New Nashville-inspired country bar taking over Charlotte nightclub. What to expect.
Say goodbye to a popular dance nightclub in South End, because a new country music bar is taking over.
After nearly a decade in business in Charlotte, Oak Room has closed and been redesigned into a new Nashville-inspired bar called The Rose Honky Tonk.
“Oak Room had been open 11 years, 10 years, so it was a long time and it ran its course … The business was kind of off so we wanted to make a change,” said Britton McCorkle, president of Bottle Cap Group — the team behind Slate, All American Pub and other local bars (one known for its controversial name and a former one with a divisive statue). “To take what Oak Room did and become new again was going to be very difficult in this building.”
The nightclub was open for New Year’s Eve, but shortly closed after a bit of water damage from rain, McCorkle said, which is what really initiated the push to open up the new concept of the country bar.
“I was gonna stay with Oak Room as long as it would go,” McCorkle told CharlotteFive. “You know, I think in hindsight, we probably rode this out a little longer than we should have. We let things fall apart a little bit, which in turn sacrifices some of the quality of some of what we were doing. So a fresh start is always good. But it wasn’t a plan to change this here.”
Why a country music bar?
With the popularity of live music in the South, McCorkle says the Bottle Cap team saw the opportunity to capitalize on that in Charlotte with a country bar in South End.
“South End is so popular, you know, and growing. We see all different kinds of different avenues. People are trying to build and stuff like that, and there hasn’t really been a country bar,” said Adam Moran, who also works for Bottle Cap Group. “[So we thought] let’s do a country theme in South End, try to bring the energy back to South End station … you know try to vamp up All American, try to vamp up Slate, just try to get the energy back in this building.”
With so few country music bars in Charlotte, the vision is to bring a taste of Nashville’s Broadway scene to the Carolinas.
“In Nashville…they were not anything elaborate. They weren’t these big theaters. They were just a place where you heard good music, and people kind of brought up in that honky tonk feel, so everytime we go, we love to wander the streets of Broadway in Nashville … so I think everybody relates it to that and that’s what we’re trying to put out there, as well,” McCorkle said. “I like the rustic, old, honky tonk vibe. I think it’ll do well.”
Combined with his love for live music, The Rose also pays homage to an old family business run by McCorkle’s stepfather and business partner.
The Yellow Rose throwback
“He had a place called Yellow Rose when I was a kid … and it was a live music place. He tells me that David Allan Coe played there one time. It was just a little dive bar, honky tonk-type thing and it was cool,” he shared.
“So I have that vision always in my mind of that. We try to make it a little more modern than some of the hardcore stuff … but I think we’re looking for just an easy, laidback kind of bar and a place that we can open ourselves up to whatever music comes along.”
In addition to live music from local to regional artists, the 21+ bar will also have different events throughout the week, including line dance, karaoke, trivia and more, along with “honky tonk bar food” with a Southern twist, including nachos, pork rinds and barbecue.
“People want to be entertained…this is more of an entertainment style. It is a bar, but we’re doing a mix of both,” Moran told CharlotteFive.
Different from Oak Room, The Rose will also be open Tuesdays-Sundays, instead of just on weekends.
“The big picture is to have one of these three [The Rose, Slate and All American] always be open 7 days a week,” McCorkle explained. “In the past, with working from a club schedule, we were tied to the club schedule and we kind of gave into that schedule a little bit and we weren’t open, in my opinion, enough … We’re going to take this as a fresh start to rebrand the whole thing and kind of be open more and be able to offer more.”
Right now, the bar is in a soft opening phase but will have a grand opening later this month.
The group is also planning on opening another music bar. As far as reopening Oak Room in another location, McCorkle said they would entertain the idea, but there aren’t any plans to do so at this time.
The Rose Honky Tonk
Location: 200 E Bland St, Charlotte, NC 28203
Instagram: @therosehonkytonk
This story was originally published February 2, 2024 at 11:46 AM.
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