Twin Liquors is having its annual dollar sale at all locations. Photo: Twin Liquors, used with permission.
Twin Liquors, Central Texas’ fine wine and spirits retailer, is pleased to announce its summer 2018 Dollar Sale, offering incredible deals on wine and spirits. The Dollar Sale will take place at all 80 plus Twin Liquors locations from Wednesday August 29 through Friday August 31, 2018. A directory of locations is available online – there are eight locations in San Antonio. (Twin Liquors, 2018)
Twin Liquors’ Dollar Sale will feature incredible savings on wine and spirits 750 ml and larger. Prices will drop down to the absolute lowest plus a dollar. Shoppers can look forward to amazing prices on collectible wines, rare whiskies and other popular spirits. Some restrictions apply. A taco truck will be on-site at the Hancock Center Marketplace location starting at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, August 29.
Born and raised in downtown Austin, Texas, Twin Liquors began as one small store and has emerged as a successful “home-grown” Austin company. Its unique and well-respected reputation throughout the United States comes from having impeccable team members, outstanding customer service, conveniently located stores, an extensive selection of fine wines and premium spirits from around the world as well as substantial community involvement. Twin Liquors currently operates over 80 neighborhood stores in Central Texas.
At last year’s competition, RVK Architects’ “Chomping Our Way Out of Hunger” won Most Cans and the coveted People’s Choice. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
Coming up in September, North Star Mall is hosting the 13th annual Canstruction® design/build competition. This is one of the San Antonio Food Bank’s SA Goes Orange for Hunger campaign events to raise awareness and funds for hunger relief. (North Star Mall, 2018)
After last year’s hurricane right before the building competition, San Antonio felt a collective responsibility to assist neighbors along the coastal region who were impacted and the city’s response was immediate and powerful. Canstruction® became even more important as the Food Bank warehouses were inundated with donations and the reserve supply of canned food generated by Canstruction® provided a later source of food as communities began to rebuild.
In the International Canstruction® Competition, a San Antonio team received the first-ever recognition when RVK Architects toy alligator structure entitled, “Chomping Our Way Out of Hunger” placed third among hundreds of entries. Locally, RVK’s creative Canstruction® garnered two awards – Most Cans and the coveted People’s Choice.
This year, ten teams representing the San Antonio chapters of The American Institute of Architects and the Society for Design Administration have registered to participate. Their work begins on Sunday, September 9 when they are given 12 hours to defy expectations, logic and gravity as they assemble giant sculptures using approximately 30,000 cans of food. The sculptures will remain on display throughout North Star Mall’s common areas during mall hours through Saturday, September 22.
The following day the supersized masterpieces will be judged at the Canopener awards ceremony where industry professionals and special guests will be in attendance. Teams will vie for award categories in Best Meal, Best Use of Labels, Structural Ingenuity, Best Original Design, Most Cans and Best Use of Orange. The public may also cast a vote for the People’s Choice Award to be announced on September 25, 2018. Voting instructions can be found at each structure during display at North Star Mall.
All canned goods used to create the unconventional art exhibits at North Star Mall will be donated to the San Antonio Food Bank at the close of the competition. In 13 years, Canstruction® has donated more than 472,095 pounds of food. As the major supplier of food for the hungry in Southwest Texas, the San Antonio Food Bank helps provide food for about 58,000 individuals each week through a network of more than 530 partner agencies within a 16-county service area. Every donation, every SA Goes Orange for Hunger campaign button worn and every means of public outreach helps to fight hunger and feed hope.
Donations can be dropped off at the Food Bank warehouse from 8a.m. to 5p.m. or at the San Antonio City Council district offices. More than 58,000 people in Southwest Texas rely on the Food Bank’s network of programs and services each week and more than 74,000,000 hot meals are served annually and over half a million Southwest Texans are at risk of going hungry.
The Intercambio Dinner Series with Chef Jorge Fernandez of Madrid, Spain will be on Wednesday, August 29. Photo: Pearl, used with permission.
As part of Olé, San Antonio programming this summer, the Pearl invites exemplars of the Spanish culinary scene—from Michelin-starred to up-and-coming Market chefs—to participate in intercambios, exchanges, with Pearl counterparts. Chef Jeff Balfour of Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery is hosting a Spanish dinner paired with Southerleigh brews and Spoetzl Brewery’s special limited edition Olé brews with Chef Jorge Fernandez Rodríguez of Madrid, Spain on Wednesday August 29 at 6:30p.m. The dinner includes a welcome reception curated by Southerleigh’s Chef Jeff Balfour and a 5-course seated dinner by guest Chef Jorge Rodríguez. Tickets are $80 per person plus tax and gratuity and includes beer pairings. Reservations are limited and can be made by calling Southerleigh at (210) 455-5701. (Pearl, 2018)
Chef Jorge Fernández Rodríguez of Gastrochigre in Madrid focuses on the gastronomy of the Asturias region and aims to make high-end cuisine more accessible and available to the general public.
The special menu available for one night only will include:
Welcome Reception: menu by Chef Jeff Balfour includes Machacado tortilla, Summer squash terrine on pan tomate, Puffed egg with jamón, Mexican chorizo and gulf crab croquette, Bacalao Magdalena and Mini picadillo rellenos.
Beer Pairings by Spoetzl Brewery, makers of Shiner includes Las Canarias Ale and Tenerife Ale.
Seated Dinner: menu by Chef Jorge Fernández Rodríguez includes Sweet and sour pig ears salad, “Callos” (tripas) with kale kimchi, mushrooms and vermicelli noodles, Deep fried hoisin duck with spicy carrot hummus, Rice and beans Asturias style with saffron scented beef cheek, and Rice pudding with chocolate and stout beer.
Beer Pairings by Southerleigh Brewing Co. includes Blood orange lime infused kettle sour, Sake style rice beer, Honey orange cream ale, Russian imperial stout and Microlot Katz Coffee (non-alcoholic coffee to be served with dessert).
*Beer pairings subject to change depending on availability
Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery
136 East Grayson, Suite 120
San Antonio, TX 78215
‘Aye, No!’ at the Cellar Theater. The last two performances this weekend are sold out but there will be an encore performance on August 31. Photo: Siggi Ragnar, used with permission.
Word around town has it that Teatro Audaz’ ‘Aye, No!’ is a hilarious and poignant production. It sold out during its run at The Public Theater’s Cellar Theater this month, so it is back by popular demand for an encore presentation for one night only at Woodlawn Pointe on Friday August 31 from 8p.m. to 10p.m. Tickets are $15 to $20 and are available online but are going fast. Do not miss a chance to catch this show written by Liz Coronado-Castillo and directed by Laura T. Garza. Cast includes Miranda Valdez, Jaime Gonzalez-Quintero, Nora Moreno-Jarrell, Brizzo Torres, Karlyn Buchaus, Ivan Ortega, Louie Canales, Ray D. Seams and Christian Gomez. The show is bilingual, 90% English, 10% Spanish.
‘Aye, No!’ takes place in a small town, where young Alicia comes home from college with a ‘friend’ for her family to meet. The trouble begins when her loving grandma and well-intentioned, yet nosy aunts assume that Alicia is bringing home a boyfriend or fiancée. Alicia, wanting her family’s acceptance and fearing ancient Mexican magic, turns to her three fairy-drag-queen friends for guidance.
The movie adaptation of ‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before’ by Jenny Han is now on Netflix.
Jenny Han is The New York Times’ bestselling author of young adult fiction and children’s fiction. She is best known for The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy and the To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before series, which includes ‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,’ ‘P.S. I Still Love Your’ and ‘Always and Forever, Lara Jean.’ ‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before’ is about a teenage girl whose secret love letters to past crushes are made public. The movie adaptation stars Lana Condor, Janel Parrish, Anna Cathcart and John Corbett and was released by Netflix on August 17, 2018.
According to Amazon, ‘To All the Boys I’ve Love Before’ is the story of a sixteen-year-old half-Korean, half-Caucasian girl named Lara Jean Song who keeps her love letters in a hatbox her mother gave her. They are not love letters that anyone else wrote for her but rather letters that she has written – one for every boy she has ever loved; five in all. When she writes, she pours out her heart and soul and says all the things she would never say in real life because these letter are private. Until the day her secret letters are mailed and her love life changes from imaginary to out of control.
Buddy V’s will now have live jazz on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays featuring Alex and Karen Sutherlin. Courtesy photo, used with permission.
Guests to Buddy V’s Ristorante can now enjoy some soft jazz with their favorite Italian meal. Located at The Shops at La Cantera, Buddy V’s is proud to introduce husband-and-wife duo Alex and Karen Sutherlin, who will bring their sweet jazz stylings to the restaurant on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 6p.m. to 9p.m. and Saturdays from 12p.m. to 3p.m. (Buddy V’s Ristorante, 2018)
Combined with the restaurant’s unbeatable deals, including all-day happy hour specials for ladies on Tuesdays and 50% off all wine bottles on Wednesdays, their sultry tunes are another great reason to bring friends and family for a delicious meal.
Buddy V’s Ristorante
15900 La Cantera Pkwy
San Antonio, TX 78256
(210) 462-1167
The next Master Class at Hotel Emma on Wednesday will feature the flavors of Spanish jamon. Photo: Pearl, used with permission.
The ongoing summer celebration Olé, San Antonio at the Pearl is meant to commemorate the city’s 300th anniversary and celebrate its Spanish heritage. Hotel Emma has been participating by hosting master classes featuring food and ingredients from Spain. This Wednesday August 22 from 5:30p.m. to 8:30p.m., attendees are invited to discover the exemplary Spanish flavor of jamón at Hotel Emma’s next master class. They will be able to enjoy a tasting and lesson taught by Manuel Antonio Recio, master carver and co-owner of Conserva from Portland, Oregon, as they discover the process and celebrate the noble Spanish pig.
Manuel Antonio Recio will be the expert of the day. He is a master carver and co-owner of Conserva, a specialty food purveyor located in Portland, Oregon. The evening will feature a lesson from Manuel and a tasting – all devoted to jamón. Tickets for the class are $25 and available for purchase online.
Larder and Sternewirth will be featuring tapas and dishes specifically designed to highlight the deep flavor of Spanish jamón. Or, find a seat at Supper’s table to experience Chef John Brand’s inspired approach to this ingredient, available all week long during lunch and dinner.
Hotel Emma
136 E Grayson St.
San Antonio, TX 78215
(210) 448-8300
‘Hello Dolly!’ opens at the Woodlawn Theatre on Friday August 24. Photo: Woodlawn Theatre, used with permission.
Coming up at the Woodlawn Theatre is ‘Hello Dolly!’ the blockbuster Broadway hit that is filled with humor, romance, high-energy dancing and some of the greatest songs in musical theatre history. The romantic and comic exploits of Dolly Gallagher-Levi, turn of the century matchmaker and “woman who arranges things” are certain to thrill and entertain audiences. This show opens this Friday August 24 and will until through Sunday September 16 with show times every Friday and Saturday at 7:30p.m. and Sunday at 3p.m. Tickets are on sale online or by calling the box office. Prices are $18 for students and children, $24 for seniors, military and first responders and $30 for adults. Groups of ten or more receive a 20% discount. (Woodlawn Theatre, 2018)
‘Hello Dolly!’ is based on Thornton Wilder’s 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers and follows the story of Dolly Gallagher-Levi, a strong-willed matchmaker, who travels to Yonkers, New York to find a match for the miserly ‘well-known unmarried half-a-millionaire’ Horace Vandergelder. In doing so, she persuades his niece, his niece’s intended and Horace’s two clerks to travel to New York City. It stars Anna Gangai as Dolly Levi, Tim Hedgepeth as Horace Vandergelder and Brian Hodges as Cornelius Hackl. Christopher Rodriguez is the director and choreographer and Josh Pepper is the musical director.
The movie adaptation of Ron Stallworth’s ‘The Black Klansman’ is now in theaters.
Ron Stallworth is a highly-decorated law enforcement veteran who worked undercover narcotics, vice, criminal intelligence and organized crime beats in four states. As the first African-American police officer and detective in the Colorado Springs, Colorado Police Department, he overcame fierce racial hostility to achieve a long and distinguished career in law enforcement. In his memoir ‘Black Klansman: Race, Hate, and the Undercover Investigation of a Lifetime’ he writes about his experiences as he sets out to infiltrate and expose the local chapter of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s. The movie adaptation written and directed by Spike Lee is now in theaters and stars John David Washington, Adam Driver, Laura Harrier and Topher Grace.
According to Amazon, ‘Black Klansman’ is the extraordinary true story of Ron Stallworth who comes across a classified ad in the local paper asking for all those interested in joining the Ku Klux Klan to contact a PO Box. He responds using his real name while posing as a white man. He thought he would only receive information through the mail, but a few weeks later he receives a phone call asking if he would like to join their cause. Ron recruits his partner Chuck to play the ‘white’ Stallworth and thus begins one of the most incredible undercover investigations in history. During this investigation, he sabotages cross burnings, exposes white supremacists in the military and befriends the Grand Wizard of the KKK himself, David Duke.
‘You Lucky Dog’ by Debra Finerman is a humorous story of a couple and their beloved dog.
Debra Finerman is an American author best known for her historical fiction novels ‘Shadow War: The Resistance Fighters’ Literary Club’ and ‘Mademoiselle Victorine’ which has been translated into six languages worldwide. She is a former journalist for Capital Style, The Hollywood Reporter monthly magazine, Beverly Hills Today and Beverly Hills Magazine. Her new book ‘You Lucky Dog’ is a humorous novel for dog and human lovers alike and the unlikely love story of Jake and Emma, a young couple thrown into a very unusual situation.
‘You Lucky Dog’ is the story of Jake and Emma, a young married couple who seem to have everything. They are in love and live with their dog Jake in the leafy suburbs of Los Angeles. One rainy Saturday, Jake the human is on his way to take their West Highland terrier dog Jake to the vet when he gets into a horrible car accident. That event changes everything for him as he is now in the body of the dog and his human body is dead. Chapter One begins with the blunt statement: “I Can’t Believe I’m Dead” so there is never any doubt that he dies and from there he goes back to explain how he got there. At first, he struggles to accept his new life but at his funeral he tells Emma what happened and together they find a way to make it work. Eventually he becomes bored with the simple dog life at home and reaches out to become famous as a dog celebrity. Once he becomes content with being Jake the dog, he stretches out in his doggy bed to take a nap and wakes up a human again.
With her third book, Debra Finerman reaches out to dog lovers everywhere with a love letter to dogs and their owners. This light-hearted romantic comedy is written in the first-person narrative and successfully gives readers insight into what a dog’s life must be like. It is a dog/human version of Freaky Friday without taking itself too seriously. Jake the human was not a bad person in the beginning, but as a dog he not only becomes protective and nurturing but he also learns to appreciate each day as it comes. ‘You Lucky Dog’ is small book and easy to read and the perfect book to pick up for a quick read before the summer ends. It is recommended for dog lovers who appreciate a book for a dog’s point of view. The only complaint is Jake the dog’s uncertain fate at the end.
*A copy of this book was received for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are solely the author’s.
SA Examiner 