuce, tomato and sun-dried tomato aioli - you won't be sorry! The fries come with a mango ketchup - sounds weird, but it's delicious! The Margherita Pizza is just okay, and I found the Shrimp Po-Boy to be more breading and sauce than shrimp. Dessert fans will love the Brioche Apple Bread Pudding Souffle- DELICIOUS. I dream about this dessert - the brioche is soft and sweet, and the combination of apple and ice cream is so good.
The service is good and this restaurant provides quality food in a classy environment that manages to remain casual and unpretentious. Be advised that if you use a credit card you will be charged an additional 20% until the charge goes through.
The happy hour is what we came for, and we thought overall it was a-ok but nothing spectacular.
We started off with the Calamari , it was ok but nothing special.
The artichoke dip was mediocre.
My wife ordered some sort of Spicy margarita with a chili powder rim and she said it was messy and not that great. We both tried the Prickly pear margarita and they were delicious and on the happy hour menu.
Lamb sliders were good, tasty, sloppy style.
My wife ordered the Shrimp with vegetables and basmati rice she liked it, the shrimp were grilled and tasty.
Overall this is a great place for cheap bites and drinks, but we weren't super impressed with the food.
Great stop after our walking tour of San Antonio. We stopped in at Zinc after reading the great reviews and are so happy we did. At the suggestion of other reviewers, we started with the homemade guacamole and we could tell as it was being made at our tableside by our server it would be something special. The guacamole itself was delicious as were the chips.
We proceeded with the special prickly pear margaritas which our waiter recommended and which were also whipped up fresh in front of us and equally delicious. They were nicely mixed without too much tequila or juice flavor, in equal balance.
While we were working on these, our waiter came over and talked to us for quite some time about what we were doing in San Antonio and how our trip was going. It was so nice and relaxing and really made the visit special. I normally can't remember the service at restaurants 5 minutes after leaving, but the staff at Zinc bistro really stood out and made our visit memorable.
We also realized that we had visited during happy hour and ended up hardly spending anything. Absolutely loved the place and hope to go back soon.
Well, after having visited a few more wine bars around the country, I can still say that this is a solid place. I got a Zinc Salad and Sandwich this time. The leaves were a little wilted, but what can you expect for winter in the D? The lamp wrap sandwich, however, was some of the best lamp I've had. Hot, tender, juicy, and full of spices with enough veggies mixed in to make me feel like I was having a homecooked meal.
Service again was attentive and fast. I came alone again, so just another heads up that this is a great place to grab a bite if you're traveling for work!
My friend and I were stumbling around downtown one night looking for a good place to have a drink and get something to eat at about 12:00 a.m. Drinks, that's easy! Any bar serves those, but eats is harder. Especially when most kitchen's close at 10:00. The valet at the Palm shot us in Zinc's direction because their kitchen doesn't close until 1am. I could not have been happier. After just coming back from Italy, I was ecstatic to see the wine list at this place, not to mention their margherita and soppresata  pizzas to pair with NOM! The menu is small and hasn't changed much over the years, but has some good picks and enough variety to make everyone in your party happy. The pasta portofino is another fave, along with the portabello patty melt. Â
Also, the staff and management are extremely accommodating. I had my birthday party here a few years back, and they allowed my best friend to decorate our table about 30-40 minutes before our reservation. Pretty cool of them!
209 reviews on this place, good Lord.
How do I make mine noticeable amongst the tourists and the frou-frou "OMG, Zinc!" chicks?
I'll give you what I was telling my friends the entire night, "THERE'S NOTHING IN THE GLASS!!"
More on that in a moment.
When you walk in, Zinc is very inviting and intimate. Two-seat high-tables on one side, and the bar on the right. Â There is full restaurant seating further in, however the restaurant stops serving food at midnight. Â Great outdoor seating area with at least a half-dozen tables. Â Actually, the entire 'block' (Charles Court) is owned by the same company, so you can go from Zinc to Davenport to another one of the bars there - all connected by that outdoor courtyard.
The drinks are very good, but small... and pricey.
Margaritas, martinis - $9.
The 'boutique' glasses appear to be larger, but it didn't seem like there was more than 2 ounces in my glass. Â Seriously.
Domestics were $4. Â
I recommend trying the Prickly Pear. Â It's colorful, frozen, relatively more plentiful than the margartias - and a little cheaper.
Food (again, before midnight) was great. Pizza. Burgers. Appetizers. All worth trying.
The staff is very friendly and cute. Â Overall, check it out. Â But I'd make Zinc your start or end point of your bar-hopping escapade.
Brownie points: they're open until 2am Sunday night/Monday morning.
You're downtown, so you're going to be paying for parking. Â Lucky for you, a big 24-hour parking garage is right next to Zinc (entrance off W. Market or E. Commerce). Cost about $10.
So, I was in San Antonio con mi madre and she said we just had to try this place and their guacamole. (it's made right in front of you! lol) I will say, we went during happy hour, so that ups it to a 5 star for sure for me.
We got,
-Guac (of course) yummy! and half off for HH
-Prickly Pear Marg, Ruby Red Martini, Sangria, and a Pama Tini.. all fabulous (except the Sangria was meh) and all half off for HH.
-an order of their Sweet Potato Fries... SO GOOD... they put a salty, spicy seasoning on them and they were fabulous!
-Chocolate covered strawberries.. at $6, this was the most expensive thing we got that day... and they were WORTH IT.
Total bill... $30!
Awesomeness.
This place looks small, but they have a back room which is much cozier and fits a lot more people. Came here for a few drinks and munchies and had a pretty good time.
The food is good but I had 3 mojitos and they all tasted different and none of them were good...Other peopel at my table had much better drinks, but I'd advise against the mojito. Other then that, all the finger food and burgers were great and I'd come back for the food alone!
By FAR and away one of the hippest, places I have been in SA, escaping the riff raff of the Riverwalk. Â
After a recommendation from a friend, decided to check out Zinc, and was really happy I did.
Zinc is located downtown, which seems like a million miles away from the ridiculous Texas themed bar with cowboy hats I made the mistake of walking into.
The bistro is sunny, well decorated, and nice the cutest little outdoor garden/seating area perfect  for cooler weather. Â
We sat at the bar and were automatically greeted and welcomed with wine suggestions, and a fantastic menu of various bites and dining options.
We opted for the table side homemade guacamole, which we found the secret to be the splash of orange juice, and roasted tomatoes, some of the best guacamole I have ever had, hands down!
In addition, we had the margarita pizza which was fantastic, and the perfect amount of everything.
The wine list is great with options from every grape known to God. Â Great specialty drink menu with lots of options.
Perfect date place, or girls night out, will be back!
Zinc is officially a go-to downtown spot for me. It has always been on my list of places for a nice intimate dinner, but after my recent discovery of their incredible happy hour I know it's so much more than simply "nice".
The most important part of any happy hour, the libations at Zinc will blow you away not only with their deliciousness and creativity, but the insanely cheap prices at which you can enjoy them. For four precious hours every day (weekdays only, maybe? I need to figure that out) their specialty cocktails including prickly pear margaritas, bloody mary's, grapefruit refreshers, and many more are all half price. This makes each drink around $4-$5. STEAL.
What's a good drink without something to pair it with? Not an issue here. Choose from table side guacamole, truffle fries, calamari, fresh made hummus and many more shared plates for, that's right, half off. I've been told that Zinc is Boudro's little sister restaurant, so things like the guacamole and prickly pear margarita that the fancy riverwalk spot is known for are just as tasty at Zinc for half the price. Also, I've heard rumors that the Zinc burger rival any other burger in town.
Whether you're meeting up with friends after work or going out for an intimate dinner, Zinc is a wonderful place to go out and get your night started.
This place puts the Happy in Happy hour. half price specialty drinks and small plates.
I love the atmosphere. great re-purposed old building and the shared patio are fantastic.
The specialty drinks are amazing. My two favorites are the Chocolate Razz Berry Tini and the Prickly Pear Margarita. The calamari and french fries are both winners. So is the Colorado lamb sandwich.
Next time you need to get your happy on remember Zinc Bistro and Wine bar.
Wow..what can I say about Zinc Bistro? Â Right as we walked into the restaurant, it felt like I was back at home in San Francisco. Â It's such a cute place with the perfect decorations and a comfy feeling like you know it's gonna be some good food.
We walk in and were seated right at the time of our reservation. Â Our waitress was very nice and she came out with water and gave us a few suggestions. Â There were so many things we wanted to try, but we stuck with only a couple of items:
Truffled Parmesan fries, Zinc Salad, Texas Chopped Salad, and the Herb Roasted Colorado Lamb Sandwich. Â Everything was super delicious, presentation was awesome, and we couldn't be happier. Â Although I do have to point out that the Lamb Sandwich came in the form of a wrap...which we thought was a bit odd. Â We've seen pics via Yelp and it was an actual sandwich, so I don't know why ours came in a wrap - it wasn't as good as we thought it was going to be. Â Wish they would have let us know it'd be a "wrap" not a "sandwich," Â But other than that, our meal was excellent from the drinks and food to the service and atmosphere. Â I'd definitely come back again to try their other menu items!
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