The Esquire Tavern

Went in expecting a dive bar and that is SO not the case! Food was great! Love the craft cocktail list! Staff was attentive and busy, tending to their customers and necessary prep work. There's a bunch of construction around the building right now, so please make the extra effort to get there! It'll be worth it!

Service was excellent. Our server was very knowledgeable when it came to our drink selections. The food was amazing. Bartender made the best damn Old Fashioned I've had in San Antonio. For fun we picked up a few tokens for the Art-O-Mat machine and got some neat stuff from local artists. Will definitely be returning.

We were there for our anniversary getting drinks and a snack. Their drinks are incredible and it really makes you feel like you are drinking history since they kept the drink recipes the same from the prohibition days. I really like the atmosphere, it just ties the whole experience together. We aren’t locals in San Antonio so to have Jose wait on us was the best person that we could have asked for. Jose made us feel welcomed and was happy to answer any questions that we had. If we are back in San Antonio for something I'll remember to come back and say Hi.

Both the upstairs and downstairs sections serve great drinks. The food is great, but not what I would say the draw of the bar is. The dark intimate environment and well made drinks are the largest factor in why I would and do go here. It's a great place to sit down and talk with people over a drink. Yes the drinks may take a minute, but that's because it's being made to high standards so get over it.

This place has a rich, unique style. It reminded me of a cross between a jazz era night club and a hunting lodge. Rich red walls appointed with a variety of taxidermy run down to a dark wooden floor and black furniture. This place is popular, which means that even though there is a lot of bar space and many tables, there was still a (~30 min) wait for a table. There is a large cocktail menu. Unfortunately, two of the ones we wanted to order were not available for some reason. What we ordered was a quality cocktail. However, like most places that make a really good drink, you can expect to wait a while for your order. The bar here was also understaffed, so we waited around 10 minutes on average (after we ordered it) for a drink. The food was fine. I wouldn't hesitate to go back, but never with high expectations. The hosts and wait staff were very friendly and warm, which made us feel very welcome and happy we chose the place. A word of warning that the street entrance was hard to see when we were there because of construction. Look for the sign and the awning.