Sexy new Southtown bar Amor Eterno will open its doors to San Antonio on New Year's Eve

Anticipated Southtown drinkery Amor Eterno will greet its first guests during a New Year’s Eve soiree meant to unveil its puro flavors to the artsy near-downtown neighborhood.

Veteran bar owners Brian Correa and Aaron Peña, who soldiered on with preparations for the sexy new space during the pandemic, say they're eager to serve up elevated drinks and chef-prepared bar eats.

“We were both certain [the pandemic] would strip us of our respective businesses,” said Peña, who also owns Squeezebox on the St. Mary's Strip. “Given the circumstances, the fact that we are going to pull off opening a new venture during this pandemic is just an amazing blessing, and we can’t wait to share what we have cultivated with our city.”

Peña and Correa, who owns the iconic Bar America, will sell seats on opening night for $25 each, which includes two small bites and a free champagne toast at midnight. Reservations for the limited indoor seating can be made by filling out an online form.

Guests will be limited to two-hour windows at their table, and the drinkery will stop accepting reservations at 11 p.m. on the night of the event. Walk-ins will be admitted, as long as capacity allows.

Bites for the evening will include a charcuterie board and an order of ceviche tacos from the team behind ¡Bucho!, a Tex-Mex pop-up venture operated by Jerry Moreno, Sohayla Hendrix and Gino Vidal.

The ¡Bucho! trio — which boasts more than 30 years of combined experience in the service industry — creates locally sourced fare that aims to compliment Amor Eterno’s homage to old-school San Antonio.

The new bar is located at 540 S. Presa St., in the space formerly occupied by Don Martin's Coffee Co. It will open at 7 p.m. and close at 2 a.m., so long as the city doesn't implement a holiday curfew.

So many restaurants, so little time. Find out the latest San Antonio dining news with our Flavor Friday Newsletter.