Excellent OKC article in Executive Traveler magazine
The link is worth checking out:
Executive Traveler - The Magazine - Oklahoma (Better Than) OK Oklahoma City presents a stylish new face for a new century.
Oklahoma (Better Than) OK
Oklahoma City presents a stylish new face for a new century.
STORY & PHOTOGRAPHS BY LIBBA YOUNG
Oklahoma City’s revival cannot really be referred to as a “Renaissance” per se. If there’s a word for a city that’s making a comeback when there is really nothing to come back from, this is the word to describe what’s going on in Oklahoma City today. The city is celebrating it’s centennial by luring sports teams, building river and canal systems, and hosting Olympic qualifying events. What a pleasant surprise to find world-class museums, exquisite dining, luxury hotel accommodations, and a thriving nightlife in a city that lives in the country’s history books for the Great Land Run of 1889, and in its memory as the site of the 1995 terrorist bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Happily, Oklahoma City looks forward.
Water, Water Everywhere
After taking a hard look at their town and what might attract sports teams, businesses, and tourists, Oklahoma City realized that cities residing on bodies of water are typically more popular. Hence the revitalization project responsible for the man-made canals linking the thriving entertainment district of Bricktown and the series of seven dams that created the Oklahoma River, which now flows through the city and accommodates rowers from across the country for races and championships.
Once a busy warehouse district, Bricktown is now the city’s premier entertainment and dining venue. The area is home to fondue restaurants and swank lounges like the Skyy Bar, as well as movie theaters, hotels, bowling alleys, monumental bronze sculptures, and AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, all linked by the mile-long Bricktown Canal. The best way to traverse the area, and have a laugh while you’re doing it, is to purchase a water taxi pass, which grants you all-day access and makes six stops along the canal, all the while providing entertaining commentary on the city and its residents. The Water Taxi can accommodate private group charters for tours and dinner cruises (www.watertaxi.com).
Opened in January 2006 on the banks of the Oklahoma River, the Chesapeake Boathouse was designed by Rand Elliott to resemble a sleek rowing shell (www.chesapeakeboathouse.org). The Boathouse hosts international triathlons and the city’s Riverfest and Regatta Festival, and this month it will host the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Sprint Canoe/Kayak (April 18-20) and will host another national event in August with the USA Canoe/Kayak National Championship. In addition to participating in festivals and witnessing competitions, visitors can rent kayaks, explore more than 12 miles of bicycle trails along the river, or hold a function in the event room, which houses a 62-foot window overlooking the boat bays. Make sure to drive by at night: the translucent polycarbonate walls give the building the appearance of floating above the river.
The Mother Road
Road warriors and Americana buffs take note: Oklahoma has more drivable miles of Route 66 than any other state. A short drive from the city lies a section of America’s “Mother Road.”
Arcadia’s Round Barn (Round Barn Site) was originally built in 1898 and stands today solely because of donations from visitors and the volunteers who gave their time and money when the roof collapsed in the 1980s. Completely restored and opened to the public in 1992, it is truly a testament to the power of a determined community. The curator (of sorts), “Mister Sam,” will regale you with anecdotes and a trip down his own personal memory lane (for hours if you let him), but it’s best to skip out on his life story while he’s still in his twenties and take a stroll around the lower level, making sure to grab a free paper airplane from the box and any other Route 66 paraphernalia you might want to take home, before you head up to the great domed room, which affords a breathtaking view of the surrounding countryside.
Be sure to have lunch, gas your car, and grab a soda at Pop’s (www.pops66.com), located a hop, skip, and a jump from the Round Barn. This diner/gas station/convenience store (“Food, Fuel, and Fizz”) represents a revitalization of the Oklahoma
section of the Mother Road, and looks like something straight from a Jetson’s cartoon, with hundreds of multi-colored bottles lining the angled glass walls. Designed by architect Rand Elliott, the 66-foot steel soda bottle sculpture, lit with Times Square-quality luminosity and changing colors after dark, makes it easy to spot. Opened in August of 2007, Pop’s sold 66,000 bottles in just three months, shipping in pop from as far away as Hong Kong. With more than 400 kinds to choose from, expect to spend some time laughing at clever logos (Leninade, complete with hammer and sickle label, was my personal favorite) while waiting for your meal. I just hope they recycle.
Carnivores Rejoice
Although technically on a diet, Oklahoma City’s mayor can’t help but encourage visitors to enjoy some of the best cuts of steak in the nation. Located in Stockyards City, Cattlemen’s Steakhouse (Cattlemen's Steakhouse - Oklahoma City Stockyards) opened 90 years ago to feed cowboys, cattle haulers, ranchers, and workers getting off their shifts at the nearby stockyards. Years later, it has become an Oklahoma City institution, and is singularly responsible for the revitalization of this once rundown part of town. The area is now home to everything from western apparel and goods stores to Native American jewelers and art galleries. Be sure to order your table a plate of Lamb Fries, and wait until everyone has tried one before you divulge that a lamb fry is an Oklahoma term for sheep testicle. Cattlemen’s serves up 400 pounds of this “delicacy” a year.
Red Prime Steak (RED Prime Steak Downtown Oklahoma City Gourmet Restaurant Dining Near Bricktown Fine Wines Steakhouse) is a trendy new restaurant designed, yet again, by architect Rand Elliott and located in a historical downtown building. With red lights lining the hallway, a wine tower, and private booths housed in hollowed-out columns, you will feel like you’re dining in a swank New York City restaurant instead of a one-time Buick car dealership. Aside from the atmosphere, Red Prime Steak is a unique dining experience due in part to the combination of crusts and sauces diners can choose with their entree. Combine your American Wagyu Kobe Steak or Forty Day Dry-Aged Ribeye with crusts such as Maytag Bleu Cheese or Brown Sugar and Sea Salt, and sauces like Herb and Garlic Confit or Black Truffle Butter. Red Prime also flies in seafood daily, and offers impressive sides, which could serve as a meal in and of themselves. I highly recommend the Flash Fried Baby Spinach and the Bleu Cheese Biscuit Pudding.
Museums & Memorials
One-third of Oklahoma’s population knew someone who died in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995. The mission statement of the Oklahoma City National Memorial (Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum – Official Website) called for the creation of a memorial to “remember those who were killed, those who survived, and those changed forever . . .” This is a memorial to the people who lost their lives and to those who helped during the emergency rather than a museum about terrorism and the men who planned and executed the assault. Although an intensely emotional experience, the city has embraced the attack as part of its history and does a remarkable job of commemorating the victims. It’s a moving testimony to the impact of violence. Like many other sites in Oklahoma City, after sundown is an excellent time to walk around the reflecting pool and view the memorial chairs. Each of the 168 chairs (representing the 168 people killed) is lit up at night.
Oklahoma City Museum of Art (Oklahoma City Museum Of Art) is located in the heart of the Art District and boasts the most comprehensive Dale Chihuly exhibit in the world, including his tallest tower. The exhibition includes 1,500 pieces of hand-blown glass; 18 glass installations, including walls, ceiling, cases, and groupings; two fishing boats imported from Finland; three white bark silver maple logs; and 290 light fixtures. In my humble opinion, this exhibit is reason enough to visit the city. Oh, and the museum also has an impressive permanent collection of European and American art, and will be the final North American venue for Roman Arts from the Louvre, which will feature some 184 works (some weighing more than 6,000 pounds) and will be on display June 19 through October 12, 2008.
Details
For more information on Oklahoma City, visit Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau Oklahoma City Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Where to Stay
Colcord Hotel
15 N Robinson Avenue
866-781-3800
Luxury Boutique Hotels By Bricktown | Downtown OKC | Colcord Hotel, Oklahoma City, OK
The Skirvin Hilton of Oklahoma City
One Park Avenue
405-272-8504
Hilton Skirvin/Oklahoma City Oklahoma Hotel - Skirvin Hotel - Oklahoma City OK Hotels
More Online
For more images of Oklahoma’s Route 66, visit Executive Traveler - The Magazine - Route 66 Photos Images from Oklahoma's stretch of Route 66.
Photo Captions:
Photo 1: The Myriad Botanical Gardens offers a great view of Oklahoma City’s skyline, as well as the exterior of the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory, an amazing 224-foot long cylindrical jungle.
Photo 2: There are more than 1,000 specimens in the Crystal Bridge Tropical Conservatory, representing plants from every continent except Antarctica.
Photo 3: Arcadia’s Round Barn has been hosting dances and other events in its domed upper story since 1898.
Photo 4: “Red Wind” is Red Prime Steak’s main dining room concept that sweeps the room with a warm glow using suspended “rays” of red neon, creating energy and light that refracts off the building’s original 1911 brick walls.
Photo 5: The Oklahoma City Museum of Art is home to Dale Chihuly’s Persian Ceiling, which features 226 square feet of shatterproof glass in a 40-foot-long display.
Reply With Quote
Re: Excellent OKC article in Executive Traveler magazine
Originally Posted by shadow42
Re: Excellent OKC article in Executive Traveler magazine
Bookmarks