Helotes Country Club

Great Place, Even Better Watering Hole, this place is really a hole in the wall. Fair Priced Beer, Cozy location

Who isn’t a fan of the hole in the wall dive bar every now and then? I do and don’t want to write this review due to the simple fact of ruining a good thing. But, on the other hand, this place needs to be given the credit it deserves. I have been coming here off and on for about 3 years. I discovered this place after a concert night at Floor’s Country store. What to do after an early end at Floore’s? Well I went to try this little spot. You drive up to a large steel bull in front of the establishment. To the left is a cold storage that once was, as Sarah F stated, once used for your animals during hunting season. Was this out of the ordinary? No, not here. I recall having a beer one evening and someone driving up with a how they had taken a hog and needed to store it while they were there. I walked into a small, comfy, genuine ice house. You walk through the door and hit a large old wooden bar that looks like it has been there for ages. When it comes to drinks, your choices are beer or… beer. I’m not talking about craft beers or IPA’s, this is your Miller, Budweiser, and the extend of import is DOS XX and Corona. This is the kind of place where everyone does get to know your name. The bartenders have funny stories and you often walk into a small buffet someone decided to cook just because. Now, if you get to the point where you get a tab started, then you are on the path to really becoming a part of the Country Club. I will admit it is out of the way but sometimes a quiet afternoon or evening is called for. If you get a chance, make it out here and say hi to Chuck, the owner, he’s usually sitting around somewhere. And yes, go out there July 4^th at your own risk, you were warned.

Umm hmm, some folks call this place Lesters, some folks calls it Helotes Country Club. This is a good, classic country honky-​tonk, I’ve been here five or six times, nice to swing over after a show at Floore’s for some nice, cold beers, some smokes and one of the better jukeboxes around. Think a lot of folks from the Helotes Rodeo Committee like to hang here, they have a few tv screens for the big games going on. Pretty sure this place is cash only too.

I almost feel like I shouldn’t write a review of this place just for the simple fact that it is everything that a bar should be. Stripped down, gritty, and just outside the San Antonio city limits so you can shoot fireworks while getting your drink on (I do not condone this just for the record). You aren’t going to find any fancy dancy $ 12 cocktails here, just straight up beer. As mentioned by the previous review from 2008 they do have cold storage that used to be free but no longer allow patrons to use it to store their carcasses (at least not as of 5/13…they may open it up during hunting season but you’d have to ask). This place is super off the beaten path and unless you are intentionally trekking here you will completely miss it. That is, unless you look for the HUGE longhorn statue outside. On nice summer nights there is nothing better than sitting at the picnic tables out front and drinking a cold beer with friends. A few tips though. It is cash only, domestic beer only, or BYOB (gotta love that!). Also, try the spicy nuts cause they’re pretty great. Thanks Daniel M. for introducing me to this hidden gem. :)

Don’t let the name fool you, there isn’t a golf course, no private tennis instruction, no spa resort, or not even a weekend retreat. However the good is news there’s a cold storage conveniently located right next door just incase you have a freshly killed game carcass that you need to chill while you go grab a Coors Silver Bullet, which is the reason I gave 3 stars. I met my friend (and Chief Editor of the film/​TV review site that I write for) and his sister at the Country Club on Christmas Eve after I left my parents.
This place is quiet the middle of nowhere watering whole. Decorated with deer heads and cigarette stained beer signs the atmosphere is quite the site to take in. Honestly I was somewhat intimidated to be there because I was far from a local. Thankfully Eric was familiar with the establishment and I let his motions be my guide. What I found interesting was the fact that not only did Eric bring his guitar to play along with his sister as she sang old country and folk songs to the open sky, but the fact that the country club had their own house guitar.
The patrons came and went as our music played in night air. One leaving the smoke filled bar with wife and infant in tow only to return 20 minutes later to finish the drinking commitment which he had started. This place was indeed a scene of the weird. A small town union hall outside the walls of a large city. The crowd was at times standoffishly unfriendly, but as least the blue Rocky Mountains on my bottle of Coors signaled the beer was cold.