Esencia
Bread & Butter
$ 18
Masa sourdough, house accoutrements: red wine butter, garlic herb butter, & seasonal fruit spread
Beef & Broccoli
$ 35
Asian spiced wagyu beef, beet tartare, broccoli mole, miso aioli, pickled red onion, rice paper
Smoked Seafood Crudo
$ 31
Jasmine tea, smoked seafood medley, seasonal fruit ponzu, candied jalapeño, pickled fruit, roasted walnuts, salsa macha, rice paper
Quesadilla Negrosourcing signal
$ 21
Squid ink & TX BBQ heirloom corn tortilla, Oaxaca cheese, braised short rib, sweet potato, green goddess, salsa macha, house pickle, queso fresco, shishito pico de gallo, mole amarillo
Shrimp Toast
$ 24
Head-on tiger prawn, masa sourdough, chili crunch compound butter, arbol chile, blistered cherry tomatoes, fried garlic
2 for
$ 18
3 forsourcing signal
$ 25
Big Red & Barbacoa: Big Red infused heirloom corn tortilla, strawberry jam, low & slow barbacoa, house pesto, arbol salsa, queso fresco, pickled watermelon rind
Peppers & Cactus
$ 18
Wok fried shishito peppers, nopalitos, house chorizo, miso aioli, fried garlic, chili crunch compound butter
Kimchi Stone Pot
$ 28
Wok fried veggies, green goddess, Texas Chinese BBQ sauce, hot oil, house pickle, toasted sesame seeds
Chicken & Masa Dumplings
$ 18
Herb chochoyotes, vegetable consommé, chicken confit, grilled corn, avocado
Farmer Brown’s Beet Carpaccio
$ 18
Local roasted beets, pickled beets, arugula, goat cheese, house granola, sesame yuzu vinaigrette
Duck & Flower
$ 46
Hibiscus & Texas pecan mole, Asian spiced sous vide duck breast, wok fried veggies, spiced pecans, jasmine steamed rice
Pork & Apple
$ 41
Apple & pasilla mole, signature house-cured pork belly, pickled Honeycrisp apple, apple compote, wok-fried veggies, leafy lettuce
“Al Pastor”
$ 41
Thick cut bone-in chop, brûléed pineapple, sweet onion & pineapple reduction, stoneground cheesy grits, avocado salad
Carne Asada (Torched Tableside)sourcing signal
$ 85
Wagyu flank steak, potato pavé, avocado salad, Asian chimichurri, heirloom multi-colored tortillas (5)
Katsu Chicken & Waffle
$ 34
Sweet potato waffle, umami compound butter, sticky sticky sauce, powdered sugar
Pan Seared Half Chicken
$ 34
Cornish hen, garlic herb oil, pan roasted veggie medley, twice fried papas, au jus
Bone-in Pork Chop
$ 37
Garlic herb oil, stoneground cheesy grits, pan roasted veggie medley, apple compote
Cake & Popcorn
$ 17
Dulce de leche, caramel corn cake, spiced berry compote, caramel corn clusters, roasted corn chocolate ganache
Seasonal Empanadas
$ 13
House fruit compote, cinnamon sugar
Cherry Blossom Sour
$ 17
Garrision Brothers honeydew, sake, herring liqueur, fresh lemon juice, house cherry blossom honey, egg white, bitters
The Chairman
$ 18
Garrison Brothers single barrel anacacho coffee & cantina collaboration, house roasted corn cobb syrup, mole bitters, smoke; Bottle $ 48; Glass $ 13; Bottle $ 44 Fall Creek Vintners Select; Bottle $ 58; Bottle $ 58; Bottle $ 52; Bottle $ 50; Bottle $ 63; Glass $ 18; Bottle $ 70; Bottle $ 52; Bottle $ 62; Glass $ 17; Bottle $ 65; Bottle $ 56; Bottle $ 48 Woodlands ‘Wilyabrup Valley’; Glass $ 17; Bottle $ 62 Bachelet-Monnot ‘Maranges Rouge 1er Clos de la Boutière’; Bottle $ 52; Bottle $ 62 J Vineyards California Cuvée; Bottle $ 50; Bottle $ 56 Laurent-Perrier La Cuvée (Half Bottle)
Menu as captured Sep 1, 2026 · source ↗
Tied with 4 other venues on equal evidence.
We hold 92 venues in San Antonio, TX and could score 13 of them. Positions are counted against those 13.
v1.7.4 0.9/100 = sourcing 0.6/50 (named-farm 0 distinct, named-region 0 distinct, attribute 1 distinct [class=provenance-adjective x0.50], buzzword 0 distinct) + farm partners 0.0/20 (none scored) + registry 0.0/12 (none listed) + press 0.2/18 (capped at 35% of the 0.6-point evidence base).
sourcing
heirloom
Attribute“Negro Squid ink & TX BBQ heirloom corn tortilla, Oaxaca cheese, braised short rib, sweet potato, green goddess, salsa macha, house pickle, queso fresco, shishito”
on the menu · source ↗
See the week▾
| Sunday | Not listed |
|---|---|
| Monday | Not listed |
| Tuesday | 5pm – 11pm |
| Wednesday | 5pm – 11pm |
| Thursday | 5pm – 11pm |
| Friday | 5pm – 12am |
| Saturday | 5pm – 12am |
“Not listed” means the day was absent from the schedule we read — usually closed, but we never saw it stated, so we don’t claim it.
Hours checked Sep 1, 2026 · source ↗ · checked 33 days ago, so we're not calling it open or closed — anything over 14 days can have changed · Always worth confirming with the restaurant.
Book on OpenTable ↗link checked Sep 1, 2026
Coverage
- San Antonio Magazine restaurant guide entry: Esencia ↗
San Antonio Magazine
Press