One of San Antonio’s most theatrical addresses will soon raise the curtain on luxury stays. The 77-room Aztec Hotel at 201 E. Commerce St., part of Marriott International's boutique Tribute Portfolio, is expected to open in the third quarter of 2026.
The building, which now houses Aztec Theatre, was built in 1926 by Robert B. Kelly and Robert O. Koenig of the Kellwood Company. The upstairs housed office space. Downstairs imagined a world far beyond filing cabinets, opening as a grand movie palace before being chopped into a triplex in the ‘70s and reopening as the concert venue it is today.
From there, the record gets fuzzy. According to San Antonio lore (and the Aztec Theatre itself), the flamboyant interior was designed by Meyer & Holler, the Los Angeles firm behind Sid Grauman's Egyptian and Chinese Theatres in Hollywood. Just how much involvement the architects had is now buried in archives, but theater folk are allowed a few flourishes.
In any case, Aztec Theatre gave Dallas-based Shreem Capital a ton of inspiration to work with when planning its companion hotel. The interior was Mayan Revival, a decidedly ahistorical style that throws pre-Columbian Mesoamerican decorative arts into a blender, incorporating polychrome plaster, deep reliefs, and a little kitsch. Think of it as the Mexican equivalent of tiki.
The guest rooms blend contemporary and vintage references.Rendering courtesy of Aztec Hotel
Rendering courtesy of the Aztec Hotel
The Aztec Hotels' design motifs borrow from the flamboyant theater downstairs.
The hotel’s rooms and suites draw on the theater’s architectural oddity, if not its camp. Renderings show chunky reliefs paired with jagged Art Deco fixtures, tambour accents, and patterns everywhere from banquettes and barstools to abstract rugs. The rooms are outfitted with contemporary finishings like oversized headboards and spa-like marbled bathrooms.
After a quick rinse, guests can take the elevator downstairs to the Aztec’s bar or restaurant. Kellwood (see what they did there?) will be an agave lounge serving flights, mezcal tastings, and cocktails. We’re sure one of those will be a stiff margarita — fantasy can only go so far amid tourist demand.
The rooftop restaurant is dubbed Zenita, billed as “an artful exploration of Mexican-Asian fusion cuisine.” The release did not go into specifics, but the OpenTable listing says the executive chef is Jaime Hernandez.
Although not yet confirmed, our money is on the former proprietor of the La Fonda de Jaime food truck, known for inventive dishes like bulgogi trompo tacos. It should be a nice conversation piece with Esencia, chef Leo Davila’s nearby St. Anthony Hotel restaurant that swerves in a similar lane.
Zenita has sweeping views of the San Antonio skyline.Rendering courtesy of Aztec Hotel
Reservations will open soon for both the restaurant and the hotel, but for now the planners are celebrating a downtown building finally returning to its Jazz Age glory. The property languished for much of the 2000s as deals for an apartment development and other hotels were scrapped.
"The Aztec Hotel is not simply a hotel opening — it is the restoration of one of San Antonio's most extraordinary cultural landmarks to its rightful place at the center of the city's story," said Bhavin Patel of Shreem Capital in a release. "We did not build the Aztec Hotel. San Antonio built it in 1926. We simply had the privilege of bringing it back."
Emmer & Rye croup is known for its ingredient-forward approach at restaurants like Isidore.Isidore/ Facebook
A model guest room teases the tropical modernist design.Photo by Matt Kisiday.