Tag: hospitality industry

Jazz, Art, and Community: Hotel Contessa Supports San Antonio’s Vibrant Hospitality Scene

Hotel Contessa to Host Jazz Night & ‘Love is in the Air’ Art Fair January 25-26. Photo: Hotel Contessa, used with permission.

SAN ANTONIO, TX – Hotel Contessa is thrilled to announce a weekend dedicated to art, music, education, and preserving the heart of hospitality along the San Antonio River Walk. The property’s first ever Jazz Night will kick off on Saturday, January 25, followed by the “Love is in the Air” solo exhibition and an art fair taking place on Sunday, January 26. (Hotel Contessa, 2025)

Saturday, January 25 – Jazz Night 

This evening, the hotel invites San Antonio music lovers to enjoy jazz from musicians like the Fermata Jazz Trio. Food and cocktails will be available for purchase at Ambler Texas Kitchen, including an exclusive drink menu, where $1 of each drink sale from the featured drinks support River Walk Royalty. Hotel guests will receive a password at check-in for a complimentary “Bees Knee” cocktail. Bartenders and staff will embrace the theme, dressing as flappers and gangsters for the occasion.

Saturday’s event will be the inaugural Jazz Night among a series of Jazz Nights at Hotel Contessa, which will take place the last Saturday of each month from 5p.m. to 9p.m. Reservations are preferred and can be made by calling Ambler at 210- 298-8040.

Sunday, January 26 – “Love is in the Air” Solo Art Exhibition and Art Fair

Following an evening of Jazz, Hotel Contessa will feature the work of over a dozen artists – including a variety of paintings, prints, jewelry, home décor, and more – along with a solo art exhibition from Mary Carmen Sessions and live music from Kyle Broll. Sessions is a Mexican-American artist who has called San Antonio home for over 20 years. Passionate about pushing the boundaries of traditional art, Sessions constantly experiments with different mediums, techniques and materials to create one-of-a-kind pieces infused with her rich Mexican culture. 

From 11:30a.m. to 3p.m., the show will take place at the bottom level of the hotel, which overlooks the San Antonio River Walk, in the Atrium and Cypress Room. The event is free to the public and proceeds from the event will be donated to Fireman Sam’s candidacy for River Walk King. 

“Aside from these fabulous events, what makes this weekend special at Hotel Contessa is our commitment to giving back to the community. We’ve made sure that Fireman Sam and River Walk Royalty are the beneficiaries. Proceeds from a portion of drinks sold at Jazz Night and sales from the Sunday Art Fair exhibit will be donated to these integral city figures.” – Director of Sales Miguel David

The River Walk Royalty initiative raises funds for scholarships for local students who aspire to work in hospitality, the core industry of San Antonio. Fireman Sam is a San Antonio native and local dad. As a child, he dreamt of becoming a chef. Growing up with a single mother who was raising three children while battling multiple sclerosis made that dream challenging to pursue. Lacking the financial resources for culinary school, he set his ambition aside and became a firefighter, helping the citizens of San Antonio. Sam takes pride in serving San Antonio and its citizens. As a member of River Walk Royalty, he aims to raise substantial funds to provide scholarships helping students achieve their dreams. He hopes to be a mentor to the next generation of San Antonio hospitality talent.

The hotel plans to continue Jazz Night as a new series and host various jazz musicians and artists the last weekend of every month. The destination has seen success with its complimentary mariachi events. This is part of Hotel Contessa’s ongoing initiative to provide San Antonians a place to gather and celebrate the city’s rich culture together along the lively banks of the San Antonio River Walk. Hotel Contessa will continue to announce 2025 programming that supports its mission to celebrate its core three pillars: art, music and education.

An intimate, all-suite retreat set directly on San Antonio’s beloved River Walk, Hotel Contessa delights arriving guests with stylish suites that take their design cues from the city’s rich history and vibrant culture. Discover stylish suites and unwind at our spa, complemented by Ambler Texas Kitchen + Cocktails serving up agave cocktails and authentic Texas fare.

Hotel Contessa
306 W. Market St.
San Antonio, TX 78205

Culinaria helps hospitality industry

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Culinaria is helping out the hospitality industry with several programs. Photo: Culinaria, used with permission.

The hospitality industry is one of the major industries in San Antonio and amid the COVID-19 pandemic, it is an industry struggling more with each passing day. With many furloughed and inevitable restaurant closures, the situation will most likely get worse before it gets better. Culinaria, with its mission to promote San Antonio as a culinary destination for food and wine, is stepping in to help. The other component of its mission is to offer support to the industry it serves in times of financial hardship. In the past, fundraising was structured through events to benefit a specific individual or family, but now, at this time an event is not an option, and the need to assist others is of growing importance. (Culinaria, 2020)

Culinaria has initiated three tiers of assistance to address short and long-term needs for individuals and restaurants/bars in the San Antonio area.

HospitALLity House focuses on short-term needs by ensuring those in the hospitality industry receive a hot meal. Service is provided Monday through Saturday at Alamo BBQ from 4p.m. to 7p.m. and several other restaurants have stepped in to help with meals at their locations.  Food donations and monetary contributions from generous businesses and individuals have helped keep this program going. It has already fed more than 12,000 in its first two weeks of operation.

Culinaria Family Meal Kits are networked through chefs for distribution to furloughed workers. Hospitality businesses who have employees in need can email Culinaria to be included in the kit distribution.

For long-term needs, an Emergency Relief Fund has been established and will issue funds to hospitality workers in need of financial assistance. Individuals and businesses are encouraged to donate to the Emergency Relief Fund through PayPal or Venmo online. An application process is available online and the current need is greater than the resources available, so Culinaria will continue its outreach  to raise enough funds to assist more individuals and to later provide relief for restaurants and bars to reopen.

Culinaria’s social media channels will be posting the locations and times where hospitality industry workers can get the hot meals.

In addition, Culinaria is offering the Restaurant Weeks To-Go, to promote restaurants that have remained opened for to-go, curbside and delivery services. A complete listing of those restaurants,  menus (when available) as well as restaurant websites and phone numbers is available online.

 Some of the key support includes contributions from Chef Jason Dady, Silver Eagle, Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Sysco, Alamo BBQ, Bakery Lorraine, Chef John Brand and Hotel Emma, Gaucho Gourmet, Cheesecake Factory, Panifico Bake Shop, Hush San Antonio, San Pellegrino and Texana Brands

“This is definitely an unprecedented time for us all and our hope is to support furloughed industry workers that have helped put this city on the map as a culinary destination.”- Suzanne Taranto-Etheredge, President/CEO of Culinaria.