Bartlesville - That town to the north.

[RecycleMichael]

I was there for a soccer game. My son's team beat the Bartlesville team 3 to 1.

The hot hamburger is an open face burger on toast covered in french fries and brown gravy. It is a large dinner and only costs $7.25.

[Red Arrow]

The hot hamburger is an open face burger on toast covered in french fries and brown gravy. It is a large dinner and only costs $7.25.

Sounds good.  Being a hot pepper fan, I thought it might have some kind of hot peppers on it too. 

[Conan71]

What does the Hot Hamburger have on it?

A haystack of french fries and a dumpster load of brown gravy over that.

[Teatownclown]

http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-an-oil-boom-town-looks-like-once-its-gone-bust-2012-10

[Townsend]

http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-an-oil-boom-town-looks-like-once-its-gone-bust-2012-10

Time to call the OERB.

[erfalf]

http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-an-oil-boom-town-looks-like-once-its-gone-bust-2012-10

I looked at those pictures and got a pretty good laugh. Yes Bartlesville is a company town and susceptible to booms and busts. Those pictures of uninstalled oil rigs were comical considering that is the yard for an oil supplies yard. Of course they are uninstalled. And most of those houses are in the middle of nowhere. Go out to the countryside anywhere in the country and I can take pictures just like that. If someone were to be serious and see what is going on in Bartlesville and Ponca City post exodus of HQ, they would see cities that have struggled financially but are making great strides to diversify their economies. They would see two cities that are making huge turnarounds in their historic center city areas, in the midst of a national recession no less. But that all has to be overlooked when you are trying to make a point.

In all fairness though, there are quit a few examples of oil field equipment in the field, left to rot. Goes on everywhere unfortunately. And those commercials the OERB runs make me want to vomit because I know how they really work. It is like pulling teeth to get them to do their job.

One more thing, since the merger in 2001, Bartlesville has actually fared relatively well, with employment from COP actually increasing.

[erfalf]

http://www.fox23.com/news/local/story/Pop-Up-Restaurants-testing-the-market-in/zn-DWGmEOUa82rHUKLGeOQ.cspx?rss=77

Second Pop-Up restaurant this year. The first was Taj, which appears to be in the process of finding a permanent home downtown.

This is a pretty cool idea (if it is the case). Have a permanent pop-up location. Let people get their feet wet without the huge cost. The space serves as a rotating art gallery when not used for restaurant space. Pretty cool if you ask me.

[TylerBGoode]

Do you plan on coming out for the Ghost Walk this year, erfalf?
They're using both the downstairs and upstairs of Sweet Lou's for stories.

[erfalf]

Do you plan on coming out for the Ghost Walk this year, erfalf?
They're using both the downstairs and upstairs of Sweet Lou's for stories.

Probably won't go until my 3 years old isn't so terrified of that sort of thing. Don't feel like going through by myself. I understand it's pretty neat, I just don't think the kids are ready yet.

My daughter is terrified of the loan manikin at Lowe's when we walk in the door she starts crying before we even walk in.

Regarding the Sweet Lou's building. I noticed a billboard the other day for The Dane Group between Lowe's and downtown going east. I know they had something to do with the first Pop Up restaurant. I think I read that they own the building now. Are they positioning it to be a permanant pop up, or is it that no one is interested in a permanent location?

[TylerBGoode]

You know as much as I do. I was there yesterday helping set up for the Ghostwalk, but I didn't get any info on future plans for the building.

I know that having a space like that for different things such as popup restaurants and artwalk galleries is nice, but I would like to see a permanent establishment there at some point.

[erfalf]

You know as much as I do. I was there yesterday helping set up for the Ghostwalk, but I didn't get any info on future plans for the building.

I know that having a space like that for different things such as popup restaurants and artwalk galleries is nice, but I would like to see a permanent establishment there at some point.

It is nice to have, it just seems that real estate on the most highly trafficked street downtown would be too valuable to use that way. Something on 2nd Johnstone or Dewey would make more sense for that sort of thing.

I do wish I could do more stuff in town, but kids dictate my schedule. That's the phase of life that I'm in now and I wouldn't change anything.

Hope you had a good time setting up fort the ghost walk. I'm sure it will be fun.

[patric]

http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-what-an-oil-boom-town-looks-like-once-its-gone-bust-2012-10

Well of course that park in Ponca City is derelict.... just look at the $hitty floodlighting.

[TylerBGoode]

Bartlesville's annual historic Ghost Walk will take place tonight and tomorrow (October 24th and 25th). I thought I would throw out some information about the event in case any Tulsans feel like making the trip up 75.

It should be a beautiful night tonight to walk the streets of Bville and check out the inside of some of downtown's more interesting buildings. We have 7 locations in which storytellers will tell short 10 minute ghost stories. One of the storytellers this year is professional actor Joe Sears (most famous for his 'Tuna' plays).

I'll be a tour guide and my wife is a story teller. Should be a fun time!

[erfalf]

So, it has been a while I know, but life doesn't really care about my plans...so...one job and one more child later things are finally "cooling down". I say this as I am about to have another little Eric here in two weeks. Technically it will be little Nathen, but who cares about details right?

Any who, since my last post here was before tax season 2013, quit a bit has happened in our little slice of heaven. Considering the length of time since the last update, I am going to post a couple of updates. The first update will be restaurant activity.

Taj the Flavor - December 2012 - CLOSED October 2013
Taj started as a pop-up, then opened a permanent spot @ 322 S. Johnstone. It later added Starbucks coffee in the lobby (across from COP office building), and then closed in ten months (October 2013). The store front (formerly Aroma's Italian) is still vacant to this day.

Top N' Dog - February 2013 - Sort of Closed sometime in 2013
Top n' Dog was opened right next to the owners other shop Cup n' Cake in the Professional Building on Keeler Avenue. This was a build your own custom hot dog shop. I don't know the exact timeline, but at some point, operations were closed and were merged with Cup n' Cake. As far as I know the store front is still vacant.

Indian Coffee Company - July 2013 - Sort of Closed in January 2015
In the former Sweet Lou's space, Indian Coffee Company opened with a breakfast and lunch menu in addition to the extensive caffeinated beverage menu. Mark Spencer, a local business man is the brains behind the operation. His other previous business downtown was Spencer Management, a property management firm, and he has since opened The Painted Horse Bar & Grille & Bit Brilliant, a media/marketing firm. Well received and consistently ranked as one of the favorite restaurants in town by local polls, in addition to Trip Advisor & Yelp. However, after a major property auction in town, Spencer was outbid by another local for their current location. While Indian Coffee was not forced out, the owner made it clear before the sale that the only way he felt this business could stay in business was to own the building.  Since opening Indian Coffee, Spencer also acquired the 2 Sisters restaurant next door to Indian Coffee, converted it to The Painted Horse, and has merged the two under one roof.

Taco Village - July 2013 - CLOSED November 2014
Taco Village opened again under new ownership at the same location at 609 W. Frank Phillips, across from the Schlumberger plant. I'm not really sure of the reason, but 16 monthly later the restaurant has closed again.

The Painted Horse Pub & Grille - November 2013
As mentioned above, 2 Sisters Pub underwent a re-branding into The Painted Horse Bar & Grille under the new ownership of Mark Spencer. In my opinion this was certainly an improvement as 2 Sisters had been faltering pretty significantly. The menu was also greatly improved. As mentioned above, the Indian Coffee Company menu/brand has been absorbed under its roof as well recently.

Hideaway Pizza - May 2014
Probably the most ballyhooed restaurant opening in Bartlesville since I moved here originally in 2006. Hideaway Pizza opened in the historic, recently renovated, Johnstone-Sare building. This was quit a "catch" for Bartlesville in that it was a major local brand and first franchised Hideaway outside of the two major metro areas in Oklahoma. And second, it became the anchor tenant in an incredibly important building in downtown Bartlesville at one of the most visible intersections downtown. I really could not have foreseen a better tenant (that Bartlesville would have actually been able to get) for that particular location. Hideaway seems to be doing quite well to so far, and is consistently ranked as the favorite restaurant in town. Sadly, Clyde Sare, the civic leader who saved the building after two major fires, recently passed away. He will be greatly missed in the community.

Two restaurants that are soon to open (soon being a relative term, however they are both in process of construction/design)

Heartland Roasters
A local coffee company, that has previously sold only raw product (beans), is opening up a storefront in the historic Brilliant Bronze Station. It will be caddy corner from the Rogers State University Building at 4th & Dewey. This seems to have been in the works for at least a year and a half. However, in their defense, the building needed a lot of work, being vacant for years.

Sonic
Not as exciting and hotly contested, Sonic will be opening a drive in at Adams & Keeler. South of Adams is considerably more residential in nature, so it was met with significant resistance from neighbors including St. John's Catholic school which is just down the street from this site. Sonic has earlier attempted to construct a drive in at the site of the former Oakley dealership at Frank Phillips & Cherokee. That also met heavy resistance and was shut down. That site would have involved the demolition of a building that until recently had served as an auto dealership for nearly 100 years, while this site was vacant land in an area that was unlikely to be developed any time soon.

As you can tell, 2013 was a busy year...2014, not so much. I imagine a significant reason for the reduction in activity likely has to do with the uncertainty in the economy. Since the split of ConocoPhillips & Phillips 66 into two separate companies, there has been a significant amount of uncertainty in the community as to the commitment either firm is willing to make to the community in the long term. It seemed much more positive looking before the split.

So long for now. Next up retail in the downtown area.

[TheArtist]

Thanks for the update.  Bartlesville is a nice little city and one would like to see it grow and prosper but you really wonder what they can do to diversify their economy to get things moving. Phillips will not be there forever and I hope the city leaders realize that.