Izakaya Restaurants in San Antonio, TX

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I debated whether or not to post this review because I absolutely want to gatekeep Yozora. However, I also want Chef Emanuel and his team to succeed, so whatever. Just as long as you leave me a table, I’ll let you in on the secret.
The interior is mid-century modern with a chill vibe. The clean lines and no-frills interior didn’t feel sparse but instead gave me Mad Men vibes. The vinyl set up to the left of our table screamed 70s basement party in all the right ways. The music was kept at an acceptable level—not too loud that it kept us from hearing our conversation but loud enough to tempt me into shaking my hips when a slammin’ Bossa Nova came on.
**Be advised: we ordered damn near everything on the menu, and our bill reflected as much. Don’t think too hard; just donate some plasma next month.**
It’s not hard to go a little menu crazy with the izakaya-inspired menu.
Lucky Chicken is a red ale IPA from Kyoto, Japan. I had the yuzu sake high ball, which was crisp and refreshing.
The Asian pear cucumber salad was addicting. The floral pear and the mildly sweet cucumber cleansed the palate in anticipation of the meal. The Shiro Wrap (which I assume is named for Yozora’s predecessor) is a spicy avocado and panko-fried soft-shell crab filling surrounded by a soy wrap, masago, and chives. It’s one of those dishes you think of occasionally and wonder if it misses you as much as you miss it.
The Charcoal Grilled Chasu had a unique combination of fatty braised pork belly scented with charcoal that highlighted the salty creaminess of Reggiano cheese. The scallion kimchi that accompanied it mixed spicy with the herbaceous punch of the scallion tops.
The Garlic Edamame is like a toxic relationship: it hurts you but is so addictive and lovely that you can’t help but keep coming back to it. I spent the rest of the meal slurping soybeans from their pods while I conquered the rest of our meal. These have moderate spiciness, so if you’re sensitive to heat, I would skip them.
Hot Line Crispy Gyoza is a fried pork dumpling tossed in 911 sauce (it was more urgent care to us) and topped with parm-Reggiano cheese. These weren’t our favorite, but we’d demolish them after a night of drinking.
We moved on to the Yakitori section of the menu and enjoyed the Negima (chicken thigh and Japanese leek) and Waygu. Both were grilled exceptionally and remained juicy and tender.
We chugged on over to the “Crudo and Battera” section and ordered the Toro Tartare (I wished the lotus chip was thicker to accommodate the weight of the rich tartare), the Pepper Fin (I could drink the citrus soy/chili oil situation), and the Crispy Toro (we loved the juxtaposition of the creamy, fatty toro and the hidden crispy rice).
You might think we were ready to tap out by now… and we were, but we had ordered the Waygu Teriyaki, and we’re no quitters. The Wagyu was cooked perfectly, a gorgeous medium-rare, and the soy beurre blanc sat in was nothing short of seductive.
Our final push was the Yuzu Japanese Citrus Pie. I don’t know if they have an in-house pastry chef, but whoever created this dessert knows what the hell they’re doing. The yuzu offered the right amount of pucker factor, and the crisp, buttery crust added just enough sweetness to balance it.
Our server (I want to say his name was Ray or Roy) was exceptional in his attentiveness, engagement, and hospitality.
I wholeheartedly recommend Yozora as I think it should be on everyone’s list of must-eat places in the San Antonio area.“

“O.M.G. I’ve had ramen all over the world and this is in my top 5! Danielle took care us and she was amazing! You must check this place out and ask for Danielle!“