What We Offer
Discover our comprehensive range of brewery & dining services
Craft Brewing
The Pearl Brewery's brewing operations concluded in 2001 when Pabst Brewing Company, which had acquired the Pearl brand in 1999, transferred production to other facilities, ending 118 years of commercial brewing on the San Antonio campus. The 2001 closure left the 22-acre campus along the San Antonio River vacant but remarkably intact, with most of the major historic structures still standing in usable condition. Silver Ventures purchased the property and began planning a redevelopment that would honor the brewing heritage while creating a new urban mixed-use district. Southerleigh Fine Food and Brewery, which opened in 2014 in the historic brew house cellar, represents the direct revival of commercial brewing on the campus after a 13-year absence. The reopening of brewing on the Pearl site was widely celebrated as a symbolic completion of the redevelopment arc from industrial closure to cultural rebirth.
Events & Tastings
The redeveloped Pearl campus established a vibrant events calendar beginning with the Pearl Farmers Market in 2008, which quickly became the anchor public programming that demonstrated the campus's potential as a community gathering place. Silver Ventures has consistently invested in cultural programming including art installations, live music series, and seasonal festivals that draw visitors year-round and maintain the campus's identity as more than a retail center. Events celebrating the brewery's history, including Prohibition-era themed dinners and German heritage festivals, connect contemporary visitors with the campus's industrial past. The Culinary Institute of America's presence on campus enables cooking demonstrations and culinary education events that reflect the redevelopment's food-centered vision. Corporate and private event bookings in the restored historic buildings generate revenue that supports ongoing campus maintenance and preservation.
Taproom Experience
The Pearl District's taproom experience centers on Southerleigh Fine Food and Brewery, which opened in 2014 after an extensive restoration of the historic brew house cellar. The space preserves the original limestone walls, arched brick ceilings, and structural steel from the brewery era while incorporating modern brewing equipment visible through glass walls from the dining area. Southerleigh's menu connects Gulf Coast culinary traditions with the Pearl's Texas identity, using local ingredients including Gulf seafood, Hill Country cheeses, and Texas-grown grains in both food and beer recipes. The taproom serves as both a neighborhood gathering spot for Pearl District residents and a destination for out-of-town visitors drawn by the Pearl's national culinary reputation. Live music performances and collaborative brewing events with other Texas craft breweries are regularly scheduled at Southerleigh.
Distribution
The Pearl District's commercial success since its 2002 redevelopment has demonstrated that adaptive reuse of historic industrial sites can generate strong economic returns while preserving community heritage. Silver Ventures has distributed knowledge gained from the Pearl project to other development organizations through conference presentations, case study publications, and site visits from urban planners across the United States. The Pearl model has influenced subsequent mixed-use redevelopment projects in San Antonio including developments along the River Walk Museum Reach extension. Tax increment financing and historic preservation tax credits were key financial tools that Silver Ventures used to make the economics of large-scale historic rehabilitation viable. The project's success has encouraged the City of San Antonio to expand historic preservation incentive programs available to other property owners.
Private Events
The Pearl campus has become one of San Antonio's most sought-after private event destinations, with restored brewery buildings offering distinctive settings unavailable at conventional hotel ballrooms or event centers. Hotel Emma's event spaces, including the original brew house hall and courtyard, accommodate weddings, rehearsal dinners, corporate retreats, and product launches with the support of a dedicated in-house events team. The Pearl Farmers Market operators work with private event clients to arrange exclusive market-day buyouts and pop-up market extensions for special occasions. Southerleigh's private dining room seats up to 40 guests for rehearsal dinners, anniversary celebrations, and business dinners with customized menus developed by the kitchen team. The campus's combination of indoor and outdoor spaces with a common walkable footprint makes it ideal for multi-venue events that flow between settings throughout an evening.
Online Shop
The Pearl District supports its vendor community through an online marketplace that extends the reach of farmers market sellers beyond the Saturday and Sunday market hours. Products available online include specialty foods produced by Texas artisans, ceramics and handmade goods from Pearl craft vendors, and hotel merchandise from Hotel Emma. The online shop also sells tickets to premium Pearl events including wine dinners, cooking classes at the Culinary Institute of America, and ticketed concerts on the outdoor lawn. Gift cards redeemable at Pearl District restaurants, the hotel, and participating retailers are available in digital and physical formats. Proceeds from certain product lines support the Pearl's vendor development fund, which offers business coaching and market access assistance to first-year farmers market participants.