Opening weekend for the St. Mary's Strip's latest bar,
The Squeezebox (2806 N. St. Mary's St.), was insane, to say the least.
But what could have easily turned into a shit show didn't. The majority of the crowd — and yes, there was a steady line of souls waiting to get into the bar/venue for most of the evening — was there to have a good time.
Opened by owners Danny Delgado, Ryan Dietrich, Osvaldo Ordonez, Julio Lopez and Aaron Peña, The Squeezebox welcomed folks of all walks of life. The same necias and necios that go to Hi-Tones were rubbing shoulders with a few TBA denizen and a handful of tios and tias, all trying to get down with the Tejano tunage coming from San Anto legends Eva Ybarra and Santiago Jimenez Jr.
The $5 Sinvergüenza shot combos were cold, the beer list varied but inexpensive and the cash-only beer island bar outside helped with lines (that is if you carry cash). The patio is quaint and clean (shout out to Ordonez who cleaned up empties like grassroots owners do), and well-lit, and the crowd was able to nosh on snacks from
Puerto Rican Grub Express food truck parked behind the patio.
I essentially camped out outside enjoying the occasional breeze and chatting with bar-goers as they waited in line like an accidental greeter. First nights are always a handful, and if there was any complaint on my end, it'd be the HVAC system could use some work. It's hot and cumbia-ing all night only makes things hotter (side note: can someone show me how to cumbia, maybe I'm just doing it wrong?).
Otherwise, the "sounds and soul of San Antonio on the St. Mary's Strip" definitely rings true as The Squeezebox's mantra. Let's hope the guys get a barbacoa brunch going ASAP. For more photos of the opening, check out our
slideshow here.
