Century-old building to house dining and drinking spot

  • 2014-11-25
Owners of the China Garden restaurants have started converting a portion of the Wong Grocery Company building into a restaurant and bar.

The as yet unnamed establishment will occupy the basement and first floor of the former grocery, which was built 113 years ago.

The building is located at 1502 South Flores Street in San Antonio, and the new owners intend to retain the facade of the grocery store. They also intend to base the theme of the new place on the history of the building as an Asian market, and plan to use only two floors of the three-story building. They intend to follow the example of the Davenport Bar, located on Houston Street, and put their main bar in the Wong building's basement. The basement comprises 3,000 square feet and the bar will offer 26 beers, full cocktails, and wine.

The dining room on the first floor will serve a seasonal menu and have a small bar, as well as a patio that can seat approximately 10 patrons.

The venture is being estimated at $500,000, and should be open for business in the spring of 2015, though no exact opening date has been set.

The owners could work with a banner printing company to create a colorful piece to hang over the door for the opening day, and a period of time after that.