Lüke Wine Dinner to Feature Becker Wines

Steven McHugh, executive chef at Luke San Antonio.

Lüke San Antonio will team up with Becker Vineyards for a wine dinner next Wednesday.  The price will be $60 per person plus tax and tip. Luke is at 125 E. Houston St. To make reservations call 210-227-5853.

Becker wines on the menu are Fume Blanc, Texas 2010, Becker Prairie Roti, Texas Hill Country 2009; Reserve Chardonnay, Hidden House Vineyard 2010; Chenin Blanc Texas 2011; Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Canada Family Vineyard, 2009; and Clementine, Bingham Vineyard 2010 (late harvest viognier).

Menu items to include Louisiana Crawfish Bisque, Stuffed Crawfish Head and Tapioca, House-made Fromage Blanc Dumplings, Texas Rabbit Rouladen and Orange Basil Semifreddo.

Barrios Family Awards Scholarship in Viola’s Memory

Viola’s Huge Heart Foundation has selected its second scholarship recipient, Daniela Portillo, an incoming sophomore at Providence High School. This is the second such scholarship from the foundation. The first was awarded to Abigail Issarraras.

The Barrios family, owners of Los Barrios Mexican Restaurant and La Hacienda de los Barrios, established the the charity in memory of Viola Barrios. The scholarship supports young women who exhibit the kind of hardworking, generous characteristics of Viola, and who may not otherwise have an opportunity to pursue a high quality education.

Daniela Portillo and her family will be at Los Barrios, 4223 Blanco Road, at 5 p.m. today. They’ll meet with well-wishers and customers of the restaurant Viola Barrios founded, with the help of her daughters Diana Barrios Treviño and Dr. Teresa Barrios, and her son, Louis Barrios. The foundation also supports a Les Dames d’Escoffier scholarship in Viola’s name.

Il Sogno Celebrates Two Years at Pearl

Osteria Il Sogno, at the Pearl Brewery, will be celebrating its second anniversary this month, chef/owner Andrew Weissman said.

“We would like to thank our many loyal guests who repeatedly visited us and supported our concept,” said Weissman. He also noted that Il Sogno was listed as the No. 3 top “most delicious” restaurant in the recently published  “Fearless Critic,” while another of his restaurants, Sandbar, also at the Pearl Brewery, was given the No. 1 listing. Chris Carlson is executive chef at Sandbar.

Tost Weekend Specials

Tost Bistro Bar specials this weekend will be Fresh Atlantic Striped Bass and Fried Chicken Livers. Tost is open for lunch daily except Sundays and Mondays, and the Sunday Brunch is Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tost happy hour is from 4-7 p.m., $15 per person gets you drinks from a lineup of selected house spirits and beer. On Fridays and Saturdays, happy hours are 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. For more information call Tost at 210-408-2670.

Real Ale Beer Dinner at Westin La Cantera’s Palo Duro Pavilion

Check out the delicious possibilities when pairing a great beer with chef-prepared foods created to match. This will happen at the Real Ale Brewing Company dinner on July 22 at the Westin La Cantera Resort’s Palo Duro Pavilion. The reception begins at 7 p.m., with the four-course meal at 7:30 p.m.  Please make reservations at 210-558-2305.

Five different beers from Real Ale in Blanco will be poured and paired with a special menu by chefs Isaac Cantu and Henry Wesolowski.

Erick Ogershok, head brewmaster of Real Ale Brewing Company, will be the host. Click here for the ales and menu featured at the dinner.

Bright Shawl on Takes a Break for Renovations

The Bright Shawl, the restaurant and meeting space owned by the Junior League of San Antonio, Inc., is taking a break this summer to renovate its kitchen and refurbish its dining room.  The restaurant will be closed through July 27 while the work is being completed, and it should be reopened by early August. The Bright Shawl is at 819 Augusta St. The original facility housing The Bright Shawl was named a Texas landmark in 1973, and the restaurant there has been in continuous operation since 1925. For more information on The Bright Shawl, click here, or call 210-225-6366.

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Chef and television personality John Besh will open Lüke San Antonio, the sister restaurant to his Lüke New Orleans, in mid-October. Chef Steven McHugh will head up the culinary team at River Walk restaurant at 125 E. Houston St.

The Franco-German brasserie with elements of a gastro-pub and a beer house will pay homage to traditional Old World cuisine while showcasing robust local flavors to satisfy the soul as well as the palate, according to a press release for Lüke San Antonio.

John Besh, New Orleans chef and television personality, opens Lüke San Antonio in October.

Besh chose San Antonio for his first restaurant outside of Louisiana, in part, because of the bond the city shares with Besh’s native New Orleans, according to the press release.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, San Antonio became a second home to many former New Orleans residents. Some of them worked in Besh’s Louisiana establishments before the storm hit.

McHugh, who has long worked as a chef in the Besh family of restaurants, plans to honor the culinary customs of French and German cuisines. His menu will draw the many German influences of the San Antonio area and features such regional delicacies as Texas-raised beef and quail, as well as some of the nostalgic brasserie menu items that Lüke’s sister restaurant in New Orleans has become famous for, such as house-made pâtés, duck confit, herb-roasted chicken and creamy pasta dishes, as well as some seafood. These will be featured alongside San Antonio-inspired delicacies such as veal barbacoa, locally made cheeses, Hill Country produce and Texas wild boar.

“It’s the French version of American comfort food with a San Antonio kick,” says McHugh.

The restaurant will be open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. for lunch and dinner.