Chicago restaurant power brokers RJ and Jerrod Melman have partnered up with Joe’s Bar founders, Ed Warm and Tom DiSanto, to form a new country and western bar in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. The new venue, planned to open this summer, will occupy the former Frankie Z’s location at 435 N. Clark Street. A concept that could be considered a rather stark contradiction to the existing Hubbard St. entertainment district, which is located just north of the Chicago River and behind the Merchandise Mart.
“We’ve enjoyed getting to know RJ and Jerrod over the past several years and really look forward to this new venture together,” said Warm. “They are definitely making their mark on Chicago’s dining scene and we’re all pretty excited to bring a totally new country western experience to River North.”
According to the restaurant corporation’s website, it’s yet unclear whether or not country acts will perform live at the new yet-unnamed bar but, according to the news release, there will be “southern-inspired dishes and authentic barbeque.”
The unnamed bar is set to open within three blocks from Live Nation’s House of Blues, a downtown concert venue located within the Marina City towers at State and Kinzie.
We’ll be keeping an eye on this, be sure to check back.
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