Essential English phrases

'Pure San Antonio' — the local badge of authenticity, used about food, music, neighbourhoods and people. Roughly: the real thing, not the tourist version.

Eleven days in April with parades, food and street parties across the whole city. It is not a generic word for a party here — it means THE Fiesta, and much of the city effectively stops for parts of it.

A hollow eggshell filled with confetti, cracked over someone's head for luck at Fiesta and Easter. Sold by the dozen in every supermarket in spring. Being targeted is affection, not an insult.

The Texas grocery chain headquartered here, and a genuine civic institution — people are loyal to specific stores. Never spell it out as 'H E Butt' in conversation; nobody does.

The drought stage declared on the Edwards Aquifer level, which sets which day and hours you may water a lawn. It is enforced with fines, it changes during the year, and it is announced on the local news like the weather.

Polite Spanish for 'come again?' or 'yes?' — used across San Antonio well beyond fluent Spanish speakers, and softer than saying 'what?'.

Shorthand for the 78209 postcode — Alamo Heights and Terrell Hills, the old-money enclaves inside the city. Used the way people elsewhere name a suburb to signal what it costs.

Sunday morning: slow-cooked beef head from a taquería, corn tortillas, and a bottle of bright red cream soda. A San Antonio ritual specifically, not a generic Texan one — the queue starts early and the good places sell out.

Eggs, bean, potato, chorizo or migas in a flour tortilla, eaten daily and cheaply. The rivalry with Austin over who does them better is real and locals will not concede an inch of it.

Shaved ice with syrup, sold from neighbourhood stands from spring through autumn. Chamoy and Tajín on top if you want it done locally rather than sweetly.

The two ring roads. Loop 410 circles the inner city, Loop 1604 the outer suburbs. 'Outside 1604' means new sprawl to the north; 'inside 410' means the old city. Addresses are described this way constantly.

The one-way service road running alongside a Texas motorway, where the businesses and the exits are. You exit onto it, drive past your turn, and use a Texas turnaround to U-turn back under the bridge. Newcomers miss exits for a month.

The city's registered nickname, and an accurate description: Joint Base San Antonio is the largest employer in the region and a very large share of residents are serving, retired or dependants.

San Antonio's city services line and app for potholes, bulk pickup, code complaints and stray animals. 911 stays for emergencies; 311 is what you will actually use.