San Antonio Meat Market, located at 2904 Independence Blvd., is a family-owned Latino market and restaurant, which joined the Independence Avenue business community in 2014. 

The Contreras family hails from Chihuahua, a northwestern province of Mexico. Their family immigrated to the U.S. in the mid 1990s, settling in the Kansas City, Kan., area.

San Antonio Market is the second of two locations for the Contreras family — the original located at 830 Kansas Ave. in Kansas City, Kan. In August 2020, the Contreras made changes to each location — San Antonio Meat Market and Carniceria Y Tortilleria San Antonio — to give each store its own uniqueness.

San Antonio Meat Market Manager, Luis Contreras clarified that both locations are still owned by the same family, but they have different recipes for the specialty dishes served in each restaurant.

Some of the specialties on the restaurant side of the house include tacos al pastor — or shepherd style, made with spit-grilled pork — carnitas, and of course, tamales. Tamales are available by the dozen, half dozen or individually in three varieties — pork in red chili sauce, cheese and jalapeño or chicken in green sauce.

Ordering tamales ahead of time is generally advised by staff due to their high demand. San Antonio also features a fresh meat case, stocked fresh daily with beef, pork, chicken and seafood, as well as chorizo, nopal — or cactus — and lengua, or beef tongue.