20 San Antonio restaurants and bars that closed in 2021

By San Antonio Current Staff

Pandemic-related hardships, lease adjustments and labor shortages took their toll on San Antonio bars and restaurants this year. Sadly, plenty we saw plenty go the way of the dodo.

Casualties included longtime favorites such as The Grill at Leon Springs and Southside BBQ joint Snoga's as well as flashes in the proverbial pan such as Golden Wat Noodle House and House of Má.

We went back to the beginning of the year and tallied 20 Alamo City food and beverage businesses that permanently shuttered this year — all of which left their mark on our culinary history, one plate or cocktail at a time.

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Two Step Restaurant & Cantina
9840 W. Loop 1604 North
This Tex-Mex-inspired barbecue restaurant had been shuttered since last March, in what was intended to be temporary closure due to the pandemic, but its owner said the West Side business simply wasn’t able to regain its footing.
Photo via Instagram / craze_killa

Espada Coffee
1119 Camden St.
Coffee drinkers who frequented the vibrant pink façade of Espada Coffee now have to find somewhere else to get their caffeine fix. The mobile coffee purveyor closed permanently in late October.
Photo via Instagram / espadacoffee

House of Má
135 E. Commerce St.
House of Ma owner Chris Hill chalked up the closure of the brand new spot to a disagreement with his partners in the venture, owners of St. Mary's Strip staple Singh's Vietnamese. The eatery was open for just over a month this spring.
Courtesy Photo / Giles Design Bureau

Tomatillos - Broadway
3210 Broadway
For more than 25 years, Tomatillos Cafe y Cantina served up huge portions of Tex-Mex fare on Broadway just north of downtown, but the fiesta came to an end this year — at least in its near-downtown location. It reopened in a new spot, on the city’s north side.
Photo via Instagram / tomatillos_satx

¡Salud!
8123 Broadway
This Alamo Heights-area drinkery known for its impressive tequila, mezcal and sotol offerings closed in September, making way for the owner of neighboring bar Bentley’s to take over the space.
Photo via Facebook / Salud Ultimate Tequila Bar

Jerk Shack - West Side
117 Matyear St.
The flagship West Side location of SA’s award-winning Jerk Shack permanently closed in September, a move the owner called “unavoidable.” The mini-empire opened a new location on the far Northwest side soon after the West side closure.
Photo by Jessica Elizarraras

Lulu’s Bakery & Cafe
918 N. Main Ave.
Those who hoped for a return of Lulu's Bakery and Cafe's three-pound cinnamon rolls post-pandemic have had to find another over-the-top pastry to covet. The iconic San Antonio diner placed its entire equipment inventory up for auction in April.
Photo via Instagram / haw_tien

Hop & Vine
5619 W. Loop 1604 N.
After nearly five years of dishing up creative culinary offerings in Northwest San Antonio, Hop & Vine gastropub this year permanently closed. The cozy restaurant earned a rep for serving inventive dishes with a focus on locally-sourced ingredients and craft beer.
Photo via Instagram / slow_felt_moments

Lee's El Taco Garage
8403 Broadway
Lee's El Taco Garage, known for its potent margarita flights and sprawling patio, permanently shut its doors in February, but other eateries with the same owner — Burleson Yard Beer Garden near downtown, Hops and Hounds near McAllister Park and the property next to Taco Garage — are all still in business.
Photo via Instagram / babytacogarage

The Grill at Leon Springs
24116 IH-10 West
Longtime San Antonio eatery The Grill at Leon Springs was decimated by a two-alarm fire this spring, rendering the building that housed the New American eatery completely unsalvageable.
Photo via Instagram / thegrillatleonsprings