James Beard-nominated chef Leo Davila to open Esencia at San Antonio’s St. Anthony Hotel February 4

A new flagship restaurant replaces Rebelle in the historic downtown hotel

A new restaurant led by James Beard-nominated chef Leo Davila is scheduled to open inside the St. Anthony Hotel in downtown San Antonio on Wednesday, February 4, 2026. The concept, called Esencia, takes over the former home of Rebelle, a dining room that previously anchored the hotel’s food-and-beverage program.

The St. Anthony is located at 300 E. Travis St. The restaurant is planned as a 130-seat venue with dinner service Tuesday through Saturday, with last seating at 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The restaurant will be closed Sundays and Mondays.

What Esencia says it will cook: Spanish, Mexican and Asian influences with Texas ingredients

Esencia is being positioned as a restaurant that reflects San Antonio’s cultural mix through food. The kitchen’s stated approach blends Spanish, Mexican and Asian culinary traditions through Davila’s Chinese and Mexican heritage, paired with a New American framework emphasizing seasonal products and local sourcing.

Planned menu dishes described by the hotel and restaurant include:

• Carne asada built around Wagyu flank steak with potato pavé, avocado salad, Asian chimichurri, and heirloom corn tortillas.
• Pork belly paired with apple and pasilla mole, incorporating pickled Honeycrisp apple and apple compote.
• A tartare-style “beef and broccoli” interpretation using Asian-spiced Wagyu beef, broccoli mole, miso aioli, pickled red onion, and rice paper.
• Duck with hibiscus and Texas pecan mole, presented with jasmine rice and vegetables.

Alongside the food program, Esencia is expected to operate a full bar with cocktails designed to complement the menu’s cross-cultural flavor profile.

Design changes: a Spanish-courtyard concept in a fully reset dining room

Esencia’s opening also marks a comprehensive redesign of the former Rebelle space. The restaurant has been described as drawing on Spanish courtyard elements, including a central stone fountain and plantings such as olive trees, with a warm-toned interior palette that leans on terracotta and muted greens and teals. The design narrative ties those choices to San Antonio’s colonial-era roots, including Canary Islander settlement history.

How the opening fits into the hotel’s broader culinary reset

Esencia will be Davila’s second project at the St. Anthony. The hotel previously debuted Anacacho Coffee & Cantina as part of a broader revamp of its dining offerings. Esencia is positioned as the more expansive, full-scale restaurant in that lineup, intended to serve hotel guests while also drawing local diners downtown for destination dining.

Esencia is scheduled to open February 4, 2026, at the St. Anthony Hotel, 300 E. Travis St., with dinner service Tuesday through Saturday.