Flicks and Food

Q On the Riverwalk

Posted on 21. Jun, 2011 by Johnnie in Business Lunch, Celebrations, Chef Selection, Finding Perfection, Foods, Fresh Reviews, Group Friendly, Happy Hour, Kid Friendly, News Flash, Non-Chain, Restaurant News, Testimonials, Themed

I recently got the opportunity to dine at a new restaurant housed in one of our city’s finer hotels in the heart of downtown San Antonio. I am speaking of Q on The Riverwalk in the Hyatt Regency hotel.  When I did some preliminary checking on the restaurant (via the WWW) I saw that it was a Barbeque place. My first thought was, great, another Texas B-B-Q establishment with the usual smoked brisket, ribs and sausage fare.

But then Kara Marshall, Marketing Manager for the Hyatt wrote me and gave me a little description of the Q. It seems that Q has taken Barbeque to a new level wanting people who visit to experience the art of Barbeque from around the world. Their “Wall of Fire” as they call it, is an interactive kitchen allowing their patrons the opportunity to see up close how they make their Barbeque. The Wall of Fire is set up with a smoker (like we use in Texas), a churrasco grill (used to cook meats in South America) and a rotisserie grill (for a European flair).  Reading this description, my interest was piqued.

What I found upon entering Q was a casual upscale place with a bit of South American feel and a hint of Texas ranch house charm.  I am familiar with the Hyatt’s attention to detail, and the Q was very detailed oriented.   Fernando, our waiter was immediately attentive and ready to make us feel at home and go over the menu. As we were asked about beverages, he mentioned some flavored teas which at once sounded refreshing after just coming in out of the 100 degree Texas heat. I am usually not one to get flavored tea as they are usually sticky sweet, but Fernando assured me this tea was just slightly sweet, no fructose syrup, no artificial flavors or colors and contained real fruit. So I decided to try the lemon version. This tea was both soothing to my overheated body and relaxing as my thoughts wondered to a porch swing in the summer breeze.

Before I knew it Fernando was back to remind me where I was and started offering what the Q calls Tease suggestions. I usually always go for the soup of the day, both because I love soup and soup of the day is usually the chef’s rendition of something great. This meant I was getting Carrot Bisque and again I wasn’t disappointed. This was a very creamy slightly sweet soup with a hint of the carrot and a lighter hint of spice. Even though the soup was warm, it offered a slight cooling effect. My friend decided to try the Chunky Tortilla Soup which consisted of pulled roasted chicken, avocado and pico de gallo. The table presentation of this soup was very nice as well, as all the ingredients except the liquid are served in the soup bowl and then the broth is poured over this. The Q Tortilla soup was a little different than many Mexican restaurants in town as it had more of a tomato base, rather than chicken broth. It was an enjoyable change.

For my entrée I did choose the Smoked Brisket sandwich which was served on a multi-grain roll with peach BBQ sauce. The sandwich was accompanied by a side of cold slaw in a chipotle cream sauce which gave it a nice bite, some horseradish pickles and some homemade potato chips.  I want the recipe for the horseradish pickles please. I pretty much love horseradish anything, but these were the best pickles ever.  The sandwich was filled with a huge serving of the tenderest, slightly smoked brisket I have had the chance to eat in quite a while. And that bun was soft and warm and soaked up the peach BBQ sauce wonderfully.  My friend decided to try the Rotisserie Chicken Club served on a soft grilled ciabatta with smoked bacon and a house-made mayonnaise. There was at least a quarter of a chicken on this sandwich not to mention everything else so I am not sure how he got his mouth around it without getting lockjaw. By the way, the homemade mayonnaise was really good with a hint of herbs to awaken the taste buds. This sandwich came with the same accompaniments as mine.  (Note:  I want to know where they get their ciabatta.  It was nice and soft compared to the ones I find in bakeries which are tuff when I try to bite into them.)

We were too full to try a dessert, but I would have loved to try the Crazy Good Banana Cheesecake with the smoked banana jam.  That just sounds crazy good.  Maybe next time!

I think the only thing I would do different would be to go for dinner instead of lunch as there seems to be a better selection of international dishes to choose from.  But if you find yourself downtown at either lunchtime or dinnertime, you should really check out the Q.  And if you know of anyone getting ready to visit our lovely city, please tell them about Q.  You and they will be pleased you did.  You can tell them Johnnie from Flicks and Food sent you.

The Q also offers great happy hour specials, just perfect after a day touring the Alamo. The Q on The Riverwalk is located inside the Hyatt Regency at 123 Losoya right on the Riverwalk and overlooking the historic Alamo.

(210) 222-1234

http://www.hyatt.com/gallery/qriverwalk

http://www.sanantonioregency.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp

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