San Antonio’s King William District

TRAVEL THERE: KING WILLIAM HISTORICAL DISTRICT IN SAN ANTONIO TX

If it’s art, I love it. If it’s Decorative Arts, Architecture and History, well I’m there.  That’s the reason we spent our first morning in San Antonio at the McNay.  It’s also the reason our next stop was the King William District.

The Guenther House

To be exact, our  next stop was The Guenther House, because I also like food.  The Guenther House is one of the jewels in the crown of The King William District.   The Guenther Family founded the Pioneer Flour Mills.  Ever hear of Pioneer Biscuit Mix.  Yep, that’s them.

The mill is still producing and you can sample their wares at the restaurant, right there at the home of their founder.  The home also serves as a museum and has a great gift shop.  Deb and I took a look at it all while we waited for a friend to arrive.

I met Clark in my SFA days and stay in touch on Facebook, but it’s always great to get a chance to chat in person.  We were able to get a seat right there on that covered patio.  Deb had a salad, I opted for the Champagne Chicken Enchiladas and Clark just kept us company.

Of the two dishes, I think Deb chose the better one.  Not that mine was bad – it just wasn’t everything I’d dreamed of when I read, “Tender slices of chicken breast and Monterey Jack cheese wrapped in Pioneer’s White Wings flour tortillas.  Baked in our special sauce made from San Antonio River Mill Champagne Chicken Gravy mix, garnished with jalapenos and cilantro.”  The tortilla was a little tough and by the time the melted cheese made it out to the patio, so was it.  The flavor was great, but I’m a real stickler for texture.

The King Willam Walking Tour

Soon Clark had places to be and I had the map a walking tour of King Williams in my hand.  Now I’ve been to the King William District numerous times, but I’ve never been to San Antonio with anyone else who is as patient with my passions as Deb is.  Every time I’ve been to San Antonio I’ve told my traveling companions how great it would be to walk through the district and spend some time looking at each house.  So far no one had taken me up on it.  I’d been through it on a trolley tour, I’d gone on the Steves Homestead Tour and I’d driven through on the way to Guenther’s, but walking tour and San Antonio had not clicked with any of my potential walking tour companions.

Of course, Deb thought it was a great idea and it turned out to be just that.  We left Guenther’s and figured out where we were on the walking tour map.  Then we did just what I’d wanted to do, strolled along and discussed all the beautiful homes with the Walking Tour Map & Guide as our reference.  Along the way we did take in the Steve’s Homestead Tour – delightful, by the way.  We were a few minutes late for Villa Finale, so we just enjoyed the grounds.  As beautiful as these homes are they only scratch the surface.  Each home in the five block area is a treasure.

So, yes, if you go to San Antonio you should do the walking tour.  San Antonio is notoriously hot and humid, and we walked the whole thing in ninety something  weather, but it was fine.  In fact, the tree-shaded sidewalk made it very pleasant.  On the way back to Guenther’s we dropped down to the River and enjoyed the serenity.  This is one of my favorite memories of this trip.

But the Riverwalk was calling.  We had reservations at Hotel Contessa and we wanted to see the Fiesta Noche del Rio at the Arneson River Theater.  Come back next week and I’ll tell you all about it!  In the meantime, enjoy these pictures from the King William Walking Tour.

In the Villa Finale Garden

The Joske House – important because my Mom worked for Joskie’s Department Store for years.