After 9 years in Nashville working two fashionable resorts — City Cowboy Nashville and The Dive Motel — founders Lyon Porter and Jersey Banks are proud to open their first standalone bar challenge in The Arcade downtown. City Cowboy Bar plans a grand opening celebration for Might 3, the saloon doorways will formally swing open to the general public within the historic Arcade Constructing between Fourth and Fifth avenues on Thursday, April 17, becoming a member of the corporate’s different properties in Nashville, Denver and the Catskills.
The brand new homeowners of the historic area wish to assist deliver vacationers and locals alike again to the downtown location
In preparation for opening, I invited Porter to share his pleasure throughout a cellphone interview. Even with properties across the nation, the City Cowboy aesthetic is fairly straightforward to determine. Heavy on design but in addition barely irreverent, the brand new bar is deliberately totally different from the older honky-tonks of Decrease Broad. Whereas there are actually nods to the historical past of Nashville bars, authenticity was not the primary concern.
Porter labored with native architect Nick Dryden to mix 12 bays of the previous Arcade configuration right into a multistory homage to the 1850s saloon vibe of Colorado and Wyoming. “You’ll see cowboy boots and hats, but it surely’s not a cowboy bar particularly,” explains Porter. “We’re not a honky-tonk both — extra of a respite from the noise of Decrease Broad. We wish to be a spot for each guests and locals, two blocks from Broadway however a world away.”
Porter scoured the nation for paraphernalia to decorate up the 8,000-square-foot area, from chandeliers created from wagon wheels to a formidable choice of classic taxidermy. Starting from the stuffed head of a 3,000-pound buffalo to a household of raccoons frozen without end in a second of play, the variety of animals wanting down at diners is spectacular.
Downstairs is definitely the extra “saloonish” of the 2 tales (plus mezzanine stage). Porter says this was intentional. “We actually wished a saloon vibe, and we took the area all the way down to the studs. Upstairs, you’ll see the identical irreverent tackle cocktails as on our East Nashville menu, however downstairs shall be extra of a beer-and-a-slice saloon with frozen mugs and photographs.”
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These slices will come courtesy of Brooklyn-based pizzeria Roberta’s, who additionally operates out of the City Cowboy in East Nashville. For these of you (us!) who desperately miss Manny’s Home of Pizza in The Arcade, the looks of Roberta’s must be a beautiful improvement for downtown denizens and guests. The restaurant could have a separate avenue entrance, however City Cowboy patrons will have the ability to take pleasure in mild bites and a slice within the bar area.
The higher ground at City Cowboy could have a barely extra upscale vibe, let’s name it “Urbane Cowboy.” (No cost for the advertising and marketing recommendation, Lyon.) Porter was impressed by the area when he and Dryden made plans for upstairs. “I actually dug into the historical past of the constructing, and I wished to honor the nice structural bones.”
Noting that the constructing falls away from City Cowboy’s Fifth Avenue entrance to the decrease Fourth Avenue finish of The Arcade, Porter designed a smooth cocktail bar with a large window behind the rows of bottles. “I observed that the construction jogged my memory of the backbone of an animal, so I wished to showcase the backbone of The Arcade and the grand feeling of the midblock arcade.
Initially modeled after the same procuring heart in Milan, The Arcade opened in 1902, so the chance to honor such a classic piece of structure was necessary to Porter and Dryden. Nonetheless, they actually aren’t overserious about it; there is a classic disco ball hanging over the bar.
City Cowboy’s nationwide beverage director Alex Jay is crafting the drink menu, and Zach West will function GM for the property. In line with Porter, everyone seems to be already on the identical web page about what they hope the brand new area shall be. “We’re very a lot a bar with good meals,” he says. “We love that we’re native, and we’re wanting ahead to bringing a brand new vitality to this part of downtown.” Now you possibly can mosey on in, beginning tomorrow, to welcome them to the neighborhood.
City Cowboy Bar shall be open Sunday via Thursday from 11 a.m. till 11 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
