Not long after the City of Oklahoma City paid consultants for a series of recommendations on how to bring more life and retail to downtown's Park Avenue, a new restaurant and bar is set to start construction in one of the spaces that had been identified as key.


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan3.jpg


Plans have been filed for the ground floor of the northwest corner of Oklahoma Tower, a prime spot that faces Park and Harvey and also opens onto a large patio that to date has been underutilized.

See the Park Avenue Retail Study here (http://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=36588).


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan5.jpg


Dubbed The Manhattan Bar, the smallish 1,500 square foot space will feature a 12-seat bar area along with indoor and outdoor table seating.

Bruce Rinehart of Rococo is behind the venture which will feature cocktails and small plates for lunch and dinner.

The Manhattan will join other recent dining and drinking establishments in the Central Business District, such as Mahogany, Flint, Vast and Kitchen No. 324.

The timing of the new spot coincides with the final touches of Project 180 work along Park and Harvey which has completely rebuilt streets, sidewalk and streetscape in the CBD.


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan2.jpg

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan1.jpg


Additional important and bordering Project 180 work is in progress: The creation of a heavily landscaped pedestrian plaza between Oklahoma, Corporate and Devon Towers.

The $3.2 million project started a few months ago and should be complete sometime after the first of the year and convert what has largely been surface parking to walkways, benches and gardens.


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan4.jpg

The work on Manhattan should start in the next two months.

Definitely a small space... cool concept, though

That outdoor space is pretty great.

That spot can be crazy windy. I hope they plan accordingly.

this. just about every day is a bad hair day in that wind tunnel.

Lots of new trees to be added with this P180 project.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan092516.jpg

Much better spot for that apple/raven sculpture.

Work has started (from https://twitter.com/TheManhattanOKC):

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan012517.jpg

I always wondered why the bottom of the East of Oklahoma tower is covered up (not glassed). Notice where the skywalk connects to the building the facade includes no windows (and never has, even prior to the skywalk). Why is that?

Will the owners now go in and change that since this East area will become a 'better utilized' plaza?

That was to be the entrace to the 2-level Galleria Mall.

Even more odd... why does the 3rd level of the garage connect with the 2nd floor of Oklahoma Tower?

office floors are usually higher than garage or residential floors. I would imagine the first 2 floors of OK tower being 25+ feet, which would be 3 eight foot garage floors.

You simply need less access as you go down the line, for garages it's just vehicle parking (and most are less than 7 feet tall) so floors only need to be around 8 feet.

since the galleria is dead as a doornail, do you think the owners of OK tower might change the facade of the E section since it will now be a retail plaza?

The awning will actually feature the logo shown here.

Excited to see this place come to life -- such a great spot and will bring some real energy to the street.



http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan103116a.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan103116b.jpg


http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan103116c.jpg

From their Instagram page:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan012517.jpg

Pete, nothing posted?

Pete, nothing posted?

I fixed the link.

From their instagram page:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan012716.jpg

They are shooting to be open before St Patrick's Day

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan020617.jpg

^^^ If that's a flyer/ad, shouldn't there be an address and hours, maybe? If that's on the window of the bar itself, nevermind.

^^^ If that's a flyer/ad, shouldn't there be an address and hours, maybe? If that's on the window of the bar itself, nevermind.

Yes, on the window of their space.

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan021917.jpg

Making good progress here:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan030317.jpg

did they put that sculpture outside of the bar?

did they put that sculpture outside of the bar?

No, that was relocated as part of Project 180 and that entire pedestrian way between Oklahoma Tower, Corporate Tower, the IRS Building and Devon.

^
I didn't think so. Thanks for the info. I just noticed the logo for the bar and was wondering.

^

Right, it was clever of the bar to integrate that into their branding because the statue is already a landmark.

Manhattan Bar is set to open at the bottom of the Oklahoma Tower (near the Raven and Apple statue) at the intersection of Park Ave and North Harvey Ave.
210 Park Ave, Oklahoma City, OK 73102
Created by the chef and owner of Rococo, Bruce Rinehart.
Supposed to have happy hour, be open 7 days a week, and be open for brunch.
http://newsok.com/project-180-plaza-spurs-new-business/article/5545021

Was not sure what tag to use for this, it is located right on the literal driveway to the Devon tower.

Edit: I did not see an existing thread before posting this but I did find this news post:
http://www.okctalk.com/content.php?r=321-Rococo-owner-to-open-new-downtown-restaurant-and-bar
1374713748137491375013751

I predict this place will be very busy around 430pm-7pm. They literally have thousands of potential customers not only directly on the block, but thousands more within just a few block walk. Can keep the car in the company parking garage, stop in for a drink, and then go get your car. Right now, many workers probably elect to just go straight home because they have to get in their car and park somewhere else (Bricktown/Midtown) etc. Some people may choose to hang out for a drink to unwind while waiting on traffic to die down, or to kill time before heading home etc.

I hope they will do well, as they have a unique advantage over Bricktown and Midtown just due to their location for after work drinks.

Planning to open at 11 am Saturday and Sunday? That's bold.

Planning to open at 11 am Saturday and Sunday? That's bold.

Start out on slow hours so your staff can get comfortable.

If this were a restaurant or a high-volume bar, sure. But here?

If this were a restaurant or a high-volume bar, sure. But here?

Don't forget there is the Park Harvey apartments right across the street, as well as the library, also.

instagram shows them having a staff training session

Menu from their Instagram account:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan042817.jpg

Menu from their Instagram account:

http://www.okctalk.com/images/pete/manhattan042817.jpg

Haha - maybe it's just me but that menu looks like literally a carbon copy of the menu from Bricktown West. Fonts, colors, layout, everything.

They are doing a soft opening (open to all) from 4:30 to 7 today.

Opens starting today at 11AM.

Today? Dave Cathey said Friday in the Oklahoman.

Today? Dave Cathey said Friday in the Oklahoman.

Yes, today.

LOL. At least we have one source of information we can trust.

anyone get to try this place out yet? 2.5 stars on Yelp

I liked it. It's great to have a place like this downtown.

Been there a couple of times now. True to their name, the Manhattans are great. Haven't tried the food yet, but will soon. It seems pretty busy at lunch and after work.

anyone get to try this place out yet? 2.5 stars on Yelp

I wouldn't trust yelp reviews until the count gets to around 50-150 reviews. Go check it out for yourself. It's great!

Thinkin of trying for lunch, any recommendations. ? thanks

Ate lunch there last week. Sandwiches were great. A bit pricey, but it's table service, so it should be more than fast casual.

Had dinner here tonight before the Philharmonic, food was good, they seemed busy and the walk over to the Civic Center was easy. My first time trying here.

It is a great little restaurant and convenient to some of the events in midtown. Need to get there more often. I'm glad to hear they were busy.

Saw on reddit today that the Manhattan changed hands and is no longer operated by Rococo, just confirmed on instagram https://www.instagram.com/themanhattanokc/

Whatever they do I hope they don’t close and don’t lose quality. They have a great Lobster Roll.

When I went a couple of weeks ago, the server mentioned that the crab cakes would not be on the new menu.

When I went a couple of weeks ago, the server mentioned that the crab cakes would not be on the new menu.

They will have to replace all of the Rococo signature items more than likely. To be honest I don't think that will be much of a loss. I have been to Rococo maybe 3-4 times in the last 15 years and I don't think I have every had a good meal there. I look forward to trying out the new menu at The Manhattan.