Stixs & Stone is an Asian and Tex-Mex fusion restaurant. Recently, one of their plates was recognized by Texas Monthly as one of the best tacos in the state.
SAN ANTONIO — In San Antonio, Sundays are for Big Red and barbacoa.
The bright red, sweet and creamy soda usually accompanies the taco on the side. However, at one local restaurant, the carbonated drink is infused into the food. It’s a different take on the iconic duo but the dish ranks high for its flavor.
This week, Neighborhood Eats is checking out Stixs & Stone.
“We started from a pop-up, we were known as Catch the Wave. [We did] farmers markets, chef caterer, and then from there in 2021 after covid we had an opportunity to get into a restaurant. We decided to get in a restaurant, Mother’s Day 2021 and we’ve been rocking ever since,” said Chef Leo Davila.
Since then, the Asian and Tex-Mex fusion restaurant has had culinary success. Recently, one of their plates was recognized by Texas Monthly as one of the best tacos in Texas.
“It’s pretty crazy. The taco that we got named for is the Big Red & Barbacoa, that taco really is my childhood in a taco. It really is special to get recognized on such a level because [taco editor] Jose ate over 1,400 tacos. [He] surveyed Texas far and wide, different parts of the state, different styles of tacos so to know that something so controversial and loving not only made the list, but the top ten, is pretty special.”
For this dish, Davila infuses the big red into heirloom nixtamalized masa until it becomes a pink. Then, the dough is gently rolled into a ball and flattened into a tortilla using a press. Fat is scraped off the beef cheek, which is cooked the day prior, and added to the red tortilla before its dressed with a number of ingredients.
The trio is drizzled with strawberry jam and topped with a pecan pesto, Chile de arbol salsa, queso fresco and a pickled watermelon rind.
“When we pickle this, it gives it more of a chamoy [taste] so like a little bit more of a nod to San Antonio,” said Davila.
The twist on the pesto also has its own backstory, a memory tied to family gatherings during his childhood.
“My grandpa had a pecan tree in his backyard so in addition to having barbacoa with our meals, we also had pecans on the side that we would just kind of crack and have a snack.”
Davila’s menu proudly highlight his Mexican descent. Asian food is also featured to showcase his Chinese heritage such as Pan Seared Duck Breast with Hibiscus Mole, which was prepared by his Chef de Cuisine Hunter McCall.
“Every year I try to fall back in love with something I absolutely despised growing up. Mole was one of those things that I was just not a fan of, so I went down this path a few years ago to figure out why,” Davila said. “I realized the chocolate, the peanut butter and the mole was really weighing down my palate. One of the things mole calls for is bread crumbs or bread, what we do is we take heirloom masa, cook a fresh tortilla and that’s my binder in it as well. You get a lot of earthly notes from the corn.”
Another is the Honey Walnut Shrimp, a rice dish with house yum yum sauce, garlic herb butter shrimp, wok fried veggies and microgreens.
Other dishes we tried include Smacked Cucumbers and the Mexican Style Street Corn. The corn is torched then halved and topped with hot oil, crumbly Mexican cheese, pecans, pickled red onion and Chile powder.
Stixs & Stone is located at 5718 B Wurzbach Road in Sunset Plaza.