Before a restaurant opens, there’s a certain kind of anticipation that develops because of the online renderings that circulate, the whisper campaigns from people who know someone who knows the chef, and the ambiguous promises of something different. For months now, San Antonio has been dealing with that specific tension surrounding SeaSpice. The waiting period ends on June 12.
On the fifth floor of the Jefferson Bank Building at 1900 Broadway, Gusto Group, the San Antonio hospitality company behind Toro Kitchen + Bar and Cuishe Cocina Mexicana, is opening SeaSpice. This location is directly on the corridor that has been subtly changing what dining in this city can look like. According to the renderings, the space has more than doubled in size since the company first submitted regulatory paperwork. It now stands at 6,500 square feet and features marble counters, olive trees planted in large pots, French wicker bistro chairs, and an undulating ribbon ceiling that gives the room a nautical feel even before anyone has had a drink.
Gerardo de Anda, CEO of Gusto Group, has been characterizing the idea as a French Riviera experience that doesn’t require a passport. This may sound like marketing speak until you look at the menu. The food program is anchored by a raw bar that serves tiradito, tartare, and carpaccio in addition to East and West Coast oysters. Lobster rolls, ceviches, grilled octopus tacos, and build-your-own coctel Mexicanos with shrimp, tuna, lobster, or octopus are all available. According to reports, seafood is flown in several times a week from Tokyo’s Toyosu Market—a detail that most San Antonio restaurants wouldn’t even try. This specificity may indicate serious overhead or sincere ambition, or both.
SeaSpice appears most determined to set itself apart in the drink program. When done well, a tableside martini service with truffle and caviar olives is a theatrical offering that merits its place. The cocktail menu features the Riviera Royale, which is made with coconut tequila, Laurent-Perrier champagne, and blood orange, and the Midnight in Mykonos, which is made with mezcal and Nixta corn liqueur. Roe is also offered on the menu, either as bumps or in a traditional manner. It’s quite a bit. It’s obviously deliberate as well.
De Anda has consistently discussed the idea in terms of the feeling of arrival rather than the actual food. “Every detail, from the way the cold bar is set in the morning to the music we play at sunset, is meant to make our guests feel they’ve stepped onto someone’s yacht for the evening.” Every ambitious restaurant must eventually determine whether that translates from a press quote into actual atmosphere, and SeaSpice will have the opportunity to do so.
Once open, the hours are 4 to 11 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays, 1 a.m. on Fridays, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Saturdays, and 9 p.m. on Sundays. Reservations opened on May 20. However, the restaurant has been using its website to offer a “boarding pass” that includes invitations to opening weekend events and priority access. This is either clever branding or clever branding masquerading as something more. Live DJ sets will run from 10 p.m. until closing on some nights.
Over the past few years, San Antonio’s dining scene has been subtly developing into something more self-assured, with ideas emerging that wouldn’t feel out of place in Miami or Austin. With its rooftop view of Broadway and its towers of seafood sourced from Japan, SeaSpice appears to be fully aware of the moment it is entering. We’ll talk about whether it delivers in the middle of June.
