This story has been updated.
John Lopez is a full-time medical professional and weekend golfer at TPC San Antonio.
The links, you could say, opened the door to a new Hill Country venture: restaurateur.
The superintendent for Texas Center for Infectious Disease and his wife, Sharrah Lopez, are launching Ginger’s Bistro, an Americana eatery at TPC Town Center, a new dining and retail center near the golf resort.
John is counting on friends from TPC San Antonio and the nearby JW Marriott Hill Country Resort & Spa to form the core of his business at the bistro and bar.
“It’s a very difficult business,” he said. “But we’re blessed to be in such a great area. We’re members of TPC San Antonio and know members who are looking for places near us to go eat and drink and have a great time.”
The neighborhood around the hotel and golf resort is short on food options. Ginger’s and four other dining spots will fill a need at the development in Cibolo Canyons, a strip center with two buildings — TPC I and TPC II — that remains unfinished.
Ravello Italian Cuisine, a white tablecloth steakhouse, opened in December and anchors TPC I. Lopez hopes to open Ginger’s in TPC II in October. Other eateries on the way are Round Table Pizza, Pan Dulce and Chops & Eggs.
“Our focus was to bring a variety of fresh choices and an elevation in dining that is missing from the area,” said Sarah Teel, broker and developer for TPC Town Center and owner of MSL Investments. “There are not a lot of places (where) you can still see dark, starry skies in the city.”
While John will share ownership with his wife, he will remain at Texas Center for Infectious Disease, which is located on Southeast Military Drive. Sharrah, however, will leave her work as a sonographer to run Ginger’s full-time.
She calls Ginger’s “a fresh twist to classic American comfort food.” The menu will include fried chicken, tacos, white fish, gumbo, cheeseburgers, steak and a variety of appetizers.
“Ginger’s blends familiar flavors with a modern home-cooked feel,” Sarrah said.
The bistro’s rustic interior and relaxed atmosphere, she hopes, will attract guests for weekend brunch, featuring a variety of bruschette and mimosas.
Joining Ginger’s in TPC II is Chops & Eggs, an all-day breakfast spot in Corpus Christi and Portland. Intrigued by the local food scene, founder and chef Jordan Jaradat is moving to San Antonio to run the third location of his farm-to-table concept.
“The market in San Antonio is booming,” Jaradat said. “We would love to be there to witness it. In Corpus Christ, we get a lot of visitors from San Antonio.”
Jaradat brings two decades of industry experience to TPC Town Center. Before launching Chops & Eggs, he worked in restaurants in California, Kansas, South Carolina and Georgia.
“I specialize in gluten-free, no trans fat, high-quality ingredients,” he said. “It is difficult to use those ingredients and have high quality dishes.”
Featured items on the website are fried chicken benedict, seafood omelet, pork chop and eggs and a Mexican breakfast of scrambled eggs, grass-fed fajita beef, potatoes, beans, tortilla and salsa.
“My vision is breakfast is the most important meal of the day and it better be good,” Jaradat said. “It’s the first thing you put in your mouth. I deliver high quality and I’m not going to break your bank.”
Chops & Eggs is known for more than breakfast. Its wide-ranging menu includes burgers, sandwiches, tacos, soups, salads, lamb, salmon, country fried steak and porterhouse steak.
Jaradat and his business partner Ramzi Sukkar have drawn media attention for their generosity. In 2019, they provided free breakfasts to all first responders on Sept. 11 and gave employees $15,000 from their own salaries for a weekend of no-sales during the COVID pandemic.
Unlike Jaradat, John and his wife are restaurant rookies. They’ve long wanted to open a bar. When he saw TPC Town Center under construction, John recognized an opportunity. The idea evolved into a bistro with friends from TPC San Antonio offering encouragement.
Not long ago, John stood on the 14th tee at TPC San Antonio, talking to his golfing partner about the bistro. His partner gave the property owner a call and handed John the phone.
“That’s how interconnected the folks are at TPC and in the community,” Lopez said. “These guys are your friends. You’re going out on a limb and taking a risk and the people are very encouraging. I love it.”
Correction: This story has been updated with Sarah Teel’s correct title as broker and developer for TPC Town Center and owner of MSL Investments.
