Beneath the Food Hall at Bottling Department, one of Pearl’s most vibrant experiences comes alive: an underground club where jazz pulses late into the night. This August, Jazz, TX celebrates its 10th anniversary. We caught up with the club’s founder and cool cat, Doc Watkins, to reflect on a decade of music, resilience, and community.
If you haven’t yet experienced a show at Jazz, TX (can you really say you’ve visited Pearl if you haven’t?), this venue is the heart of live jazz in San Antonio. Jazz, TX hosts residencies, themed concerts, and exclusive one-night-only events, with performances that stretch well past midnight. Beyond the music, guests enjoy a full-service restaurant with mouthwatering dishes and expertly crafted drinks, making every night a memorable outing.
Over the past decade, Jazz, TX has grown from a beloved local jazz haunt to a true destination venue. “There’s nothing like it in the city,” Doc shares, noting how guests regularly make the trek from Houston, Beaumont, and The Woodlands—sometimes driving hours, staying overnight, then heading home the next day. The venue’s magnetic pull has redefined what it means to be a jazz club in the modern age.
Mistake to miracle
Before Jazz, TX became the city’s underground jazz haven, Doc Watkins and his band were almost like the traveling jazz band for San Antonio, playing everywhere from local favorites like Bohanan’s and The Esquire to early Pearl Farmers Markets in 2008–2009. “I’ve been a musician my whole life,” Doc says. Their performances built a rapport with Pearl’s leadership and sparked a vision that would take years—and a few failed concepts—to realize.
“We were almost like the resident jazz band,” Doc laughs. As he and his band performed around San Antonio, Doc built a rapport with Pearl’s leadership, sparking a series of conversations and ideas that simmered over time. It wasn’t until a fateful fire destroyed the original Bottling Department building in 2004 that someone proposed, “What if we dug a basement and created an underground jazz club?”
“They really saw the vision even before I did,” Doc explains.
Check, please
In the early construction days of Jazz, TX, Watkins admits that he was just a piano player and had no idea what it meant to open a restaurant. “Originally we decided we were just going to have a bar with no food.” From menu development to gauging customer feedback, the team at Jazz, TX fielded it all.
“Our customers wanted pasta. They wanted risotto. So we grew the menu just by demand.” Doc admits, “I didn’t know anything about opening a restaurant. I was just a piano player.” The food program evolved entirely from listening to what guests craved.
As the years progressed, all momentum was halted in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Weathering the Storm
Doc doesn’t mince words recounting the COVID-19 period. “COVID was huge. There was a time in the early days where I thought, ‘Yeah, we’re definitely losing everything this year.’” In addition to complete shutdowns, staff layoffs, and a constant carousel of reopenings and closings, there was a devastating water leak under the club’s basement floor—compounding the stress and forcing a total of 11 months of closure. “Not being able to take care of them [staff] was really humbling,” Doc says.
“The ship was sinking literally and metaphorically.”
Jazz Club Economics 101
On the outside, Jazz, TX looked packed and vibrant, but behind the scenes, success was far from guaranteed. “There was the appearance of success. We were packed all the time, but we were having a hard time making money,” Doc admits. “The metrics of a jazz club simply don’t work; almost all of them don’t make any money.” Stages replace tables, great musicians are expensive, and patrons tend to spend less than what’s needed to sustain operations.
Then, almost like a light switch, Doc lit up, “COVID revealed a critical problem: Guests wanted control over where they sat. There was no platform where you could pick your table.”
Hello, Turntable
As a result, Doc built a new company: Turntable Tickets. A live music venue ticketing platform, marketing engine, venue management system, and revenue optimization system. “We built Turntable out of necessity; it allowed us to properly monetize our tables.”
In the process, a San Antonio jazz club unintentionally gave rise to a national tech company.
“Now one in three tickets sold in America to a jazz concert go right through this office. About 35-40% of all jazz clubs in America are now using Turntable.”
Coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic, Doc noticed a shift in consumer behavior. “Everyone was more picky about being able to choose where they sat and curate their own experience.” There was increased demand for planned experiences, more reserved seating, and more intentional spending. The key to Turntable and Jazz, TX’s success was adapting to how people want to spend money.
“You have to meet the customer where they’re at. Patrons are spending less on alcohol but more on experiences and tickets.”
Quitting Bell
“There were many days that I wanted to quit,” Doc confides. The hardest moment came at the very beginning of the pandemic, when he had to make the difficult decision to lay off staff. “Multiple moments left a scar. The only thing you can do for your team is get them on unemployment as quickly as possible. It felt like you were abandoning them. I had no way to save them.” During this time, he drew strength from the U.S. Navy SEAL tale of the quitting bell—a metaphor for giving up under pressure. “If someone would just make it as easy as ringing the bell, I would’ve rang it. But for now, I’m not going to quit for one more day.”
Persistence overcame confidence through those turbulent times for Doc. “You don’t have to win a championship every day. Sometimes just staying in the game is enough.”
Appetites
Coming out of the pandemic, the massive water leak, and other hurdles, Doc Watkins remains optimistic on the eve of Jazz, TX’s 10-year anniversary. “COVID made me more comfortable being unsafe. It took my nervous system to a different level, and now I have a different appetite for risk.”
Since then, Doc has taken the show on the road (and sea), furthering his vision for a jazz club ecosystem. Doc’s Houston location opened in a restored theatre in the Montrose district, with expansion into Chicago underway. This past spring, he even brought the band, special guests, and patrons on a four-day jazz expedition at sea throughout the Caribbean. “The future of the jazz club industry is right here in this office. We’ve actually reinvented it,” Doc says.
Let’s Celebrate
The 10-year anniversary celebration stands as a testament to Jazz, TX’s vision and perseverance. “We’re just going to throw a big party,” Doc promises—and you’re invited. Join the festivities at Jazz, TX on August 21, 22, and 23. Highlights include the limited release of Doc Watkins’ first book, a commemorative anniversary poster (get yours signed after the show), and, of course, plenty of dancing and jubilant jazz.
Can’t make it? Be sure to pick up a copy of his first book, Jazz, TX: A Love Letter to Live Music, Community, and the Little Club That Could, out on August 25.
Let us cheer to the quitting bell that never rang. Here’s to 10 years of Jazz, TX.
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Throwback Photo Gallery courtesy of Jazz, TX
