SAN ANTONIO — It's almost a fact of life (not really) that everyone loves burgers. And a northwest-side restaurant is serving up burgers that encapsulate all kinds of cultures - from Hawaii to the Alamo City.
Unko Maui's opened in mid-March under the charismatic San Antonio restauranter Maui Mike, owner of Maui's on Main.
Mike said he always wanted to open a brick-in-mortar restaurant that focuses on hamburgers - a staple, everywhere.
"My dream was I want a burger joint, like, no matter what else I do. I like to do projects that are like centered around the things that I like. So, I like a good burger spot, I wanted to open a good burger spot. There's lots of good burger spots in San Antonio, but none of those are mine. So, I wanted my burger spot," Mike said.
“Plus, we wanted to eat burgers," he jokingly added.
Unko Maui's is located at 1815 Fredericksburg Road, where the old Deco Pizzeria used to be. Mike said he would drive to the nearby restaurant depot in search of supplies for Maui's on Main and noticed the vacant spot.
“I was always looking at this place and it had the same vibe, the same feel as our other location. And if you look at it, it's a standalone building. So, it's almost like an island, but on its own. For some reason, I don't know why, that appeals to me," Mike said.
The new burger joint has sparked interest amongst the neighborhoods, with residents wondering what food spot was going to replace the pizzeria.
“They're happy with us. We haven't made anybody too angry yet. That's always a good thing, right?," Mike said. “We definitely want to make people feel welcome like this is your home, we just work here. We're just sharing the space with you. So, that's the vibe that we want people to understand. That's the vibe we put out is that when you're here, you're at families, you know, you're hanging out at your uncle's, you're hanging out at Unko Maui's.”
Mike admitted he wanted to stay consistent with "Maui's" in his restaurant's titles but choose "Unko" because of his deep ties to Hawaii.
“So, uncle is a term that's used very much among Islanders. You're not necessarily related to the people, but it's kind of a term of affection for people who are older than you are. It all goes back to a place of affection and respect. That's all it is. So that's why Unko Maui's, you know, let's go to uncle’s. And we spell it like that, U-N-K-O, because we're not winning spelling bees but we are making great, great food," Mike explained.
Some of the famous burgers at Unko Maui's include the Loco Moco Burger - based on a very popular Hawaiian plate lunch of the same name. The burger comes with thick brown gravy, an over easy egg (egg of your choice), grilled onions and mushrooms.
And the very San Antonio-fitting Tostada Burger - complete with guacamole, fresh Pico de Gallo and cheese.
But Mike's favorite burger, the signature burger at Unko Maui's is the Da Slippah.
"In San Antonio, everybody would call that the chancla. Like momma if she took of that slipper really fast, she going to hit you with it, not matter how fast you run. You're going to catch it to the back of the head. So, Da Slippah is kind of our homage to that connection we all have to grandma, to mom, to just good olé home cooking," Mike said.
“And this one, we say it’s so good it tastes like they put they whole foot in it," he added.
And if you're really happy with the food, try the fa'aumu (I did). It's an original war cry that's now used as an expression of joy.
"A lot of pride goes into that, a lot of history goes into it. It goes back to to way before like contact was made with the people of the islands and it's origin was a war cry. Now, mostly it's just used for like, an expression of joy. So, you'll hear it like when the dancers start, anytime there's dancing or celebration, you'll hear people hollering, you know, all over the place.”
Unko Maui's is open until midnight or later everyday - making it the perfect late-night spot.