SUDDEN SHUTTERS

Lockout notice clouds future for popular San Antonio chicken joint

Gold Feather is facing an uncertain future after being locked out of its North Side home.

In San Antonio, even selling the right product is no safeguard against business troubles. Despite selling a popular lineup of chicken sandwiches, tenders, and wings, Gold Feather Birds and Beers (834 NW Loop 410) is facing an uncertain future after being locked out for alleged unpaid rent.

An August 8 notice from DPEG North Park, LP, addressed to co-owner Sean Bemis, states that the restaurant is behind more than $27,000 in rent at the Park North shopping center. Gold Feather did not return a request for comment by publication time.

Miguel Mayagoitia and business partners Bemis and Moises Valdez opened Gold Feather in August 2020 with initial hopes of growing the restaurant into a multi-unit chain. Mayagoitia knew the fast-casual market well, working for years as a district manager for Wing Daddy’s.

Although the restaurant’s base menu was similar to dozens of its competitors, Gold Feather was more chef-y than Sysco. The fries were initially fried in duck fat; rubs included piri piri; it initially served unexpected appetizers like fried green tomatoes and cauliflower nuggets.

The restaurant also gave customers a reason to linger, selling craft beer by the glass or in growlers, plus a small selection of wine- and beer-based cocktails.

Gold Feather’s lockout comes at a particularly volatile time for the San Antonio hospitality industry. In a new report, market research platform RestaurantData found that San Antonio had the fourth-most restaurant closures in the U.S. between January and June.

Although chicken restaurants are the fastest-growing segment of the American fast-food industry, counter service joints are generally more risky than other types. In the first half of 2026, quick-service and fast-casual restaurants made up more than half of all closures, according to the RestaurantData study.

north side chicken closings

WHAT'S BREWING

What’s Brewing: Artisan beer garden pours into New Braunfels

Five Stones Artisan Brewery/ Facebook

Five Stones Artisan Brewery is opening a second beer garden in New Braunfels.

If there is one thing you can count on from craft brewers, it’s that they are always willing to take a risk. In August, a Hill Country brand is betting on a second New Braunfels beer garden and a revered Texas beer maker is teaming up with a feisty Alabama star. Read on for more essential beer news from San Antonio and beyond.

New adventures
It's been an adventurous 14 years for Seth Weatherly, owner of Five Stones Artisan Brewery. After opening a nanobrewery in a small Cibolo industrial park, he is now operating a much larger brewhouse and beer garden just outside Garden Ridge.

Now, he’s growing the business again. Weatherly will launch Braunfelser Beer and Wine Garden at the former Faust Brewing Co. spot (499 S. Castell Ave.) in mid-August, borrowing the name of one of his most popular beers.

In an Instagram post, Weatherly said he had been thinking of a near-downtown brewery for years. He thanked Vance Hinton, the former owner of Faust, for the chance to return the space to life.

"We owe a tremendous amount of gratitude to Vance, a very generous man who's given us a shot down here," Weatherly said. "We hope we honor y'all by doing it well with the name that we’ve selected for it.”

Weatherly acknowledged the rocky environment for Texas’ craft breweries, which has caused a string of closures and bankruptcies. Still, he teased big future plans for the space.

"It is a little scary, honestly, starting it in this day and age of the beer industry, but we felt like, 'Hey, if we don't take this shot, it may not come again," Weatherly said.

Ella Langley has teamed up with Shiner Beer on a new kölsch.Ella Langley/ Facebook

Country kölsch
Shiner is launching a new beer with some help from a breakout country star. Ella Langley is collaborating with the famous Texas brand on the sweetly floral Dandelion Honey Kölsch, inspired by her gritty sophomore album, Dandelion.

Local fans can celebrate the new brew from 6-9 pm on August 13 at a Dandelion and Denim Country Night held at Otto’s Ice House at Pearl. While the Alabama singer-songwriter won’t be in attendance, the event will feature a local vendors market, a social media raffle, and a deejay playing Langley’s greatest hits.

Awards season
Altstadt Brewery was one of the five San Antonio-area breweries to collect medals and honors at the 2026 U.S. Open Beer Championships in July in Oxford, Ohio. The nation’s third-largest beer competition draws entries from breweries around the world with beers judged across 180-plus categories and subcategories.

The Fredericksburg brewery was the area’s biggest winner, earning a rank as one of the country’s top 10 breweries, and taking home Brewery of the Year honors in the 5,001-15,000 barrels bracket. Other local winners include Flix Brewhouse, Save the World Brewing Co., Roadmap Brewing Co., and Cibolo Creek Brewing Co.

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