The Hotel Emma is a brilliant reimagining of the 19th-century Pearl Brewery in San Antonio. On my first visit to the Pearl, as a curious tourist, I walked through the luxury hotel's lobby and was fascinated by every exposed pipe and machine part.
In the years that followed, I continued to explore San Antonio's dining scene while wondering what it would be like to spend a night at Hotel Emma. Guests have dozens of restaurants within walking distance and a weekend Farmers Market outside their front door. The more time I spent in Alamo City, the more it seemed like Hotel Emma was the best place for a foodie to stay.
The opportunity came when I was invited to try the winter menu at Supper, the hotel's on-site restaurant. I pitched spending the night in one of the 146 guest rooms to show readers the restaurant, plus everything else Hotel Emma has to offer.
While the Pearl is nearly two hours from my home in Austin, the experience felt more like a staycation. Kel joined me, and we made the most of our 24-hour visit. Hotel Emma is inherently linked to its past, so that's where we'll begin.
Table of Contents
About Hotel Emma
Brewery History and Design
In 1881, the J. B. Behloradsky Brewery (also known as City Brewery) operated on the site that would become the Pearl Brewing Company. This plot of land is just north of modern-day downtown San Antonio, along the River Walk.
Local investors, some of whom were involved with Lone Star Brewing Company, formed the San Antonio Brewing Association and bought the property in 1883. Three years later, the first bottles of Pearl beer were produced. The oldest section of the Hotel Emma, designed by architect August Maritzen in the Second Empire Style, was constructed in 1894 to serve as Pearl's Brewhouse.
Otto and Emma Koehler
At the turn of the century, Otto Koehler left Lone Star to become president of the San Antonio Brewing Association. There, he worked to grow the Pearl from a microbrewery to a mass producer.
Otto may have been a savvy businessman, but his love life was a hot mess. He married Emma Koehler, but there would be more than one Emma in Otto's life. There would be three!
Due to injuries sustained in a car accident in 1910, Emma Koehler required at-home care. Nurse Emma Dumpke was hired to support Mrs. Koehler, and Otto subsequently began an affair with her. Dumpke shared this gossip with another nurse, Emma Burgermeister, who joined Emma Koehler's care team. Otto also took the second nurse, Emma, as a mistress.
At this point, Otto is married to one Emma and fooling around with two more. Nurse Burgermeister would later shoot and kill Otto in 1914 in what was described as an act of self-defense (she was tried and acquitted).
His widow, Emma Koehler, succeeded him in running the Pearl Brewery for 26 years. She is the Emma for whom the hotel is named. Among her many accomplishments was growing the Pearl into Texas' largest brewery by 1916 and steering it through the challenges of Prohibition and the Great Depression.
A 21st Century Redesign
The Pearl Brewery closed in 2001, and the following year, Silver Ventures, a local investment firm, purchased the 23-acre site. Over the last 20 years, the various buildings have been redeveloped as restaurants, food halls, and live music venues. Construction on Hotel Emma began in December 2012 with an 18-month exterior renovation. The interior work followed, and the Pearl's flagship hotel opened on November 12, 2015.
Roman and Williams were one of three firms involved in the redesign, which sought to preserve the factory's original architecture, decor, and machinery. The past is proudly displayed in the lobby, where exposed brick walls, wooden ceiling beams, and a hulking red ammonia compressor once used to keep the beer chilled draw visitors' eyes. The concrete floor tiles in the lobby are replicas of originals discovered in the brewery's engine room.
The cavernous industrial space may initially appear cold and inhospitable. However, numerous details add warmth, including wood paneling, vintage furniture, glowing chandeliers, and framed historical photos. A roaring fire provided literal heat during my winter stay and was a popular gathering spot for folks.
During a complimentary one-hour tour of the property available to guests, I also saw first-floor rooms turned into private event spaces. These include the former Brewmeister's Office, virtually unchanged since 1939, and the Elephant Cellar, a larger room with chandeliers crafted from old bottling machines (by artist Robert Diaz De Leon). Later, I'll share more about the design of other notable spaces, including the Sternewirth bar and the library.
The effort and investment in building a one-of-a-kind hotel have paid off. In 2024, Hotel Emma was ranked the #1 luxury hotel in the United States in the Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice Best of the Best Awards. The same year, it was one of only three hotels in Texas to receive two Michelin Keys, the equivalent of a restaurant receiving two Michelin stars.
Celebrities who have enjoyed staying at Hotel Emma include Adam Sandler, Drake, Cher, and Charles Barkley.
Location
Hotel Emma is in the center of San Antonio's Pearl district. It's bordered to the west by the River Walk, which extends south to downtown (about a 30-minute walk). Highway 281 hems in the Pearl to the north and east, while Interstate 35 cuts it off to the south. Hotel Emma’s location along I-35 provides easy access to and from major metro areas like Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, and Houston.
Local points of interest include:
- San Antonio Museum of Art (0.8 miles south): This museum in the former Lone Star Brewery houses an art collection representing 5,000 years of history.
- Witte Museum (1.7 miles north): A nature, science, and art museum.
- The Alamo (1.8 miles south): The site of an important battle during Texans' fight for independence from Mexico in 1836.
- San Antonio International Airport (6.7 miles north)
- San Antonio Missions National Historical Park (11 miles south): This UNESCO World Heritage Site comprises a series of five stone churches.
Check-In at Hotel Emma
Excited for our overnight stay, we arrived at the Hotel Emma around 10:30 a.m. on a Saturday. I gladly handed the valet the car keys ($45/night), and we rolled our luggage past the flickering outdoor fireplace and into the cozy reception area.
The small room with wooden desks acts as a friendly segue between the outdoors and the hotel's large-scale industrial interiors. Here, we were greeted and checked into one of the Landmark rooms in the original Brewhouse tower. In contrast, the River Cellars building is more modern, with rooms overlooking the River Walk and the hotel's rooftop pool.
At this point, we gave our luggage to a bellhop, who took it to our room while we joined other guests in the library for the 11 a.m. guided tour. Afterward, we made a beeline to our room before going out for lunch.
Landmark Room
Room 408 felt like a microcosm of what we'd seen in the larger first-floor spaces. An area rug under the king bed warmed up the concrete floor. Attractive curtains hung around the windows, softening the rough wall around them. Clean white linens were an invitation to relax. A 48" HD TV hung on a wall, with bricks peeking out from behind chipped plaster.
Landmark rooms average about 400 square feet, leaving enough space for a sitting area. Our room had a handsome brown leather sofa and wooden table.
Bathroom and Closet
This attractive bathroom features blue and white Spanish porcelain tiles on the walls and floor, and elegant brass fixtures add charm. The rain shower head and water pressure felt terrific. Plush white Frette towels complement the shower experience.
However, the lavender-scented bath products from Los Poblanos, an organic farm in New Mexico, had a slightly overpowering fragrance. A little goes a long way with them.
The hall closet opposite the bathroom has Guayabera bathrobes by Dos Carolinas, a local tailor. Guests are invited to take the scuff slippers home as a souvenir.
Ice Box
The in-room Pantry and Ice Box, Hotel Emma's take on a mini-bar, is set at eye level within an armoire. Prices are listed inside one door, and there's a solid selection of liquors (Tito's Vodka, Hendrick's Gin, Johnny Walker Black, and Don Julio 1942 tequila).
The fridge was stocked with:
- Veuve Clicquot Champagne
- Sonoma-Cutrer Chardonnay
- Daou Cabernet Sauvignon
- A few cans of beer
- Coca-Cola
- Topo Chico
- Two bottles of spring water (free)
Food and Drinks
Once Kel and I had explored our room, we left Hotel Emma and walked through the Saturday Farmers Market to the Pullman Market for lunch. This indoor market opened in 2024 and is a substantial addition to the Pearl. It features a grocery store, five counter-service food options, and five sit-down restaurants. After a Sonoran lunch at Mezquite, we spent the rest of the day at Hotel Emma.
Library
The hotel library may seem like a curious place to begin our foodie adventures, so bear with me. Accessible from the lobby, the split-level library was built in the brewery's former fermentation room (which extended to the hotel bar and cafe). It contains 3,700 books donated by author and historian Sherry Kafka Wagner. Eagle-eyed guests may also spot some engineering books original to the Pearl Brewery.
All adult guests of Hotel Emma are given a token at check-in, which can be traded for a welcome drink in the library beginning at 3 p.m. Kel loves libraries. And I'm not one to pass up a complimentary beverage, so we dropped by for happy hour.
The Hotel Emma's two signature mixed drinks, La Babia Margarita and the Three Emmas (lager beer, rose cordial, Amontillado sherry, gin, grapefruit, lemon), were available. We'd previously enjoyed the Three Emmas on a visit to the Sternewirth bar, so I ordered it again while Kel got the margarita. In a head-to-head matchup, I preferred the margarita. A non-alcoholic drink was also available.
A selection of daily newspapers is available, and guests can check books out of the library during their stay. Unlike the lobby and Sternewirth bar, the library is only open to overnight guests. Curious passers-by tend to peek in the windows, giving you the feeling of being in a fishbowl. If that's a bother, a pair of leather seats behind the staircase and seating on the second level offer privacy.
The following morning, I returned to the library for the complimentary Merit Coffee service provided to guests (6 a.m. to 11 a.m.). Merit Coffee is a roaster and chain of Texas cafes that began in San Antonio.
Sternewirth
While we were still sipping our drinks in the library, around 4 p.m., we could hear a live band begin to perform in Hotel Emma's bar, Sternewirth. Like the library, the bar was once part of the brewery's fermentation room. The 25-foot vaulted ceilings provided enough space for 29 fermentation tanks. Three of those tanks were preserved, and two were converted into semi-private nooks that could be reserved.
We left the library with our drinks and walked through the lobby to enter Sternewirth. The change in atmosphere and noise levels was abrupt. Customers were lined up in front of the bar to order drinks while the band performed on the mezzanine above it.
After a few minutes, we returned to the quieter library and decided to visit Sternewirth after dinner. By then, the live music had ended, but the abundance of concrete still made the space echo with music and conversation, keeping it quite loud.
The comfortable leather sofas and seating on the main floor were taken, so we took advantage of a hotel guest privilege. If space allows, you can ask the staff to seat you on the mezzanine level, where a server will take your order. I highly recommend this, as you can see the entire space more clearly.
While we were there, our server informed us one of the reservations for the fermentation tanks had been canceled. It was ours if we wanted it, and we jumped at the chance, though only for as long as it took to finish our drinks before retiring for the night.
I was surprised that the old tanks were noticeably quieter than the rest of the room. The metal blocks the noise, and the interior is lined with soft fabric and throw pillows. A call button allows patrons to buzz their server as needed. Sternewirth's drink menu is available on the Hotel Emma website.
Supper
Executive chef Geronimo Lopez presents a contemporary farm-to-table menu at Supper, Hotel Emma's restaurant, that draws on the best local suppliers and regional ranches. The cocktails here are also worth checking out. We were enamored by the Pear-ly on Thyme, made from vodka, Velvet Falernum, spiced pear liqueur, and pear oleo-saccharum.
The Brussels sprouts, a customer favorite, were excellent, as was my double-bone pork chop with apple, pear, and maple butter. In addition to some fish and poultry offerings, Supper serves filet mignon, a NY strip steak, a 16-ounce ribeye, and Wagyu beef.
Dessert was a treat; the banana pecan financier cake was the highlight. Interestingly, the chocolate cake we couldn't finish tasted better the day after as leftovers.
The following morning, I returned to Supper for breakfast and a customer favorite, Carl's French toast with caramelized brioche and vanilla bean creme anglaise. It's sweet but oh-so-delicious.
Larder
Guests at Hotel Emma looking for a quick specialty coffee and a pastry will find both at Larder, the on-site cafe and grocer. I had the most wonderful white chocolate chai during our stay. There's also a light food menu and bottles of wine for sale. When the weather is warmer, there's also a large patio in front of the cafe to hang out on.
Pool, Gym, and Spa
Among Hotel Emma's many amenities is an outdoor pool on the third floor. Guests can order food and beverages from Poolside Provisions, a 1960s-era Pearl Brewery truck. As attractive as it looked when the sun was shining, the air temperatures were too cold, so we didn't get to hang out there.
While taking photos, I noticed a large building under construction across the river. According to a story in the San Antonio Report, the new 8-story, 151-room hotel was built on land Silver Ventures acquired when they bought the Pearl Brewery. It's expected to open in 2026.
The hotel gym is also accessible from the third floor (and pool deck). Large windows provide plenty of natural light, views of the river, and a glimpse of the Tower of the Americas in downtown San Antonio. Cardio equipment includes two Peloton bikes, treadmills, ellipticals, and a rowing machine. Dumbbells, kettlebells, and resistance bands are provided as well.
Hotel Emma is currently partnered with the Hiatus Spa in an adjacent building for wellness services, including massages, nails, and skincare. However, one of the hotel staff members I spoke with suggested that this may change in the future, with the hotel building its own spa.
Final Thoughts
Hotel Emma is more than just a place to stay—it's a living piece of San Antonio's history, blending its industrial past with the comfort and convenience of modern luxury. From my initial walk-through to my overnight stay in 2025, I've been captivated by the thoughtful design that honors the Pearl Brewery's legacy. Whether sipping cocktails in a former fermentation tank, exploring the lively markets at the Pearl, or indulging in a meal at Supper, every experience added to our fun.
Hotel Emma
136 E Grayson St
San Antonio, TX 78215
thehotelemma.com
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Thank you to the Hotel Emma for hosting me and a guest for one night. All opinions are my own.
