Cool Crest first opened its doors in the fall of 1929 — just as the Great Depression began — and right at the start of a miniature golf craze sweeping the nation. San Antonio alone boasted more than a dozen courses. Cool Crest would outlast them all.

Harold Metzger, a retired trucker, and his wife Maria leased the property and transformed it with lush tropical landscaping and a stylish Art Deco look. Cool Crest quickly became one of the city’s most popular gathering places. In 1959, the original course was rebuilt on a concrete foundation and a second 18-hole course was added. Mrs. Metzger’s beloved dog Pidlepadle — who lived to be 19 — is buried at hole 18 on the original course. The Metzgers ran it for more than 60 years.

After Maria Metzger’s passing in 2010 and the property sitting dormant, San Antonio’s Historic & Design Commission designated Cool Crest a historically significant site in 2009. City Council unanimously approved its rezoning the following year — protecting it from demolition and ensuring it would remain a landmark on Fredericksburg Road.

Four brothers — James, Albert, Phillip, and Mitchell Andry — lifelong San Antonians who grew up just across I-10 in Beacon Hill, purchased Cool Crest and spent months restoring it to match archival photos. In 2020, they opened the Metzger Biergarten on the site where the Metzgers’ house once stood, adding live music, a dance floor, and a stage that made Cool Crest a nighttime destination as well. The Metzgers made it, but the Andrys helped it attain the iconic status it has today.

In February 2026, Cool Crest came under the operation of Los Leones Ltd. — the San Antonio family behind Casa Rio and Schilo’s, the city’s oldest restaurant. With deep roots in San Antonio hospitality, Los Leones is committed to preserving what makes Cool Crest irreplaceable while bringing Schilo’s beloved German flavors to the Metzger Biergarten and giving the course a bright future heading into its second century.