After serving up tacos to San Antonio locals for over three decades, Yolanda's Uptown Cafe is throwing in the towel, signaling the end of an era for this family-owned staple. In a conversation with MySA, Yolanda Vasquez, who launched the cafe back in 1989 with her husband Perfecto, said, "We want to travel and just take care of each other, and that's about it," attributing their retirement and a desire to spend time with family as the main ingredients behind the closure.
A cornerstone of the community, Yolanda's Uptown Cafe was a testament to the Vasquez family's commitment to delicious, no-frills Mexican food. While the cafe's exterior boasted a fresh coat of pebble orange paint and cerulean blue trim, Perfecto worked magic in the kitchen, and Yolanda charmed patrons at the front of the house, a combo that customers have lauded for years. Despite the cafe planning to shut down, their building was kept up-to-date, including a new paint job completed only just in February, according to a San Antonio Express-News feature.
Inside the cafe, with its Saltillo tile floors and an eye-catching Aztec mural—a characteristic worthy of the local flavor it represented—Yolanda's offered tacos priced for everyday dining, including their plan to send in February fresh paint strokes. The murals, hailed onto the walls since 1999, stood as cultural beacons for those seeking a taste of tradition in the bustling city. Yolanda herself swore by the carne guisada taco, a mixture of thick gravy, tender roast beef, and bold cumin and chile flavors that adhered to the quintessential carne guisada paradigm, all for $2.25.
The sweeping decision to close the doors of Yolanda's Uptown Cafe not only marks the end of a culinary journey for the Vasquez family but leaves a vacancy in the hearts of loyal patrons accustomed to the classic, affordable flavors Yolanda's dispensed readily. While San Antonio bids farewell to this iconic eatery, Yolanda and Perfecto look forward to years ahead attend, to travel, and taking care of each other, tethering the end of an esteemed business to the beginning of their well-deserved personal chapter.
