It's a beer bar with some food. You could consider the environment "friendly" or "relaxed", but you called also consider it "dirty" and "cheap". It's a beer bar on a dirt lot. Honestly, that would be okay with me if the prices were reasonable. I got a Shiner Bock (which they didn't have on draft) for $4.25. I believe the drafts were $4.00.
I will never return to this overpriced beer bar on a dirt lot.
The Friendly Spot has soo many different types of beers! Â The environment truly is friendly and relaxed. Â I like that there is no music and a great place to hang out and chat, but I am bothered by the fact that there never seem to be any specials on the booze. Â The Friendly Spot can't really be called a restaurant, because the food really isn't that great. Â So I would consider it more of a bar. Â With that said, I expect bar prices not restaurant prices for the drinks.
I'll go back, but I won't order as many drinks as I'd like to.
Love this place. Best on tap beer selection in the city-- my husband hasn't tried the same thing twice in the last 4 months and we go almost weekly! Â Unlike other spots that claim to have "over 300 beers" on their menu, the Friendly Spot actually has all the beers they advertise right then. Â Food is overpriced and not very good in my opinion, but I don't go for the food. Â I go for the amazing beer selection, the wonderful, friendly crowd and staff and the relaxed outdoor feel.
Review Source:I love good beer and they certainly have an excellent selection here, but it's pretty overpriced and kinda pretentious. Â For claiming to be friendly, can't say that the staff or the patrons there are that friendly. Â Honestly, I can walk a bit down the road and buy a world class beer at Beethoven's for half the cost in an air-conditioned room. Â I liked this place when they started and I'm sure they'll do quite well without me.
Review Source:I have only ever been to The Friendly Spot on First Friday, so I am not sure how it is the rest of the month...The place was nice to chill for a bit, but I wasn't that impressed. Â I am not a fan of beer though, so my opinion is definitely biased. Â I would come here again if invited, but it wouldn't be my first pick for a night out.
Review Source:The Friendly Spot Ice House is indeed awesome. It's a simple beer shack with over two hundred beers available, 25 are on draft. The majority of the seating is outdoors, they have patio seating with playset for the kiddos and picnic tables with TVs in back. Plus there is a small indoor area for inclement weather. It has such a relaxed feel, it's like you're at hanging out in a friend's yard. In addition to the beers, they serve food. We weren't terribly hungry, but it didn't stop us from scarfing the nachos down. I wish we found the friendly spot sooner, we weren't able to return, though, I would've loved it if we could.
Review Source:I'm in love. Amazing local, regional, and national craft brews on tap. Â Pretty good food. It's all outdoors, with comfy seating. Â It feels like being at the best backyard party ever. Â Great beertenders who really really know their beer. Â One of them went of the his way to be super welcoming to me and my boyfriend when he discovered that we have just moved to town a few days earlier. Â He gave us info on the area, told us about the neighborhood, and recommended his favorite TX beers. Â
As we were leaving they were putting up their huge inflatable projection screen for the Conference Championship NBA game. Â We asked they said they put it up for most major sports events.
I can totally see this turning into one of my favorite hangouts!
This outdoor patio space is a nice respite from the usual downtown nonsense. I work in the area and must drive past it a few times a day, but sadly they are only open after 5 on weekdays. After side-eyeing it for weeks, finally tried it as a pre-game dinner and drinks stop prior to a Spurs game.
The fact that very few of these reviews reference the reviews should have been a sign, but the way I saw it, they'd recently started offering food so there weren't many reviews. So let me be the first to go on record to say this is NOT a place to plan to eat. Their queso was legit though, more on that below.
The three of us had two beers and a sangria (on special for $5) for starters, along with an order of their smoked sausage and poblano queso ($6)- I'm including prices here because none were found on their online menu nor in any of these other reviews, and I found them overpriced, save again for the queso.
Their online menu looks far more extensive than what we got: a 3 by 5 inch card with few listings for tacos, burgers, and nachos. I recall more varieties of each when I looked online but I guess they have a limited menu on weeknights? Whatever. Based on my experience I'm going to say it's more for lack of demand.
Anyway. They had the sangria on special, as I mentioned, and their burgers were 2-for-1 as well- score!, right? Wrong-o. Their burger options were a hamburger, cheeseburger, veggie burger, or chipotle bean burger. I'm the adventurous sort, so I opted for the latter, but my companions got the veggie burger and cheese burger. Both the veggie burger and the bean burger appeared to be made from the same frozen Morningside patty and nuked in the microwave. The only difference between the two was a minimal squirt of an orange chipotle sauce, which easily may have been from the Kraft Special Mayo line.
Did I mention that both of the burgers cost just shy of $9? Bun was fresh out of the package and not heated or treated in any way, and the only difference between the veggie burger and the cheese burger was the fact that one was allegedly "real meat", though they were both comparatively dry and unappealing. All burgers were served with a handful of generic plain potato chips. For nine freaking dollars, I at least expected fries! Oh well, chalk it up to downtown prices I guess.
This place may look casual, but the prices certainly aren't- on this note, I'll also discuss beers here. They have a huge selection, yes, but at just under $7 a beer for anything that isn't on special (read: running out and/or very generic), it's a total money sucker.
Sangria was a special item, and for $5 it was a good portion- a glass instead of a cup-size serving, but it was entirely bland. I'm not completely convinced it was alcoholic, either, as there was no kick to it. I'm fairly certain that they unscrewed a $4 bottle from the bottom shelf of HEB and called it a day. At least there was an orange wedge on the rim...
So, the drinks were overpriced (though we did have a fairly decent Pyramid Apricot) and the burgers downright sucked, but the ambiance is nice. And, oh yeah, the queso. So this queso is served in a plastic lidded container similar in size to what you might buy a small HEB hummus. It's thick and yellow and warm and has a bit of pico on top and sausage mixed into the bottom. And it's divine. It's served with a handful of red and yellow tortilla chips atop a sheet of white butcher table, on a plastic tray. Not exactly going for presentation, and it initially seems like  a scant amount of chips, but I got to work scooping about as much as each chip could hold and it was just the right amount. I literally had one extra chip by the time I was done.  The queso was good. Really good. The perfect snack food to complement the drinks.
So if you're stuck downtown and outdoor ambiance is what you're wanting, this place is the spot. But expect to shell out for your drinks, and aside from the queso and maybe another app, this place is NOT where you want to eat. Service is friendly as the name suggests, though.
It's a fairly diverse crowd here, too- young families with children, young professionals with the rolled-up sleeves of their button downs straight from the office, and pseudo-Suicide Girls with the dyed hair and bad tattoos. Oh and the obligatory handful of hipsters: shout out to the guy with the fedora, oversize aviators, blazer, perfectly faded Urban Outfitters tee, and scuffed shoes, carrying a (likely empty) guitar case, notebook for your "deep thoughts" and Happy Meal Toy keychain. You are every cliché I can think of, wrapped in one.
It has been a YEAR since I've been to my very favorite watering hole. Oh my has it changed but for the good. I LOVE how there's so many more choices for beer on tap. The front looked the same but when you go to the back they rearranged a bit. The bar is on the side and boy does it look fancy. I would say it's like the Flying Saucer but outside without all the girls dressed is ridiculous short bottoms. Bartender was nice and helped us make some choices because we were being indecisive. There's so many great beers on draft to choose from all over the country. There's also a wide selection of bottled beers as well.
Good for you Friendly Spot! I'm glad you made the expansion and it looks great!
Tons of different beers on tap and draft. Very cool and laid back, I love the King Williams area. Lots of people on bikes and families with their dogs. Great people watching and chilling on a lazy afternoon. If you want it a little less noisy hang in the back. Food is ok but not anything awesome, there are a bunch of other great eating places within walking distance though. Great place to stop on a King Williams pub/restaurant crawl.
Review Source:Inviting place in Southtown SA- kinda full of hipsters and the like- don't they know that they don't wear fedoras in Brooklyn anymore??  Great selection of beers but a bit overpriced-It should be called The Ten Spot.. I mean come  on... I have NEVER paid 8.75 for a beer in NY other than at a stadium or enclosed event- even airports don't charge that much for craft brews-
It is trying deperately for a vibe- but you need more than a rocky crusty floor and junky yards next door to look at.-I was seated at a really nice rusty table which could barely balance your 75 cents per ounce  beer--  there were no tunes in afternoon there
I found my way to the Friendly Spot while visiting SA. I was tooling around on my bike on Friday night, looking for a place to go in Southtown, with no direction whatsoever. Then I saw this dude headed up Alamo on a penny farthing bicycle, so I figured he'd know what's up. I turned around and caught up to him and asked him what place was worth spending my time. "Follow me," he instructed, and shortly thereafter we rolled into the Friendly Spot.
No wait at the bar, great beers on draft, room to sit, room to stand around, room to work the room (er, patio) and meet new people. This large outdoor beer garden was akin to places I'm used to in Austin - Easy Tiger, Liberty - but not nearly as crowded, loud, or pretentious. I had a great time.
The Friendly Spot is so charming and friendly, here's why:
The name sets the tone for this beer garden / ice house (is there a difference?). Â Everyone is so friendly. Â
The best part is the BEER. They have a range of craft beers from all over the country, including our city's Brooklyn lager from those who get homesick for New York, or Harpoon for Bostonians. Â The selection is of at least 50bottles and drafts. Â Prices were higher than I was expecting at $6 drafts, but this place is downtown and packed.
Seating is hit and miss, so get there early or ready to stand. Â There are high tops, regular tables, and small coffee tables to park around. Â Ive never watched it, but they have an inflatable big screen TV for sports and movies :)
I'm already liking SA because of places like this one, and that's not just the beer talking!
The Friendly Spot, alongside The Saucer, The Ten Eleven, Boneshaker's and The Blue Star has been one of the principal players in educating the city about craft brews for the past decade. In a sense they are what Green has been to vegetarian cuisine, what Hogwild is to underground music and what the Bijou is to independent films. Above all, it is a great place to hangout with the bros and the girls to grab a beer and to chill after work or especially for First Friday.
First and foremost I like the new layout of the place. I like that the front remained the same and in the back the bar was pushed facing the other way. It creates a more open flow and gives the place more charm than it already had. There are also more beers on tap in the back area, in the past it felt like the appendix to the whole mood of the place. Now it feels more like that area is front and center. While I do like this place, I'd still like to offer some of my critiques, praises and some advice if you decide to go here.
1.) There really is no parking for this place. So you might end up having to find somewhere in the stuffy King William residency to find one. Be careful where you park in that neighborhood or you will get a big fat ticket.
2.) They have an excellent selection of craft brews or any beer for that matter. My critique is I wish there was a better way to see just exactly what they had. Alot of times you are trying to order and you can't get a good glimpse of what they have since it is behind the counter. And by then 50 mad people are waiting for you to order something. My advice to this place, Facebook and update the beers you are carrying like other places around here do on their pages. I know they have an electrical sign now which indicates what they have. However, the lettering is so small I have to squint to read it.
3.) This place gets ultra- packed! By 8ish it is standing room only, especially on First Friday or Spurs game nights. My advice, particularly if you plan to go on First Friday, which sees it's biggest crowds is to have a friend go there early and save a table for you. You can thank them later by buying the first round.
4.)While there is seating here it is really limited. I don't entirely agree with how the table space is utilized in the back. It seems like the tables could be broken down even further. My advice to them is to have fewer long tables and have more tables that will seat parties of two or four.
5.) And lastly on the food /appetizer front. They have really tasty food, their chips with black beans and cheese is a hit. My advice to you if you choose to order anything get their early as the crowd builds up so will your wait time for food. Make sure you order your beers and food at the same time. This will alleviate alot of the hassle that will come as you wait for your food to come out.
 The Friendly Spot is a killer place! The bar staff are topnotch and very professional. It has a very chillax vibe going on there. It is the intermediary spot that brings together blue collar workers, white collar workers, musicians, artists, poets, downtown folk, bikers; all different socioeconomic classes! And the kiddos can come here and play in an area designated for children. It is  a very family friendly business. Plus you can bring your favorite four-legged friend, and I don't mean your mother in law!
 Check this place out on First Friday or any other day. I saw a dude dressed like Princess Leia grabbing a brew after his Pub Crawl run. I say "Excellente!"
I don't like beer, but I love The Friendly Spot.
Always on the top my list of places for visitors to check out, Friendlies is absolutely the most laid back locale in Southtown to enjoy beverages. You shouldn't feel uncomfortable coming here after a workout, or after a long day of walking in SA, or even slightly dressed up before heading to dinner. It's just a straight up comfortable place for anyone. Yes, I'm speaking for anyone.
I'm a cider girl, and they have plenty of options, including one on draft recently that was different than anything I have had. I just wish I could remember the name. I think the one thing that could use some work is the food menu, because how cool would it be to pair somewhat gourmet yet casual food with this place? Then it'd be perfect.
On First Friday, get here early if you want a spot to sit.
The unfriendly spot. Great beer selection! Â I rode in on my bicycle and the shirt nazi accosted me while I was going to get my shirt out of the bag on my bike. Sorry I missed the no shirt no shoes no dice sign. Â Yes it's a beautiful afternoon on a Saturday and I'm sure this guy would have much rather been out and about rather than working but come on dude. Â If you don't like what you do go get a job somewhere else.
Review Source:It might have been the warm Texas air, or the promise of being away from the 150 people we were in town with, but I walked in and it felt magical.
There are high-tops, low tops, and even lower tops (tables), and big metal lounging chairs in bright colors. They had the NCAA games on a huge inflatable screen. The bar is like a beach shack and the bartenders were friendly and fantastic. The bathroom reminded me of a college frat house which made me like this place even more.
It's huge, it's packed with people but not in an annoying way, and if you have kids and don't want to pay attention to them, there's a massive jungle gym at the front where you can drop them off while you imbibe.
I really enjoyed The Friendly Spot. A close friend of mind who lives in San Antonio spoke very highly of the establishment and I'd have to say I wasn't disappointed at all. Â We stopped by for a few beers while I was in town visiting. This particular night the game was playing on a giant blowup TV screen and the place was pretty busy but it wasn't overwhelming.
The outdoor environment and friendly crowd make you feel like your having drinks in your own backyard.
Stopped in yesterday while walking to Luminaria at Hemisfair Park.
Awesome texas ice house / biergarten. Very nice craft brew selection. I had a left hand ambidextrous & delirium tremens on draft and my girlfriend tried their rum punch & followed it up with Monk's Flemish Sour.
My love of good brew will bring me here often. I am so very glad that I can walk here in a couple minutes.
We did try the beef nachos that were a bit sad. However, the food is an afterthought here. The beer selection & friendly service is more than enough for high marks.
This place is the only place I go when I want 1) a Texas pint, 2) to sit outside, 3) read a book, and/or 4) meet up with friends and have some beers while I am in from Austin. Â
First time I came here the bar had 1 bartender, 3-4 beers on tap (none of them local), and they did not sell food. Â Granted, this was right after the owners purchased the lot & it was no longer housing vendors/artisans for First Friday. Â NOW they have 3 bartenders (not counting the back bar), sell delicious & vegetarian friendly food, and have about 8-10 beers on tap (almost all of them are local). I am BUMMED though that, as far as I know, local vendors/artisans can no longer use the space inside the lot to sell their art and handmade items for First Friday. Â Why the change? If anything this would draw MORE folks in to your lot and more $ would be spent on bar & food as folks walk around and support the local vendors. Â Bring that back, Friendly Spot!!!
The few nights I have been here to meet up with friends I am super surprised and happy to see that there is a blowup screen that displays the Spurs games and/or a movie for the night. Â It's a pretty awesome perk to have especially when I meet up with friends at night here (it's so dark at night in this lot).
This is the kind of place that reminds me of being back home (Austin) on warm nights and I like this fact especially when I am in my hometown visiting and still want to be outside while drinking copious amounts of local beer. My friends are already posted up on one of the colorful old school yet new lawn chairs, chilling with their dogs just waiting for me to arrive so we can catch up.
The Friendly Spot is located on South Alamo st. in the very hip King William district in San Antonio. This is a very cool spot which claims to be an ice house or at least capitalizes on the kitschiness that comes with that name. Ample outdoor seating and a nice bar with a good selection of beers. This is a very active spot which is obviously a fixture in the local hipster scene and with the other tragically hip people who want to hang out there.
Dog owners abound there and for the most part the dogs and their owners are pretty friendly. Â Decent staff in a hipster way (you know..the ones who act like they are doing you a favor by waiting on you or even glancing your way at all??..yeah ..those) who are fairly knowledgeable about the beer.
A recent stop there on Sunday evening had us scrambling for a place to park on the street (scored a good space a block away) and for a spot in the mildly crowded front part of the place ..(again scored a spot!). Â Acquired a few beers and a plate of vegan nachos. Â It was altogether a very pleasant start to the evening ...good company, atmosphere and beer....till we collected the nachos!
We..ll let me tell you, the Waldorf Astoria has nothing on feeling overly proud about their nachos! These guys take the cake on that one! F'in $10.75 for nachos and we got literally 8 ..yes EIGHT ..ocho ..chips with a schmear of black beans, about a teaspoon of sauteed onions, some Sysco pickled jalapenos and a small scoop of guac. artistically arranged on a Chinet plate! Â I have eaten some expensive meals in my life, but I think even Morimoto or Thomas Keller would not charge me $1.25 for each nacho...no matter if the beans were grown specially in the Andes and fertilized with rare parrot guano, and transported by specially trained condors and dropped from heights of 10,000 feet to crush them naturally by differentiated gravity! Â Seriously! Â getting your pocket picked shamelessly is a bit much!
Two stars for the decent atmosphere. ...overall would have been four except for the feeling that we were fleeced with the nachos. Â Go there...don't eat anything they sell and expect to pay prices about a buck more than the Flying Saucer for beers.
It is a nice hangout though....I say so grudgingly....
Went to San Antonio this past weekend... on our way to brunch at Mad Hatters we crossed this place and thought we'll have to come back and have a drink. We went to brunch, had a pitcher of mimosa, and then made our way to the ice house. There appeared to be the start of a scavenger hunt which seemed pretty cool.
I really like the laid back ice house atmosphere - definetely my style. Especially nice on a random 72 degree day in January. They didnt have a beer list so we just kind of looked at the coolers and the bartender guided us. My friend ordered a Rogue Double Chocolate Stout on tap and I ordered a Maredsous (6 - Blond) bottle. I had to ask for a glass - you dont drink that out of the bottle!
Anyways, we sat back and enjoyed the the sunshine and the DJ that was playing in the back. Mapping our next moves. Decided to leave after the 1 beer and went to close out. Got my tab and the total came to..... $19 ?!?!?! I thought that was crazy expensive for 2 beers! Maybe it was the mimosas and high abv beer, figured that in a touristy spot you just pay more for drinks... but I just signed it and went on my way. Realized later that I never even got an itemized receipt.
Maybe it was an accident, maybe she was taking advantage of us, maybe thats just how much the beers really are here...? Either way this place left a bad taste in my mouth and the whole rest of the trip we felt like idiots asking every bar we went into how much their beer was before we ordered it.
Make sure to ask for pricing, check your receipt, and ask for an itemized reciept!
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 regulars ourselves.
REVIEW FROM JULY 4TH 2012.
Went there on a first Saturday, after a first Friday bonanza in the neighborhood. Needless to say, we were burnt out from the night before and 4th of July HOT, but this joint appeared to us like an apparation.
IH had all the roadside charm of a western film from the 70's. A junky old shack surrounded by rusty chairs and tables under oak trees. It was perfect for sipping local beer and feeling one with the world. Â
And then, like that....when our stomachs rumbled, we were gone for some Mexican down the street, thrown into a shitshow of parking wars and hurried folks almost as hangry as us. Â But I'll never forget that cold beer, under those oaks, the overly loud honky tonk music in that hot stretch of pavement in South San Antonio.
<a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.npr.org%2F2006%2F06%2F29%2F5522825%2Ftexas-icehouses-melt-away&s=1366eb0e8ad732ad06f08c581910762c1c98a6e03a97f0783d10f33561b383cd" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.npr.org/2006/…</a>
After getting several bad recommendations from the bartender at our hotel we decided to yelp a location for dinner and drinks and HECK YES!
Great beer augmented by a staff that actually knows what they are pouring and can make recommendations. Simple but delicious food and on top of it all, a really nice outdoor space to enjoy both!
I am a frequent traveler to San Antonio and have not previously found places I really liked. This will be added to my 'must go' list.
Friendly Spot is relaxing and does live up to it's name. Nice outdoor area with large mature tress located in the beautifully historical Southtown area. So many tasty beers on tap. The only drawback is the parking. But in such a nice area of town a little walk is quite enjoyable.
Call up some friends and have a friendly time at the Friendly Spot.
I was working in San Antonio for a trade show.
I rented a bike a couple of nights while in SA and rode over every inch of the city, all after dark and it was 90 degrees+. (very nice bike rental program for a step-thru women's type city bike- 3 speed... swallow your pride and ride!)
I found The Friendly Spot Ice House and felt at home, the place was packed, I located a quite spot on the side, sat in my "backyard" chair and watched the locals enjoying each other. Very cool place, the heat made my Lone Star Light and taco's taste great!
Actually, San Antonio is very friendly as a city.
I need a "Friendly Ice House" where I live.
Here at the Friendly Spot Ice House you can:
a) Â Get a cold beer and sit outside (you don't have a real choice)
b) Â Let the kids play at the adjacent playground while you knock down a few. Â If you are knocking down more than that, get a babysitter.
c) Â When available, watch the SA Spurs beat the LA Clippers on their projector screen.
d) Â Bar snacks are available for munching out also (wings,nachos,tamales and burgers). Â The operative word here is munching, ya'll.
e) Â Custom Beer Bloody Marys are unique and cool, just select the beer you want to mix it with and they will oblige. Â Sipped on one of them and they are actually quite refreshing. Â I could not tell that it was mostly of beer (that one was mixed with Dos Equis XX)
f) Â The dining/drinking room is a large front lawn serviced by a snack shack with partial sun shade coverage by the mature trees. Â The metal chairs felt comfortable and the overall feel was relaxing despite a ton of others around. Â The outside location and air helps dissipate any foul beer trash so it makes it more tolerable. Â The staff seemed to be on top of keeping things in order and cleaned up.
Enjoy yourself but be aware that everyone around you are probably as drunk as you are! Â If ordering a Samuel Adams, they give you the glass for free. Â What struck my curiousity was the absence of price lists for the booze and that they seemingly had every beer you desire ready for consumption. Â I didn't really care anyway, gimme a beer!
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