Suck It: The Restaurant, the irreverently named pan-Asian spot that has anchored San Antonio's Medical Center for a decade, will shut its doors for good on December 31. Chef-owner Vinh Hoang says the closure caps 16 years of a brand that began as a college hookah lounge and bubble tea shop, and he's now revealing that the decision was driven as much by his health as by the economy.
Hoang publicly shared in a social media post that a two-year personal health battle and the choice to start a family, combined with rising operating costs and broader economic pressures, pushed him to close the flagship at 7220 Louis Pasteur Dr, according to CultureMap San Antonio. As Fox 29 San Antonio reported, Hoang shared the message directly with his followers while announcing the December 31 closure date. The Louis Pasteur location is currently the only Suck It offshoot still open, making its shutdown the end of the brand's brick-and-mortar footprint in San Antonio.
From a UTSA Hangout to a Fusion Menu Staple
The Suck It name traces back to 2010, when Hoang's first iteration opened as a hookah lounge and bubble tea shop near the University of Texas at San Antonio at Babcock Road and De Zavala Road. The tongue-in-cheek moniker was a playful double entendre referencing the act of sipping tapioca boba pearls through wide straws, according to the same account from Edible San Antonio. The lounge, which once offered more than 20 bubble tea flavors and 75 hookah flavors, closed in December 2019 as Hoang shifted focus toward full-service food and beverage concepts, as reported by the same account from MySA.that year. Hoang, a first-generation Vietnamese-American who grew up in East Texas, moved to San Antonio in 2002 to attend St. Mary's University. He learned to cook from his mother and through annual culinary trips to Vietnam, where he gained hands-on experience by offering to work for free at local eateries, the outlet's report notes. He opened the Medical Center restaurant in 2016, building out a menu of pho, ramen, and Asian tapas that leaned into inventive Tex-Asian mashups.
Barbacoa Pho and a Decade of Local Milestones
Suck It built its local following on dishes like Barbacoa Pho, which combined Tex-Mex barbacoa beef with Vietnamese pho broth, and “420 Tots” topped with bulgogi-style beef, a signature blend detailed by KENS 5. The Medical Center flagship discontinued sushi service in 2020 to concentrate strictly on ramen, pho, and fusion tapas, per the restaurant's own website, though sushi remained a feature at the brand's later St. Paul Square location.
The restaurant's reach extended beyond food. In March 2022, the brand expanded into historic St. Paul Square with Suck It Asian Mixology Bar and an adjacent bistro on East Commerce Street serving modern sushi and craft cocktails, according to the San Antonio Current. Those outposts later closed permanently. Two years later, Suck It partnered with Sari-Sari Filipino Restaurant to open Suck It Asian Fusion & Boba on Highway 151 near Alamo Ranch, blending Filipino staples like lumpia with traditional ramen, per MySA. That location later transitioned toward a family-operated Vietnamese concept named Mai Phat Buns.
A Gathering Place for Graduations and Weddings
Over the years, Suck It became more than a place to grab ramen or boba — customers held graduations, baby showers, and weddings there. Hoang has said he remembers regulars who went on to become doctors, nurses, teachers, dentists, chefs, cybersecurity professionals, and IT professionals. Among the college students who frequented the original boba and hookah lounge to study was local television food personality David Elder, host of Elder Eats, MySA reported.
Hoodline recognized the restaurant's beverage program years before Hoang expanded it into a full dining concept, ranking Suck It fifth among San Antonio's top boba spots in a 2018 list based on Yelp ratings and reviews, alongside local names like Brew's Lee Tea and Tealicious Cafe.
What Comes Next for Chef Hoang
Hoang says he intends to remain part of San Antonio's food scene even after the flagship closes at the end of the year. He's said he's considering ramen pop-ups with other talented chefs around the city, a way to keep cooking without the overhead of running a full restaurant. For now, the countdown to December 31 marks the close of a 16-year chapter that started with a cheeky name over cups of bubble tea.
