What is in season in San Antonio. and what to order when the market changes.

Spring

  • Fiesta food booths: April brings Fiesta San Antonio, when Oyster Bake, Taste of the Republic, and dozens of booths fill the city with anticuchos, chicken-on-a-stick, and gorditas for eleven days.
  • Hill Country peaches: Fredericksburg and Stonewall peaches start arriving in May, showing up at the Pearl Farmers Market and in cobblers and ice creams across town through the early summer.
  • Spring produce at the Pearl: The producers-only Pearl Farmers Market fills with early tomatoes, greens, and herbs in spring, when patio weather makes the Saturday market the social centre of the food week.

Summer

  • Raspas and fruit cups: In the brutal Texas summer, fruterias and raspa stands like Las Nieves and Chamoy City Limits do their best trade in shaved ice, mangonadas, and chamoy-and-tajin fruit cups.
  • Peak peach season: Hill Country peaches hit their stride in June and July, sold by the basket at roadside stands and folded into pies and cobblers at bakeries and Hill Country day-trip stops.
  • Patio cooking and frozen margaritas: Summer pushes dining outdoors to beer gardens and ice houses, where frozen margaritas, agua fresca, and cold Big Red carry the long, hot evenings.

Autumn

  • Diez y Seis and harvest produce: September brings Diez y Seis de Septiembre celebrations at Market Square and a cooler-weather return to patios, with autumn squash and greens back at the Pearl market.
  • Day of the Dead pan de muerto: Late October and early November fill the panaderias with pan de muerto, the anise-scented Day of the Dead bread, from Mi Tierra's 24-hour counter to West Side family bakeries.
  • Barbacoa weekends return: As the heat breaks, weekend barbacoa-and-Big-Red runs to spots like Tellez and Tommy's pick back up, the cool-morning ritual that defines a San Antonio Sunday.

Winter

  • Tamales for the holidays: December is tamale season, when families order dozens from West Side spots like Tellez and the city holds its annual Tamales Festival, the masa-and-pork tradition at its peak.
  • Menudo on cold weekends: Cold winter mornings call for menudo, the chile-red tripe soup served at South and West Side cafes like Maria's, the classic weekend warmer and hangover cure.
  • Champurrado and Mexican hot chocolate: Winter brings champurrado, the thick masa-and-chocolate drink, and Mexican hot chocolate to panaderias and cafes, paired with conchas straight from the oven.

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