The Friendly Spot Ice House — Restaurant in San Antonio

I'll start off by saying this has been one of my go-to places since I moved here in 2012 and my review doesn't reflect on the establishment itself. In the 8 years of hanging at Friendly, I can't recall a bad experience until last night. On top of it being my go to, I also take my out of town guests here because of the atmosphere and great beer selection. Last night my family who is visiting San Antonio and moving here in May were sitting in the back patio. I went to the back bar to order a round for the table. It was a total of 4 drinks. I couldn't carry them at once so I asked the bartender if I could take two to the table and come back for the others. She was looking at me but didn't say anything. I asked again thinking she could not hear my through my mask. Again, just stared. Because it's the Friendly Spot and I was only sitting two tables from the bar, had already paid my tab and only one patron in line, I thought it was fine and maybe I couldn't here her say it was OK to do that. After dropping off the drinks and walking back up to the bar the bartender says to me in a tone as if I were a child who did something wrong. "Next time let me know so I can move your drinks to the side of the bar and you can pick them up there." I told her I asked if I can take these drinks and come back for the other two and she says to me " I know but did I answer you?" Then turned her back and walked away. It was one of those "Is this really happening right now?" moments. My cousin went up about an hour later to get us all water's (4) and came back with a story of how condescending this girl was to her saying if she can't carry them all she needs to come back for them on the side of the bar. My cousin didn't ask her and didn't need to come back because she was able to carry all 4 at once. Owner, not sure if this a first time you hear something about this girl who was working last night 3/14 in the overalls, but I can say it was embarrassing and upsetting. I assured them this was my first bad experience at Friendly and is not a reflection of what your business...

We stumbled upon the Friendly Spot one night while walking around near our B&B in King William district. We ended up going back every night while we were in San Antonio.

The place is supposed to be reminiscent of an Austin icehouse, basically an outside bar. We didn't encounter anything like it in Austin. Though they have a large number of tables spread around outside, on the weeknights we were there it was packed, a good sign. On the weekday nights, when the temperature dropped to a sub-arctic for Texas 58, it was much less crowded. On these nights though they had patio heaters blazing and offered us warm drinks and blankets. They also have a huge screen where they project sporting events and tv. It was a ton of fun to get into a Texans game with the crowd there.

The bar itself is fantastic with a huge selection of craft beer. Many of these were on tap and I think I got to try each one as they had several dirt cheap specials each night on them. They also had an immense selection of bottled beer from all around. Coming from the east coast, I wasn't familiar with a lot of the local brew, and each of the bartenders was very helpful and knowledgeable about their selection and helped guide me to great choices. When my wife was looking for something a little different, they made her a Chilado, apparently a local favorite which is a sort of bloody marry with beer. I wasn't a fan, but she loved it.

By the time we left we were already making friends with the regulars and staff. I have a feeling if we moved there, we'd be...

This place was recommended by my friends from San Antonio and I was excited to try it out. Outdoor bars are always my vibe.

On a decently hot afternoon, I was looking forward to the Wu-Tang frozen cocktail and when I returned to my table I was eager to dive in. But, when I stirred my drink to take a sip, I realized there was a BEE at the bottom of the drink. I understand being at an outdoor bar, these things happen, but due to the location of the bee in the drink, this happened when it was poured.

So, I went back to the bar to let y’all know there was a bee in the bottom and I wanted to see if I could just switch it out for a draft beer instead. Before I could even explain that I found the bee in the bottom of the drink, I was met with hostility from the bartender. She immediately assumed that I was trying to get my drink compensated and began lecturing me about the risks associated with being at an outdoor bar. She proceeded then tell me this issue was “not her problem” because the drink left the bar area.

Again, I understand this may happen when going to an outdoor bar, but what ruined my experience here was the way the bartender handled the situation and met me with a confrontational tone and demeanor immediately before understanding the full situation and giving the customer the benefit of the doubt.

I understand times are tough these days due to Covid, but I expected better customer service and the bartender to take a more “friendly” approach to the situation. Especially since this location is deemed The...