# Civic Matters > Suburban & Other OK Communities > Norman >  Local

## ereid

LOCAL's ribbon cutting is this Thursday (3/15) at 4pm. Open House will follow until 8pm. Lunch and bar menu now available on their website. www.eatatlocal.com

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## sooner88

Did anyone go to the opening last week or try it this week?  It seems like a pretty cool concept, good menu and not too expensive, but I haven't had a chance to make it to Norman to give it a try yet.

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## johnpwoods

yes, and its a great spot.  great food, unique venue.  worth a trip

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## ereid

I was at their soft opening Saturday, lunch Tues., and took my 7 yo for milk and cookies yesterday. It's definitely worth a trip! Everything is great but I'm partial to the ox-tail ravioli.

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## ChargerAg

I ate here last night and I would say this is one of the top places in Norman to eat.     It has a very unique menu and feel to it that is very uncommon in Norman.   

I am curious about the owners of the place.   They put alot of money into starting it up.   I am hoping it works out for them.

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## twade

Went for brunch this Sunday...wow! Much bigger and better put together than I imagined. I think this will be my spot for meeting people who are just passing through town. It has easy access to I-35, and it just has a great feel. Walked away impressed at the whole presentation.

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## ljbab728

http://www.okgazette.com/oklahoma/ar...the-bacon.html

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## king183

I'm hoping Local spurs the owner of the strip mall in which Local is located to renovate. At the very least, the fascade could use an update. It would also help attract more customers if another building was put in the gigantic parking lot and the parking lot was repaved.

Given how nice and modern it is, Local almost seems out of place being that location.

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## rjstone208

Wife and I went there this evening.  Wow!!  One of the best places in the metro to eat.  Service was great, prices reasonable and food was outstanding.  Going back Wednesday for her birthday.

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## sooner88

That's good to hear.  I have been trying to go over the past month, but pretty much every review on urbanspoon is pretty negative all around... I'm thinking about giving it another month to work out all the kinks before I try it.

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## jedicurt

so i don't know if things have changed since may... but my experiance there last night was not a good one.  I know some friends who have gone to brunch there several times, and convinced a group of us to go out for dinner there last night.  We ordered the truffle chips (great), goat cheese dip (mediocre, but possibly because it came out cold), and the carrot dip (what i ordered and it was not good at all).  We then all ordered different Entrees, and it was interesting to see within the variety that we ordered that we all had the same opinion... meh.... most of it was ok, but nothing special... and on entree, the steak pasta, was so terribly by description of the person who ordered it, that we passed it around the table to verify, and we all came to the same conclusion which was not good at all.

now my friends who recommended it had only been to brunch and say that it was much better food then.  so perhaps i will try that.   But for a thursday night when they were only about 1/3rd full, I was not impressed at all.   But the place does look really nice.

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## BoulderSooner

> so i don't know if things have changed since may... but my experiance there last night was not a good one.  I know some friends who have gone to brunch there several times, and convinced a group of us to go out for dinner there last night.  We ordered the truffle chips (great), goat cheese dip (mediocre, but possibly because it came out cold), and the carrot dip (what i ordered and it was not good at all).  We then all ordered different Entrees, and it was interesting to see within the variety that we ordered that we all had the same opinion... meh.... most of it was ok, but nothing special... and on entree, the steak pasta, was so terribly by description of the person who ordered it, that we passed it around the table to verify, and we all came to the same conclusion which was not good at all.
> 
> now my friends who recommended it had only been to brunch and say that it was much better food then.  so perhaps i will try that.   But for a thursday night when they were only about 1/3rd full, I was not impressed at all.   But the place does look really nice.


have not been .. but i have heard from others that it has gone way down hill in the last couple of months

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## Mary Wollstonecraft

Haven't tried dinner.  Brunch is excellent, but way too rich for me.  Lunch here could be best in town IMHO:  fabulous variety of healthy yummy meals (my fave) & rich meals too for those who don't mind rich food.  Service staff and interior design are great as well.

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## Chadanth

Just had dinner here. It was great, fish was outstanding, risotto was excellent, and I've never seen my girlfriend inhale lasagna so quickly. Sadly, they weren't terribly busy. I'd really like to see them succeed. I have a feeling that if the place was in Midtown OKC or on Western ave, they'd be slammed. Try them out, I found that for Norman, it's a pretty solid option.

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## soonerguru

When I dined there I had the local black cod (ha ha). It was very good. The cocktails were good. The food was mostly good, but a little hit and miss. Our service was excellent. I would go back if I were in Norman but wouldn't go out of the way to dine there.

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## venture

> Just had dinner here. It was great, fish was outstanding, risotto was excellent, and I've never seen my girlfriend inhale lasagna so quickly. Sadly, they weren't terribly busy. I'd really like to see them succeed. I have a feeling that if the place was in Midtown OKC or on Western ave, they'd be slammed. Try them out, I found that for Norman, it's a pretty solid option.


Once school is back in session that should help. I would imagine most places see a good slow down with 20-30k people gone for three months.  :Smile:

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## king183

If any of you are fans of the devil's brew, I strongly suggest visiting LOCAL's bar. They have two of the best bartenders I've ever had serve me working there.  I don't mean that in the sense that they are nice guys (they are), either. They mix and pour drinks better than almost anyone else.

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## TechArch

I went with my family and some friends of ours on Saturday night.  Our friends ordered the bacon wrapped dates for an appetizer and they were awesome!  I had the lamb dip and farmer's market salad.  Both were good.  My wife had the sweet potato ravioli and green chili chowder, which were also both good.  The most amazing part was Localville, where we were able to drop our kids off for both their meal and play time.  We were able to get in some good conversation time with our friends without the kids interrupting.  Service was excellent!  The only drawback is that it is Norman.

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## venture

> I went with my family and some friends of ours on Saturday night.  Our friends ordered the bacon wrapped dates for an appetizer and they were awesome!  I had the lamb dip and farmer's market salad.  Both were good.  My wife had the sweet potato ravioli and green chili chowder, which were also both good.  The most amazing part was Localville, where we were able to drop our kids off for both their meal and play time.  We were able to get in some good conversation time with our friends without the kids interrupting.  Service was excellent!  *The only drawback is that it is Norman*.


And we thank you for your contribution to our economy. :-P

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## TechArch

> And we thank you for your contribution to our economy. :-P


Actually, I don't have any problem with Norman, I just wish it were closer (since I live in Oklahoma City).

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## kevinpate

> Actually, I don't have any problem with Norman, I just wish it were closer (since I live in Oklahoma City).


I feel the same way about a few spots in OKC.  :Smile: 

Silly really on my part.  The reality is that it's not very time consuming to get anywhere in the greater metro.  Yet it seems more and more my desire to go dine at X tends to be outweighed by my unwillingness to put up with inattentive drivers.

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## jedicurt

> I went with my family and some friends of ours on Saturday night.  Our friends ordered the bacon wrapped dates for an appetizer and they were awesome!  I had the lamb dip and farmer's market salad.  Both were good.  My wife had the sweet potato ravioli and green chili chowder, which were also both good.  The most amazing part was Localville, where we were able to drop our kids off for both their meal and play time.  We were able to get in some good conversation time with our friends without the kids interrupting.  Service was excellent!  The only drawback is that it is Norman.


perhaps i need to go on a saturday night or for sunday brunch... as i have been three times and dont' want to go back... every time i have gone, my service was terrible and the food was okay at best.... i've only been on weekday nights however, and perhaps that is the problem

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## TechArch

> I feel the same way about a few spots in OKC. 
> 
> Silly really on my part.  The reality is that it's not very time consuming to get anywhere in the greater metro.  Yet it seems more and more my desire to go dine at X tends to be outweighed by my unwillingness to put up with inattentive drivers.


I know.  It only took me 20 - 30 minutes to get there, but it was worth it simply because they provide child care and they feed your kids in the process.  The food, service and atmosphere was a bonus on top of that for me.  I could always leave my kids with a babysitter or my parents, but it is nice to know that my kids are not far away and when the meal is over I can just go and pick them up.

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## LocoAko

Went this past weekend and loved it. Food was great, service was amazing, and had a great ambience. Love the idea and concept of the place and the prices were completely reasonable for what you got. Will definitely be back.

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## Roger S

Just saw this posting from Dave Cathey

Norman farm-to-fork restaurant to close Feb. 15 after nearly 3-year run | News OK

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## positano

> Just saw this posting from Dave Cathey
> 
> Norman farm-to-fork restaurant to close Feb. 15 after nearly 3-year run | News OK


I'm not surprised.  I couldn't get past the location and atmosphere, even after several attempts. I never encountered anyone that was a fan.

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## LocoAko

> I'm not surprised.  I couldn't get past the location and atmosphere, even after several attempts. I never encountered anyone that was a fan.


Really? I love it, as does a large percentage of my circle (everyone I know who's gone has liked it). The location does suck, I agree, but I really dug the atmosphere and enjoyed the food a lot. Either way, the article says they're closing to focus on their personal lives and families, not due to lack of business (necessarily?). I'm really sad to see it go..

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## mattjank

> Really? I love it, as does a large percentage of my circle (everyone I know who's gone has liked it). The location does suck, I agree, but I really dug the atmosphere and enjoyed the food a lot. Either way, the article says they're closing to focus on their personal lives and families, not due to lack of business (necessarily?). I'm really sad to see it go..


Agreed. We liked it a lot, probably our favorite restaurant in town. Noticed the last couple of times we went in it was pretty slow though. The only negative I ever heard was about how loud it could get. 

It will definitely be missed.

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## FighttheGoodFight

My wife and I love this place. We plan on going a couple of more times before Feb. 15th. Going to miss it.

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## Questor

LOCAL restaurant closing Feb. 15 - News - Mobile

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## soonerfan_in_okc

Always seemed to be an odd location but it was great food and packed the couple times I went.

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## gopokes88

> Always seemed to be an odd location but it was great food and packed the couple times I went.


Norman was a stupid location. College kids will eat out like that but not with much frequency, too compound that problemthey were in a weird spot to get the residents of Norman to come in.

Local in Paseo or the Plaza would have KILLED it.

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## soonerfan_in_okc

> Norman was a stupid location. College kids will eat out like that but not with much frequency, too compound that problemthey were in a weird spot to get the residents of Norman to come in.
> 
> Local in Paseo or the Plaza would have KILLED it.


Not so fast my friend.  Norman was home to the local, funky vibe before the Paseo or Plaza were what they are today.  If Local was a few miles down near mcnellies on main street the place would have been a big hit imo.  The feel is very similar to a place like Syrup or Scratch, both of which are highly successful.

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## gopokes88

> Not so fast my friend.  Norman was home to the local, funky vibe before the Paseo or Plaza were what they are today.  If Local was a few miles down near mcnellies on main street the place would have been a big hit imo.  The feel is very similar to a place like Syrup or Scratch, both of which are highly successful.


Too pricey for college kids to consistently patronize it.

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## venture

> Too pricey for college kids to consistently patronize it.


News flash...Norman has more than college kids among its 120,000 residents with an average income of around $50k a year. There are plenty of other restaurants in Norman that are higher in cost and very successful. Let's also not completely ignore the stated fact, which is easy to do if one hasn't actually read the initial story on this, to where they are closing down to spend more time with their small children. This combined with their chef moving on to a new position probably seemed like a good time to bring the business to a close. Some businesses don't have a continuous life cycle, but not many understand that.

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## LocoAko

> News flash...Norman has more than college kids among its 120,000 residents with an average income of around $50k a year.


Seriously. It is a great college town but it isn't _just_ poor college kids.

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## soonerfan_in_okc

> Seriously. It is a great college town but it isn't _just_ poor college kids.


Exactly.  It's not like we are talking about stillwater.  :Big Grin:

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## Dubya61

> Seriously. It is a great college town but it isn't _just_ poor college kids.


... and, the demographics indicate those "poor" college kids that ARE there, aren't all that poor.

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