Pearl's to relocate to bigger, grander location
Pearl’s Oyster Bar to serve customers with planned $2 million city location
By Chris Brawley Morgan
Chris Brawley Morgan: 475-3232, cbmorgan@oklahoman.com
Pearl’s Oyster Bar is building a stone-and-stucco restaurant for about $2 million to replace the original version sold to Chesapeake Energy Corp., the restaurant’s owner said.
Paul Seikel, president and chief executive officer of Pearl’s Restaurant Groups, said he sold the restaurant, 928 NW 63, to Chesapeake Energy Corp., which has acquired property near its corporate campus in north Oklahoma City.
“We are in negotiations with them. We have every intention of closing, but there are always issues,” said Tom Price Jr., Chesapeake’s senior vice president of corporate development.
Seikel said the restaurant had outgrown its kitchen and parking lot. In some ways, they were ready for a move, he said.
“It was a fair price. They made an initial offer and I accepted. No haggling,” Seikel said.
The restaurant will serve customers at the original location until late March, when the updated Pearl’s opens at 5641 N Classen in the Belle Isle area. Construction started in September.
The current restaurant seats 160 people, while the new restaurant should accommodate 300 people. At 6,000 square feet, it is almost twice as large as the current facility. It will include a private banquet room, two circular decks and a Bloody Mary display area for Saturday and Sunday brunches.
Pearl’s menu has evolved through its 23-year history, so that it now offers fewer Cajun choices and more contemporary American versions, Seikel said.
The menu may change further when the new restaurant opens. “We will have a few little fancy things we can’t do in our kitchen now because of our space limitations. Some roasted stuff,” Seikel said.
Some dishes may provide more Asian or Mediterranean flavor.
“We are going to surprise our regulars,” Seikel said.
Originally Posted by windowphobe
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