I feel like I’ve stepped back in San Antonio restaurant time, to the days of Andrew Weissman’s Le Rêve, a long-gone theater of European technique with Weissman center stage. I missed the 2009 end of Le Rêve’s 11-year run on the River Walk by a full seven years, picking up parables from the book of Weissman wherever I could: at Il Sogno, at Moshe’s Golden Falafel, at The Luxury, at Signature, until all that was left was the burger drive-thru Mr. Juicy that started this list at No. 50.
That’s where the story of Max’s Sister begins, with the decision to sell chicken-fried steak at Mr. Juicy. Because a restless chef couldn’t help himself, and it almost destroyed his little burger stand. That’s it: No more CFS. Until he decided to build a whole restaurant around it. Something casual enough for wings and a burger and breakfast, but nice enough for chicken-fried steak with peppercorn au poivre sauce instead of cream gravy.
And so he moved into the former Hayden space out Northwest, naming it Max’s Sister for his daughter, by way of his son. And that chicken-fried steak moved immediately to the No. 1 spot on our Top 10 CFS countdown. It worked. Until Weissman changed his mind again. Not just about the gravy and the steak, but the whole thing. Time to be a white-coat Chef with a capital “C” again. No more breakfast, no more lunch. Dinner on white tablecloths, with waiters in formal matchy-match and citrus layered like brigand armor just for the water service. Lobster risotto, crispy sweetbreads, cheese boards, skate wing with Champagne velouté, venison. Even a chef’s tasting menu modeled after Le Rêve’s dusty pages.
And it works. Not just because the Chef with a capital “C” is back on the line. The Weissman faithful formed up around him, most notably his wife, Maureen, becoming the face and voice of the dining room. And serial Weissman waiter Ruben Garcia, and manager Roberto Martinez. And finally, the customers who never forgot Le Rêve. We’re in the middle of another Andrew Weissman moment. Until we’re not. And instead of reminiscing about it 10 years from now, I’m making a reservation and showing up now. Right now, for San Antonio’s new No. 1 restaurant.
Dining and Cooking