The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a single-location, full-service Mexican restaurant and bar on the San Antonio River Walk, founded in 1988. It serves tourists, local residents, corporate groups, and private party hosts with dine-in, takeout, bar, and catering services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1988
- HeadquartersSan Antonio, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar does
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a single-location, full-service Mexican restaurant operating at 528 Riverwalk on the San Antonio River Walk. The establishment was founded in 1988 by Hap Veltman and Bob Buchanan, who acquired the historic 19th-century buildings in the river-level area and were granted rights to use the name of the original 1899 Original Mexican Restaurant of San Antonio (closed 1960). The company has 11-50 employees and serves four interlocking customer segments: River Walk tourists, local San Antonio residents, corporate groups, and private party hosts. The restaurant runs an extended-hours operation (Sunday-Thursday 10am-11pm, Friday-Saturday 10am-12am) and offers an extensive menu of traditional and innovative Mexican dishes, a full bar program anchored by margaritas, and two private event rooms.
The technology stack is non-proprietary and minimal. The restaurant relies on a web-based online ordering portal powered by FocusPOS (onlineorder.focuspos.com/10917) for takeout orders, a standard marketing website operated by Spillover, and a mailing-list capture form. There is no mobile app, no disclosed API, no integrations beyond standard POS functionality, and no AI or data analytics capabilities mentioned in any source. The catering business (corporate banquets, rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, brunches) is operated via direct phone and email contact with a designated manager rather than through a digital booking platform.
The revenue model is a combination of high-volume per-transaction unit pricing across three channels. Dine-in and bar sales use standard a la carte pricing with entrees ranging from $12.49 to $33.99 and margaritas from $9.00 to $27.00. Takeout operates at the same menu prices through the FocusPOS portal. Catering and private event rentals are quote-based, with the Mission Room (25-35 guests) and Fiesta Room (60-70 guests) available for buyout events. Marketing is conducted through the website, the mailing list, and a Spillover-powered review page. There are no disclosed revenue figures, no funding history, no parent company, and no partnerships beyond the original Farnsworth name-licensing arrangement.
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar
- Legal name
- The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar
- Website
- https://originalmexican.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1988
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a single-location, full-service Mexican restaurant and bar on the San Antonio River Walk, founded in 1988. It serves tourists, local residents, corporate groups, and private party hosts with dine-in, takeout, bar, and catering services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Full-Service Restaurant (Mexican Cuisine and Bar)
- NAICS
- Full-Service Restaurants (722511)
- SIC
- Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual (THAFABAC)
Keywords
Where The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Antonio
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Dine-in Restaurant Sales: Revenue from serving food and beverages to customers dining in the restaurant. The restaurant features an extensive menu including Mexican dishes, margaritas, and other beverages with pricing ranging from $7.99 (kids menu) to $33.99 (El Cholo Loco challenge burrito).
- Bar/Alcohol Sales: Full bar service with margaritas, cocktails, shots, beer, wine, and specialty drinks. Draft beer from $4.25-$9.50, margaritas from $9-$27, and house liquor at $5.75/$7.75 per single/double.
- Catering & Private Events: Catering services for corporate banquets, holiday parties, rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, and brunches. Event spaces include Mission Room (seats 25-35) and Fiesta Room (seats 60-70).
- Takeout/Online Ordering: Carry-out service available 11am-9pm with online ordering system. Customers place orders through onlineorder.focuspos.com platform.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Kids Menu Items |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Appetizers and Starters |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Main Entrees and Plates |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Traditional Lime Margaritas |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Beer Menu |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Desserts |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Catering and Private Events |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a full-service Mexican restaurant and bar operating a single location at 528 Riverwalk on the San Antonio River Walk. It serves traditional and innovative Mexican dishes (tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, burritos, salads, appetizers, desserts) alongside a full bar program of margaritas, tequilas, cocktails, beer, and wine. The restaurant also provides online takeout ordering and hosts private events and catering in two dedicated rooms.
Product overview
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a single-location Mexican dining establishment on San Antonio's River Walk. The restaurant operates as a unified service offering combining dine-in dining services, takeout and online ordering capabilities, catering and private event services (with two dedicated event rooms), and a full-service bar. The restaurant is open 24 hours and serves traditional San Antonio-style Mexican cuisine along with an extensive beverage program featuring margaritas, tequilas, and craft beers. The establishment also offers online ordering through a third-party POS system for takeout services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Dine-In Restaurant Service Full-service dine-in Mexican restaurant experience located at 528 Riverwalk, San Antonio, offering traditional and innovative Mexican dishes including tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, burritos, salads, appetizers, and desserts, served Sunday-Thursday 10am-11pm and Friday-Saturday 10am-12am.
- Takeout and Online Ordering Carry-out service for the full menu, available daily 11am-9pm, with online ordering via the FocusPOS web portal allowing customers to browse the menu and place pickup orders.
- Catering and Private Event Services On-site private event hosting and catering services for corporate banquets, business luncheons, rehearsal dinners, bridal showers, brunches, and holiday parties. Event spaces include the Mission Room (seats 25-35) and the Fiesta Room (seats 60-70). Pricing is quote-based, handled by the catering manager.
- Full Bar and Beverage Service Full bar service featuring an extensive selection of tequilas, margaritas (including the signature Original Margarita in 14oz and 32oz sizes, and specialty variations such as the Caza Rita), craft and bottled beer, beer-ritas, cocktails, wines, and specialty drinks, with draft beer priced from $4.25-$9.50 and margaritas from $9-$27.
Companies that use The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Chili's Grill & Bar: Large casual-dining chain with full bar, Tex-Mex and American menu overlap, and extensive catering/private event offerings. Broad incumbent in overlapping price tier and bar-led revenue model.
- On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina: National Tex-Mex casual dining chain with full bar, catering, and group event services. Comparable menu and bar program at scale; competes broadly in the same category without River Walk specialization.
Direct peers
- Boudro's Texas Bistro: Independent River Walk restaurant offering full-service dining, bar, and private events on the San Antonio River Walk. Directly comparable location, format, and event-driven revenue mix.
- Rosa's Cafe: Texas-based Tex-Mex chain focusing on simple, authentic Mexican plates. Comparable price points and casual full-service format, with multi-unit scale rather than a single River Walk asset.
- Pappasito's Cantina: Texas-based Tex-Mex chain under Pappas Restaurants with full bar, catering, and event services. Comparable menu, pricing tier, and event capabilities; broader geographic reach but same core format.
- Casa Rio Mexican Restaurant: Iconic San Antonio River Walk Mexican restaurant founded in 1946, with dining, bar, and patio seating on the river. Direct peer: same River Walk corridor, same Mexican cuisine, same dine-in and bar-led revenue model.
- Mi Tierra Cafe y Panaderia: Historic 24-hour Mexican restaurant and bakery on Market Square in San Antonio. Comparable as a heritage San Antonio Mexican concept with full bar, dine-in, and bakery, though located outside the River Walk.
- Aldaco's Mexican Cuisine: San Antonio-based family Mexican restaurant with dine-in, bar, and catering. Comparable heritage-style Mexican menu and full-service casual format in the same regional market.
Others
- Texas de Brazil: Higher-end Brazilian steakhouse chain operating event/group-friendly dining rooms. Adjacent competitor in River Walk upscale-casual and event space, illustrating premiumization potential for the same real estate.
Emerging players
- Chipotle Mexican Grill: Fast-casual Mexican chain with strong digital ordering, delivery, and loyalty programs. Adjacent competitor in Mexican cuisine that pulls at lower price points and younger demographics—relevant for benchmarking off-premise/digital strategy.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar social profiles
Digital presenceThe Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar
What does The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar do?
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a full-service Mexican restaurant and bar operating a single location at 528 Riverwalk on the San Antonio River Walk. It serves traditional and innovative Mexican dishes (tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, burritos, salads, appetizers, desserts) alongside a full bar program of margaritas, tequilas, cocktails, beer, and wine. The restaurant also provides online takeout ordering and hosts private events and catering in two dedicated rooms.
Is The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar a public or private company?
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar founded?
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar was founded in 1988. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar based?
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar is headquartered in San Antonio, United States, in the North America region.
How does The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Dine-in Restaurant Sales are the primary driver. The others are bar/Alcohol Sales, catering & Private Events and takeout/Online Ordering.
Who are The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Chili's Grill & Bar and On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina. Direct peers are Boudro's Texas Bistro, Rosa's Cafe, Pappasito's Cantina, Casa Rio Mexican Restaurant, Mi Tierra Cafe y Panaderia and Aldaco's Mexican Cuisine. Texas de Brazil is listed as an others. Chipotle Mexican Grill is listed as an emerging player.
Does The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar.
What industry is The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar in?
The Original Mexican Restaurant & Bar's product category is Full-Service Restaurant (Mexican Cuisine and Bar). Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAFABAC, Mexican & Tex-Mex Fast Casual. Its NAICS code is 722511 and its SIC code is 5810.