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Prohibition. The Great Depression. World War II. Two pandemics. Pearl has weathered our share of storms over the past century, and we’ve learned that overcoming obstacles is all about how you respond to them. Meet some folks whose dedication and resilience embody the spirit of Pearl.
Opening a restaurant is daunting anytime. Opening one during a pandemic is enough to send most people running. Jennifer Dobbertin and Quealy Watson aren’t most people. The longtime culinary partners worked in some of San Antonio’s most innovative kitchens before opening Tenko Ramen at Pearl. Dobbertin, a second-generation Chinese American, took inspiration from her travels and the comfort food of her youth for Best Quality Daughter, their New Asian-American restaurant.
Brasserie Mon Chou Chou is the brainchild of Chef Laurent Réa, Philippe Placé, and Jérôme Sérot—French food lovers who met nearly 20 years ago in San Antonio. The menu highlights the cuisine of their homeland, enriched with fond memories of meals shared with family and friends. Many of the dishes are directly influenced by the trio’s respective grandmothers, as well as the many inspiring cities and diverse regions of France.
High Street Wine Co. opened in 2016 with an emphasis on hospitality and featuring a carefully curated wine selection from Beverage Director and Advanced Sommelier Scott Ota. When the pandemic forced them to close—twice—they quickly pivoted to an online-only platform, including virtual wine classes. Additionally, they developed a program to keep their team employed while serving their community, building in hours with nonprofits into their offerings—the epitome of hospitality first.
Mother-daughter team Nilgun and Ayse Derman have been outfitting people in their one-of-a-kind designs for 25 years. Their modern apparel is made in San Antonio and sold across North America, including their flagship boutique at Pearl. While the pandemic strained many fashion retailers, Niche leaned into another growing market—sewing and crafting. They launched The Stitch at Niche, a curated fabric shop and project space that allows anyone to unleash their creativity.
Feliz Modern POP is centered around the most important thing in life: connection. Connection with friends, family, and community through art, humor, and celebration. That is evident the second you step inside the shop—a colorful assortment of items thoughtfully sourced (or produced) by husband-and-wife team Mario and Ginger Diaz abound. Through the most trying times, the shop not only endured, but also supported local charitable causes, all while remaining “The Home of Happy.”
Stay on top of the latest news from Pearl and learn what others have to say about us and our inspiring community of makers, culinary artists, and professionals.
The pandemic changed the way we work. Pearl Cowork is a new space for creatives, startups, and businesses that seek a place for collaboration and connectivity.
The San Antonio Business Journal highlights the trio behind Bakery Lorraine, which they describe as “one of San Antonio’s most successful bakeries.” Read about how Anne Ng and Jeremy Mandrell, who met while working for world-renowned chef Thomas Keller, joined forces with entrepreneur Charlie Biedenharn to start Bakery Lorraine at a farmers market in 2011, before eventually moving to their location at Pearl.
In this episode of KENS 5’s Commerce Street podcast, hear from two Pearl businesses who have met the challenges brought on by the pandemic with creativity and innovation. Ayse Derman, Creative Director at Niche, and Edward Casey, Manager and Beverage Leader at High Street Wine Company, discuss how they pivoted their businesses in the wake of COVID restrictions to better serve their customers safely and creatively.
Each year, Travel + Leisure invites its readers to pick their favorite hotels, resorts, cities, spas, and more for their highly anticipated and coveted World’s Best Awards. They received hundreds of thousands of votes for their 25th edition released in the summer of 2020, and Hotel Emma made the list of the Top 15 City Hotels in the Continental U.S.
Early in the pandemic, Pearl made the difficult decision to suspend its popular Farmers Market in the name of public safety. Worried that its closure would be catastrophic for its community of small, local farmers whose livelihoods depend on the weekend markets, Pearl quickly launched an online marketplace that would support the vendors safely while providing farm fresh produce to its loyal customers via its curbside service.
USA Today’s 10Best travel guide listed Pearl as one of the Best Things to Do in December in San Antonio, calling it “one of San Antonio’s premier destinations for dining, shopping and sight-seeing.” While it is a destination year-round, there is something extra special about Pearl around the holidays.
Pearlfinder. Find any restaurant, store, organization, or public space at Pearl using Pearlfinder quickly and easily. You won’t be able to bookmark it fast enough.
