Tag: The Esquire Tavern

Esquire Tavern to participate in the Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Festival

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Houston Eaves, Beverage Director for Esquire Tavern and Downstairs at Esquire Tavern. Photo: Kody Melton, used with permission.

The Esquire Tavern will be participating in the ‘Holy Agave Spirits – It’s the Bat Man of Mexico!’ event during the annual 2019 Monarch Butterfly and Pollinator Festival and Parade on Saturday, October 19.  The presentation will be from 6p.m. to 8:30p.m. and it will educate the public on how bats and other wildlife help create tequila, mezcal and other food and drink items. Space is limited. This event will feature agave influenced spirits from the James Beard nominated bar program at Esquire Tavern. Tickets are $15 and are available online; it includes general admission plus tasting of agave inspired drinks and eats. Food and drink will also be available for purchase. (Esquire Tavern, 2019)

Renowned bat ecologist and PhD Rodrigo Medellín, known as “the Bat Man of Mexico,” will lead the presentation. Beverage Director for Esquire Tavern and Downstairs at Esquire Tavern, Houston Eaves, will provide tastings of agave spirits and cocktails from behind the bar throughout the evening. Eaves will be available to answer questions about the importance of bats in producing the tequila and mezcal that can be found at the historic San Antonio tavern. Representatives from Bat Conservation International and San Antonio River Foundation will also be there, along with local artist, Ashley Mahaney displaying her bat art.

Confluence Park
310 W Mitchell St.
San Antonio, TX 78204

The Esquire Tavern has been serving drinks to locals, drifters, celebrities and all walks of life for over 80 years. It first opened in 1933 on Repeal Day, a day which celebrated the end of America’s 13-year-long alcohol prohibition. Lauded as the oldest bar on the San Antonio River Walk -still holding the title of the longest bar in Texas- The Esquire Tavern is a venue of untouchable historic significance and has many remarkable tales to tell. Although completely renovated in 2011, The Esquire Tavern still retains its vintage décor, classic furnishings and dusky lighting that allows guests to enjoy a rustic yet romantic atmosphere. Located along the River Walk, guests can sit outside and take in festive surroundings and sultry San Antonio evenings.

National Watermelon Day in San Antonio

watermelonrita
EVO’s Watermelon Margarita. Photo: Felicia Curtis, used with permission.

This Saturday August 3 is National Watermelon Day and area restaurants are offering food and beverage offerings around San Antonio which showcase everyone’s favorite melon fruit. (EVO Entertainment, Twang, The Esquire Tavern, 2019)

EVO Entertainment Group
Watermelon Margarita
The watermelon rita is available behind the bar at EVO’s family-owned and operated Schertz, Kyle and San Marcos locations. The margarita is made with patrón barrel select, triple sec, agave, fresh watermelon and squeezed lime juice. ($9). Grab the rita before hitting EVO’s movie theatre or pair it with bowling and arcades.

Evo Entertainment
Schertz 18658 I-35
Schertz, TX 78154

Twang
Austin Eastciders Watermelon Cider with Twang-A-Rita Sangrita
Twang is a San Antonio-based family company with products available in 45 states nationwide and Amazon. One of Twang’s brands, Twang-A-Rita, is a line of tasty salts and seasonings designed to easily add flavor to drinks and upgrade beverages into cocktail bar status. Twang’s cocktail rimming blends are made with ingredients like kosher salt, real spices and cane sugar; try Twang-A-Rita Sangrita  to take any watermelon drink up a notch, like Austin Eastciders’ new Watermelon cider.

Recipe:
3.5 oz Watermelon Eastciders
.5 oz fresh squeezed lime
Rim with Twang-A-Rita Sangrita

Esquire Tavern
Heirloom Tomato Salad with watermelon
Located along the San Antonio River Walk, wanderers will find the historic Esquire Tavern, a place that touts the longest bar in Texas, and where patrons can fill up on an Heirloom Tomato Salad which is made with watermelon, feta cheese, dill, basil and cucumber vinaigrette. ($13)

The Esquire Tavern
155 East Commerce St.
San Antonio, TX 78205

The Esquire Tavern searching for new Executive Chef

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Chef Brooke Smith will be leaving The Esquire Tavern after eight years.  Courtesy photo, used with permission.

The Esquire Tavern, a San Antonio staple on the River Walk for over 85 years, is announcing the departure of Chef Brooke Smith after eight years of graciously helming its historic kitchen. Chef Smith’s dedicated years at Esquire Tavern and its team has made an immense impact on the staff and its loyal customers. (The Esquire Tavern, 2019)

Over the past eight years of Chef Smith’s career, she:

  • Worked approximately 2,100 days, good times and bad, all weather, onsite and off.
  • Hired, trained, and mentored more than 150 kitchen staff members.
  • Designed and opened 3 kitchens.
  • Wrote, taught, and executed 16 seasonal Esquire Tavern menus, along with menus for Downstairs and El Mirador, all simultaneously.
  • Twice bested barman Houston Eaves (and therefore everybody else) at Lucha Limon, an Esquire Tavern original San Antonio Cocktail Conference event.
  • Gave an eloquent and charming talk at PechaKucha San Antonio.
  • Made from scratch and served 250,000 burgers, 245,000 deviled eggs, and 610,000 fried pickles.

The Esquire Tavern is now accepting applications for its next Executive Chef. Those interested in applying may email a resume and cover letter or apply online.

“Closing this chapter and saying goodbye to nearly a decade of Brooke at the center of it all won’t be easy. While The Esquire will be welcoming a new chef, we’re excited to see where Brooke’s culinary journey takes her next.” – Owner Christopher Hill

Refreshing happy hours around town

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Wine infused popsicles at the Bottling Department at Pearl. Courtesy photo: used with permission. 

Summer is here and several businesses around town have happy hours to help customers deal with the rising temperatures. (Savor, Southerleigh Fine food & Brewery, Majestic Theater, Bottling Department at Pearl, The Esquire Tavern, EVO, 2019)

Starting in July, The Culinary Institute of America’s Savor will launch a new happy hour on Tuesday evenings. Specials include $5 cocktails like the Savor Margarita (formerly NAO Margarita voted best in SA) and $1 off appetizers like Pomme Frites, Brisket Meatballs and Orange Chili Wings at the bar. Savor rotates unique talents, featuring a fresh batch of students in the Culinary Institute of America program.

Savor
200 E. Grayson St. #117
San Antonio, TX 78215

Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery will hosts happy hour at the oyster bar Monday through Sunday with specials on food and drink from 3p.m. to 5p.m. Featured items on the menu include $1 pressure fried wings and $.75 fried biscuits. There will also be $2 off all beer, wine, punches and mixes. This happy hour is only valid at the oyster bar and is not applicable to the restaurant. The inviting walk-up bar opened late September and features six Southerleigh beers on tap, plus several varieties of fresh seafood, including oysters, gulf shrimp, crab, caviar and more. The oyster bar is open daily during normal restaurant hours.

Southerleigh
136 E. Grayson St. #120
San Antonio, TX 78215

Happy Hour Tours at The Majestic:
Monday June 24, and Monday July 1 at 5p.m. and 6p.m.
Cool off and join The Majestic for a series of summer happy hour tours of the historic, renowned space. The happy hour tours feature a unique, behind-the-scenes look at the theatre’s 90-year history, architecture and character, led by a knowledgeable tour guide and a trip backstage. Guests will experience insider tidbits throughout the tour and have the option to sip on Frosé, wine, local craft beer. In celebration of the Birthday month, a complimentary “Crown Jewel” cocktail will be included. Tickets cost $25 per person and are available at the Majestic Theatre Box office or on Ticketmaster online. A portion of ticket proceeds support the Las Casas Foundation Performing Arts Scholarship Program.

Majestic Theatre
224 E. Houston St.
San Antonio, TX 78205

Visitors to the Pearl can satisfy their taste buds this summer at The Bar at Bottling Department. Grab a drink during their happy hour every Monday through Thursday from 3p.m. to 6p.m. Featured items include $3 Texas Beers, $3 off glasses of wine as well as $3 off Frosé. This open, walk-up bar is located in the heart of the Pearl and features a vast selection of red and white wines plus several unique cocktails like their wine infused popsicles and strawberry Frosé.

Bottling Department at Pearl
312 Pearl Pkwy
San Antonio, TX 78215

River Walk wanderers can stop by Esquire Tavern for happy hour Monday through Friday from 3p.m. to 7p.m. with $3 snacks. During weekday happy hour, all glasses of wine and cocktails are $3 off with seasonal drinks like Pirate and $1 off Texas draft beers. Night owls can indulge in the late-night happy hour, offered Thursday through Saturday 11p.m. to 1a.m. Featured items include Chef Brooke Smith’s $6 chili-salt fries, $8 fried pickles, and an $11 grilled pimento cheese sandwich.

The Esquire Tavern
155 E. Commerce St.
San Antonio, TX 78205

Patrons who visit EVO can enjoy happy hour Monday through Thursday from 11a.m. to 6p.m. Specials include $1 off craft draft beer, $2 off domestics, $3 wells and fireball, $4 jager and $5 house margaritas, like a fresh Watermelon Margarita. Tuesdays at EVO see the $5 frenzy all day $5 bowling, movies, craft beer and select appetizers such as classic nachos, cheese fries and fried mushrooms.

Evo Entertainment Group
18658 IH 35N
Schertz, TX 78154

Celebrate National Repeal Day on Wednesday December 5

hotelemmadrink
Celebrate National Repeal Day on Wednesday December 5 at Sternewirth at Hotel Emma. Photo: Hotel Emma, used with permission. 

National Repeal Day celebrates the Repeal of Prohibition, or the end of the great experiment, and the return of legal alcohol sales. This year, Repeal Day will be observed on Wednesday December 05, 2018. The Repeal of Prohibition in the United States was accomplished with the passage of the Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution on December 5, 1933. The Esquire Tavern and Hotel Emma will be holding events on Wednesday to commemorate the big day.

The Esquire Tavern is excited to invite all of San Antonio to party like it’s 1933 and celebrate the establishment’s 85th birthday at a timeless bash on Wednesday, December 5, the day recognized as ‘Repeal Day’ throughout history. To commemorate 85 years of providing downtown San Antonio with exquisite classic cocktails and delectable tavern food, the oldest bar on the Riverwalk will host an evening of revelry. Guests can expect entertainment including live music, a fortune teller, burlesque performances and plenty of the Esquire’s classic, prohibition-era cocktails like its famous Old-Fashioned. A variety of complimentary hors d’oeuvres and drinks will be shared throughout the night. Reservations are encouraged and available for both The Esquire Tavern and Downstairs at The Esquire. (The Esquire Tavern, 2018)

Special guests include Stars and Garters Burlesque accompanied by live music from The Dirty River Dixie Band. Chef Brooke Smith’s full menu will be available until 11p.m., including Esquire favorites like the Chicken Chalupitas in addition to the recently updated seasonal menu featuring new items like her savory Artichoke Dip and Grits and Grillades. The mysterious Shaman-like, ‘Brujo Jerry’ will be inhabiting Downstairs at The Esquire Tavern for the evening to share his revelatory visions of the future. Patrons are encouraged to celebrate their right to drink alcohol and visit Downstairs for the best Grower Champagne list in town, paired with house-prepared charcuterie and oysters on the half-shell. Everyone is invited. The event is from 7p.m. to midnight and the entertainment begins at 8p.m.

The Esquire Tavern
155 E. Commerce Street
San Antonio, TX 78205

Hotel Emma is hosting a National Repeal Day event at Sternewirth from 6p.m. to 10p.m. The evening will feature drink specials and Jazz Age music by award-winning artist Henry Brun. The public is invited to toast the end of prohibition and celebrate the freedom to drink and be merry this holiday season. The staff will dress the part in era-appropriate attire for an authentic Roaring Twenties feel. New features include speedier drink service courtesy of a new service bar and a new mezzanine seating area, where there is space for every reveler. The event is free and open to the public. (Hotel Emma, 2018)

The exclusive drink specials include:
• Gin Martini – Gin, Dry Vermouth, Orange Bitters $8
• House Bubbles – $8
• Aviation – Gin, Maraschino Liqueur, Crème de Violette, Lemon $9
• Sazerac – Rye, Peychauds Bitters, Absinthe $9

Sternewirth Tavern & Club Room,
136 E. Grayson St.
San Antonio TX 78215