STAR RESTAURANTS
Just over half of celebrity eateries have ties to Oklahoma legends
A growing number of international and local celebrities alike are lending their names and time to Oklahoma restaurants and bars.
Just over half are Oklahoma legends — people hailing from the state who now have restaurants, but a few are connected to celebrities who have no known ties to the state other than planting an arm of their businesses here.
How involved are celebrities in restaurants bearing their names?
Not all celebrity restaurants are created the same when it comes to investment and involvement. Some celebrity restaurants are owned outright by celebrities or their companies, others are actual partnerships where those celebs look to have a bit of a handson role, and some are simply licensing deals, where a name is lent to a restaurant and the celebrity isn’t involved in any of the operations.
Here are Oklahoma’s celebrity restaurants and what we know about their ownership or licensing roles.
Reba’s Place, 301 E Court St. in Atoka
Celebrity connection: Reba McEntire McEntire is a 50/50 partner with the Choctaw Nation in the ownership of the restaurant bearing her name. While she predominantly resides in Nashville, Tennessee, these days, she’s still in regular contact with the restaurant, helping chefs make decisions about dishes and choosing decor and more. Her niece even moved back home after years in the restaurant industry elsewhere to manage the restaurant.
Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar, 3 locations (Moore, Oklahoma City and Thackerville)
Celebrity connection: Toby Keith
With three locations, Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar — operated by Hal Smith Restaurants — has the largest in-state footprint of the restaurants branded with Oklahomans’ names. Two of the locations are in the OKC metro area while the third is located in the Chickasaw Nation’s WinStar World Casino in Thackerville. The restaurant name is a licensing venture, and Keith is not directly involved in the restaurants. However, early issues with licensing through an Arizona company called Boomtown Entertainment that led to the shuttering of several restaurants across the country
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also has led Keith’s team to be more selective in whom they partner with for licensing.
Ole Red, 214 W Main St. in Tishomingo
Celebrity connection: Blake Shelton
Ole Red is technically owned and operated by Ryman Hospitality Properties, as part of its Opry Entertainment division, but Shelton who is an Opry member, is actively involved in the bar, often popping up at locations across the nation, including the one in his hometown of Tishomingo. Don’t be surprised if you find Blake, one of his past team members from “The Voice,” or another up-and-coming singer on stage at any of the four nationwide Ole Reds.
The Pioneer Woman Mercantile, 532 Kihekah Ave. in Pawhuska
Celebrity connection: Ree Drummond
Ree and Ladd Drummond purchased and began renovating the Osage Mercantile building in Pawhuska for the first time back in 2012, opening it in 2016. Since then, it’s received another update, reopening earlier this year with upgrades to the interior, menu and more.
You also can check out the Drummonds’ pizza and ice cream shops nearby, P-Town Pizza and Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop, for more Oklahoma celebrity-owned goodness.
Ramsay’s Kitchen, 1336 W Memorial Road
Celebrity connection: Gordon
Ramsay
Ramsay’s Kitchen is a venture of Gordon Ramsay North America, a partnership between the UK-based chef and private equity firm Lion Capital. Chances of running into Ramsay in the Oklahoma City location are slim, (his restaurant empire stretches across six countries, and he has a busy television filming schedule), but you can pop in to taste some of his classic dishes like beef Wellington and sticky toffee pudding.
Guy Fieri’s American Kitchen + Bar, 4216 S U.S. 69/75 in Durant (inside Choctaw Casino)
Celebrity connection: Guy Fieri Your trip to “Flavortown” awaits at Oklahoma’s Guy Fieri restaurant, one of more than 80 scratch kitchens owned by Fieri through his company, Knuckle Sandwich LLC.
You can find the restaurant inside the The Link at Choctaw Casino & Resort – Durant.
Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville, 8330 Riverside Parkway in Tulsa (inside River Spirit Casino)
Celebrity connection: Jimmy Buffett
Not only can you visit Margaritaville in Tulsa at River Spirit Casino, but you can also stop by two of Buffett’s other concepts, 5 O’Clock Somewhere Bar and LandShark Bar and Grill. No need to stress when you can spend your time lounging in what feels like a tropical oasis at the brands, among the more than 30 owned by the late singer’s holding company, Margaritaville Holdings LLC.