Isn't bebe a national retailer of some sort?

Different store altogether. This store is pronounced Beebees, is in Nichols Hills Plaza and it contains only high end tableware, decorative items, jewlery and gifts. In just about any city you can imagine, it would be in one of the best shopping districts in town, as they have pretty incredible stuff. It's actually more upscale than On A Whim, but they don't carry clothing. It's a one of a kind, not a chain.

I don't know about ya'll, but once Whole Foods is up and running, I have a feeling I'll be going there every day to pick up lunch and dinner through their incredible food/salad bar. I'm hopeful that it will be just and nice as the others I've been to.

Since I'll be driving past CC every day going to work and back home, I for one cannot wait until Balliet's populates those wonderful old school "window-shopping windows".

And...call me Pollyanna, but let's all join hands, sing kum-by-yah, and wish the very best for everything that goes in there. Even Republic, even though spouse and I went there last Friday night and was terribly disappointed. I think I'll post on that thread now...:busterbun

I think Bad Egg restaurants in general are going way downhill. I had the worst restaurant experience of my life the other day at Iron Starr and I'm still upset over it.

Spartan, please share.

We used to frequent that location when it was Leslie's Painted Desert. Really miss those days!

And Chadwicks prior to the Painted Desert.

But, I've never had a bad dining experience at Iron Star or Cheevers. I don't think Republic is the gastronomic 8th wonder of the world, but I've had some good meals there. I don't have much besides an occasional beer with dinner, so cannot speak to the pub part.

I think Bad Egg restaurants in general are going way downhill. I had the worst restaurant experience of my life the other day at Iron Starr and I'm still upset over it.

Love that place!! If you complain, YOU GET FREE CAKE! lol..

I'm guessing you're highlighting this to emphasize the fact that shoppers in Oklahoma City can indeed compete with shoppers in other cities in terms of buying power. I think the long term success of Balliets, Gordon Stewart and Bebes are supportive of this fact as well.

Yes, that is why I posted.


I think Bad Egg restaurants in general are going way downhill. I had the worst restaurant experience of my life the other day at Iron Starr and I'm still upset over it.


I'm sure they have their bad days, but I eat at all their concepts regularly and I haven't had a bad experience. They are probably THE most consistent and quality local brand in the food biz. Tuck is a great guy and I'm sure if you PM'd him, he'd do what he can to rectify the situation. Did you bring your bad experience up to the manager on duty or tuck?

I can't honestly say I have had a bad experience at any of the Good Egg restaurants and I frequent them all. I've had a couple of mediocre experiences maybe, but never bad. And when I had less than their best and I commented, they were very good at rectifying the situation. I think they do a good job overall and are an asset to the city.

I think Bad Egg restaurants in general are going way downhill. I had the worst restaurant experience of my life the other day at Iron Starr and I'm still upset over it.

Drama queen.

Red Coyote has a new 360 Spin interactive site you can view.

NewSpin360.com | Virtual Tour (http://host.newspin360.net/redcoyote/)

Cafe 501 put one of their permanent signs up today, not a "coming soon" sign.

Did several searches and couldn't find our old threads on Classen Curve. Guess we lost it in the crash/virus. Anyhow new article with updates on Classen Curve in today's Oklahoman. Go to link for full article, also it looks like one new tenant we didn't know of before is announced now, Barre3.


http://newsok.com/new-balliets-store-is-ahead-of-the-curve/article/3477854?custom_click=lead_story_photo



BALLIETS AT CLASSEN CURVE

• Expected to open Aug. 12.

• Grand opening event planned for Sept. 1.

ADDITIONAL CLASSEN CURVE RETAILERS

The tenant list at Classen Curve shopping center continues to grow, and the center is 70 percent leased. New retailers include:

On A Whim, a boutique at 7118 N Western Ave., recently announced it is moving to Classen Curve Sept. 1. The store carries a variety of home décor, fashion, gifts, gourmet foods and more. The new 5,500-square-foot location has a modern look and is fun and eclectic, said store manager Debbie Repka. "It's a good opportunity for us," she said.

Barre3, an exercise studio that combines a ballet barre with yoga and Pilates, will open this fall. According to the company website, Barre3 has locations in Washington State, Oregon and the Philippines.

Uptown Kids is a new, upscale children's store carrying clothes and accessories for babies and children. The store, owned by Carolyn and Gary Goldman, opens in early August. Brands include Orbit Baby and Bugaboo; the store will also carry children's art created by NBA player Desmond Mason.

The extreme modern interior design is black and white, so the colors of the clothing can really "pop," Gary Goldman said. All the clothing racks can be easily rolled off the floor for special events like children's concerts and fashion shows.

Read more: http://newsok.com/new-balliets-store-is-ahead-of-the-curve/article/3477854?custom_click=lead_story_photo#ixzz0uEDbCzh Q

http://www.okctalk.com/showthread.php?t=13061&page=23

thanks, not sure why I couldn't find it with searches. mods feel free to merge

Uptown Kids is now open. Grand Opening party is Aug. 28th.

http://uptownkidsstyle.com/events/

Uptown Kids is now open. Grand Opening party is Aug. 28th.

http://uptownkidsstyle.com/events/

Love the subway map style of the site/logo. I scrolled down and I actually know the woman who designed it. Great work.

Would post this in the Whole Foods thread, but I can't find it. The search on the new version of this site is almost as bad as the Daily Oklahoman's (OK not quite that bad). Anyhow, they had a full crew working out there on the site first thing this morning and a construction trailer with people coming in and out of it. The site work had slowed down quite a bit the last few weeks but it looks like it's picking up full steam again.

For both I use Google with site:okctalk.com "whole foods" or site:newsok.com "whole foods"

Saves a lot of frustration.

Has anyone seen any renderings of the planned "Whole foods"? If construction is starting, someone has to have the plans.

Love the subway map style of the site/logo. I scrolled down and I actually know the woman who designed it. Great work.

Thanks! Nice surprise to see your comment here. That would be me. It's been a fun project to work on. I think my favorite part, though, are the custom kids' tee shirts we did. I want one in my size!

I received an email announcing that the store is opening on Thursday, August 12.

Balliets is now open for business at the Classen Curve! See a video of the new, spacious luxury store here. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOeFlja3LlA)

What do you think?

The store looks fantastic -- unlike anything else in OKC.

Looks like CC is filling up with a good mix of tenants and when Whole Foods opens, I hope the district will see lots of foot traffic.

Straight from Sandridge's PR firm..........

Straight from Sandridge's PR firm..........

. . . and that matters because??

If Im not mistaken its your beloved Good Egg Group's PR firm too.

The OP identified himself as a member of his firm, didn't post link spam, etc. Public Relations folks are not inherently evil.

Welcome to OKCTalk, Brent!
Midtowner's right, we're not all inherently evil. :)

..

Um Casey, you're wrong on that. Gooden was working for SandRidge as of this last month. But I'm not aware of Gooden working for the Good Egg Group. Metro, have you got any questions for Gooden you're going to ask here at OKC Talk?

hmmm, then I'll retract that.

Um Casey, you're wrong on that. Gooden was working for SandRidge as of this last month. But I'm not aware of Gooden working for the Good Egg Group. Metro, have you got any questions for Gooden you're going to ask here at OKC Talk?

I think he needs to answer my question first!!

Metro isn't shy. I'm sure he'll return soon.

Hey Gooden, what do you think of my blog, eh?

If Im not mistaken its your beloved Good Egg Group's PR firm too.

Because of their poor PR performance with the Sandridge debacle is why many on this site are upset with their PR tactics. Your mistaken, I am pretty confident Cicero International handles the Good Egg account.


The OP identified himself as a member of his firm, didn't post link spam, etc. Public Relations folks are not inherently evil.

I hope not, I work in the industry.


Um Casey, you're wrong on that. Gooden was working for SandRidge as of this last month. But I'm not aware of Gooden working for the Good Egg Group. Metro, have you got any questions for Gooden you're going to ask here at OKC Talk?

Not as of now, I think their PR blunders speak for themselves. Do you plan on doing a story with them? You seem to be on the same side as I am regarding this topic.

I think the store looks beautiful. I don't come on here very often, but I'm not sure what all of the infighting is about.

.............

I think the store looks beautiful. I don't come on here very often, but I'm not sure what all of the infighting is about.

Just metro threadjacking to his heart's content because he thinks he owns the board. Nothing to see here.

My recollection is that there are no sidewalks to walk directly from the Balliets/501 Cafe section of Classen Curve into the northern and main section of Classen Curve. There is not a sidewalk along Grand Blvd nor a walkway INTO the parking lot of the main part of Classen Curve. Am I missing something? Seems like there should be easier pedestrian access between the two sections.

Anyone know what's ultimately gonna happen with 50 Penn place?

Out-of-state owners will continue to leave locals with the impression they really don't care about it, tenants will continue to flee, and once the retail floors are empty, the office tenants will follow suit, and then lenders will foreclose. Gotta love California investors.

Out-of-state owners will continue to leave locals with the impression they really don't care about it, tenants will continue to flee, and once the retail floors are empty, the office tenants will follow suit, and then lenders will foreclose. Gotta love California investors.

The store looks amazing to me.

As for Classen Curve, this "Urban Main Street" tag is a lot of hooey. Impressive mix of tenants, sure, but automobile-centric with a parking lot at its heart. Strange.

The store looks amazing to me.

As for Classen Curve, this "Urban Main Street" tag is a lot of hooey. Impressive mix of tenants, sure, but automobile-centric with a parking lot at its heart. Strange.

Automobile centric, but it doesn't seem to have near enough parking.

Out-of-state owners will continue to leave locals with the impression they really don't care about it, tenants will continue to flee, and once the retail floors are empty, the office tenants will follow suit, and then lenders will foreclose. Gotta love California investors.

Do you include the First National Center owners in this assessment?

Automobile centric, but it doesn't seem to have near enough parking.

Ive said the same before. Once Upper Crust, Cafe 501 and Balliets all open up, it will be a very car crowded center. Its very possible that parking issues could keep other tenants from locating there. With 4 restaurants in the center, employees alone will chew up a much of the parking. Probably will be told to park at Whole Foods once there is a parking lot.

Just metro threadjacking to his heart's content because he thinks he owns the board. Nothing to see here.

Pot this is Kettle....


Ive said the same before. Once Upper Crust, Cafe 501 and Balliets all open up, it will be a very car crowded center. Its very possible that parking issues could keep other tenants from locating there. With 4 restaurants in the center, employees alone will chew up a much of the parking. Probably will be told to park at Whole Foods once there is a parking lot.


I've seen many of the employees park "behind" the actual stores. There is a nice tall bush hedge facing classen that blocks the view of the cars. I imagine since Chesapeake owns the development and has a good shuttle system, parking won't be an issue for employees as they can park in one of the Chesapeake garages if necessary and shuttle over. There is also a sidewalk facing Grand.

Out-of-state owners will continue to leave locals with the impression they really don't care about it, tenants will continue to flee, and once the retail floors are empty, the office tenants will follow suit, and then lenders will foreclose. Gotta love California investors.

generalize much

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOeFlja3LlA

generalize much

really? last i checked, 50 penn place is languishing and unless you know something the rest of us don't, it doesn't look as if anything is being done about it. -M

50 Penn -- I am sure the retail space (except for Full Circle, Route 66 and Belle Isle) will be converted to office space eventually, just like the owners did with the 3d level of "retail" space.

Classen Curve -- I would expect that eventually, CC will be expanded so that the two discrete parts are eventually connected. Even if they aren't, it's not like they are so far apart that walking between the two is prohibitive. However, I understand that we Okies do like to park and walk right up to our destination. :-)

So if it was in local hands it would obviously receive the multimillion dollar upgrades needed to bring it back to retail viability? The fact is 50 Penn is dying as a retail center. I imagine as more stores leave they will convert that space to office. Though it's not flashy like retail, 50 Penn as a strictly office building will be just fine.

Btw, Pendletons is the latest to leave 50 Penn

So if it was in local hands it would obviously receive the multimillion dollar upgrades needed to bring it back to retail viability? The fact is 50 Penn is dying as a retail center. I imagine as more stores leave they will convert that space to office. Though it's not flashy like retail, 50 Penn as a strictly office building will be just fine.

Btw, Pendletons is the latest to leave 50 Penn

Though it had some very successful retail initially when it was built, I always thought it was very tenuous to build a new mini-mall directly across a very busy street from the most successful mall in OKC. If there had been some kind of very easy access between the two it might have worked. Office space with a few specialty retail stores will work best for that building.

So if it was in local hands it would obviously receive the multimillion dollar upgrades needed to bring it back to retail viability? The fact is 50 Penn is dying as a retail center. I imagine as more stores leave they will convert that space to office. Though it's not flashy like retail, 50 Penn as a strictly office building will be just fine.

Btw, Pendletons is the latest to leave 50 Penn

Where is Pendleton's going?

Where is Pendleton's going? They relocated to Spring Creek Plaza in Edmond.

http://newsok.com/classen-curve-balliets/multimedia/video/594125003001

Here is a video Angie Bruss with NewsOK did about the new Balliets!

From their respective sites on Facebook, looks like both Cafe 501 and Upper Crus (http://uppercrust.halsmithrestaurantgroup.com/about-upper-crust-wood-fired-pizza)t will open soon...

Both say August but we're running out of month, so perhaps early September.

Uptown Kids Grand Opening Carnival is this Saturday. They are giving out free food, prizes and all sorts of things.

Has anyone seen any renderings of the planned "Whole foods"? If construction is starting, someone has to have the plans.

I doubt Chesapeake will let us see renderings of it until the glass curtain is going up..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1KmcUqHXDo

Check out footage from Uptown Kids' Grand Opening Carnival from Saturday, August 28, 2010. Their store looks fantastic and there was quite a crowd.