Riley Marshall grew up in Oklahoma City but was living in the Los Feliz area of L.A. when he struck up a conversation with the bartender at local bar. That was Dustin Lancaster who, chance would have it, was also from OKC.
And even more coincidentally, the pair of Oklahomans came to realize they both lived on the same street: Arbolada Road in Los Feliz.
Lancaster went on to become the proprietor of Eastside Establishments, a collection of bars and restaurants in ultra-hip East Los Angeles. His very first venture, Bar Covell (a nod to his mother's house near Covell Road in Edmond), was recognized by Travel and Leisure as among “America's Best Wine Bars” and Esquire Magazine listed it as one of its “Best Bars in America.”
Marshall and Lancaster began to plan a bar for their native Oklahoma City and vowed it would be called Bar Arbolada, after the street of their respective residences.
Marshall has moved back to OKC and work starts next week at 637 W. Main on what Marshall calls a “nice, classic, timeless bar” with an impressive wine list, simple but quality cocktails, local beers and a seasonal menu featuring tapas and other small plates.
Lancaster will bring his ample expertise to bear in terms of management, wine, creative director and consultant with frequent trips back to Oklahoma.
The 1,650 square foot space is on the west end of the Arcade with high ceilings and ample windows that face the nearby 21c Hotel and the massive West Village apartment and commercial project now under construction.
Bar Arbolada is targeting an early 2018 opening.
This Friday from 2PM to 9PM, Marshall will host a pop-up store in the space for Chicago archival record label Numero Group which creates compilations of previously released music, reissues original albums, and creates album reconstructions from a variety of musical genres.. Browse through thousands of Numero LPs, CDs, 45s, t-shirts, tapes, books, and other additional miscellany not available at other local record stores. Link to Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/122334018421696/
