SUDDEN SHUTTERS
Beloved San Antonio ice house to close after 8 years on East Side
The Dakota will end its eight-year run in August.
San Antonio is about to lose one of its most welcoming hangouts. The Dakota East Side Ice House at 433 S Hackberry St., known for its cold pints and “Just be nice, dammit!” motto, has decided not to renew its lease, ending its run on August 9.
“Eight years ago, I opened a little neighborhood spot on the East Side,” wrote owner Kent Oliver in a social media statement. “What it became was something I never could have imagined. Music, poetry, soccer mornings, dance, art, laughter, friendship, celebrations, heartbreak, and community all found a home here. More than anything, The Dakota became a place where people from all walks of life could come together and feel human.”
Oliver, the former director of operations at Rio San Antonio Cruises, launched The Dakota in April 2018, placing a bet on the underserved Historic Gardens neighborhood near the Alamodome. While many bars and restaurants use ice house in the name, it earned it by serving beer and bar snacks in a mostly residential area.
Although the offerings weren’t anything new, his approach to inclusivity felt radical. The walls were still plastered in photos honoring the East Side’s Black roots and the calendar was stacked with everything from drag shows to Latina folk acts.
Using a type of bar that was historically segregated as a template, Oliver built a space that made room for all his neighbors. The bar may have stocked a few craft IPAs, but it never strayed far from the ice house’s working-class roots.It’s unclear why Oliver decided not to renew his lease.
A request for further comment was not immediately returned. But The Dakota will keep its regular hours until its final date: Mondays and Tuesdays, 4-10 pm; Thursdays and Fridays, 4-midnight; Saturdays, noon-midnight; and Sundays, noon-10 pm. The bar will go out the way it came in, celebrating its final days with community programming.
“I am incredibly grateful to everyone who walked through our doors over the years—our employees, musicians, artists, performers, regulars, neighbors, and friends. You gave this place its soul,” wrote Oliver. “The Dakota was never just a business to me. It became a living piece of my heart.”
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A model guest room teases the tropical modernist design.Photo by Matt Kisiday.