Purva Patel



Downtown’s Bayou Place – former home to the Angelika theater – has some new tenants.

On the second story of the downtown entertainment complex, Wednesday afternoon, workers were refashioning 18,000 square feet of space that will house four different night clubs. The clubs are owned by Houston Lounge.

Drew Coleman and Daniel Maher, director of operations and general manager for the new Houston clubs, said they hope the renovations will help make downtown more of a destination. They’re modeling the concept off of entertainment districts in other cities, such as the Power and Light District in Kansas City, Power Plant Live in Baltimore, and Fourth Street Live! in Louisville, Ky., where a mix of bars, clubs and restaurants target different markets.

They’re also going for volume business, meaning they want to pack the house with low prices such as $2 happy hours, $5 cover that gets guests into all the clubs and no drinks priced higher than $7, Maher said.

“Downtown is a hub. It just hasn’t been sold right. Downtown has been so misrepresented with all these nightclubs that come and go. They’re very short term,” Maher said. “They’ve catered to the fast buck, quick money, with expensive drinks. We want to be here for years.”

The first of the clubs, slated to open in March, will have a country western theme and feature a mechanical riding bull. The club will be called PBR, as in professional bull riding.

The other clubs are a cigar lounge called Chapel Spirits targeting business people; Shark Bar that play ’80s and ’90s music; and Lucy’s Liquors, that Maher described as “laid back, relaxed and fun club.”

They plan to build an outdoor patio to wrap around the outside of the building and have an open bar outside at the top of the stairs that lead to the main club entryway.

“We’re hoping that will attract people driving by or looking over from their offices, so they know we’re here,” Coleman said.

In 2008, Sake Lounge shuttered months after the sleek dining concept Vin closed.

Samaba Grille has since opened, and a sign outside notes that The Blue Fish, a sushi restaurant, is expected to open next week.

Would these changes bring you out to Bayou Place?

If not, what about a movie theater? Sources say the landlord is close to signing a lease with a new theater, but a name hasn’t been disclosed.

–Purva Patel