White Sox GM Williams to open restaurant/bar in West Loop

By Mark Gonzales

 

GLENDALE, Ariz. - White Sox general manager Ken Williams is part owner of a new restaurant and sports bar set to open in April.

 

Market, the name of Williams' business venture, is located at 1113 W. Randolph St. in the West Loop.The establishment features a 4,500-square foot bar and dining area with 20 flat screen televisions, a 2,500-square-foot outdoor beer garden, a 1,200-square foot sidewalk cafe and a 4,000-square foot rooftop lounge.

 

 

chicagotribune.com/sports

 

Now we know where the extra payroll money went.

What is it with these sports guys and restaurants and bars? Don't they like their spouse's cooking? Are the hard drinkers? Pretty soon there will be one on every corner (base).

Edited February 28, 200917 yr by elrockinMT

This one Cardinals fan told me St Louis has bigger sports fans than Chicago b/c the Ozzie Smith restaurant thrives whereas Jordan's restaurant comparatively didnt last long.

 

Ha. Supply & demand much?

This one Cardinals fan told me St Louis has bigger sports fans than Chicago b/c the Ozzie Smith restaurant thrives whereas Jordan's restaurant comparatively didnt last long.

 

Ha. Supply & demand much?

 

not so much supply and demand as it its costs and who is running the place. too many people get involved in the restaurant biz have no idea what they are doing.

This one Cardinals fan told me St Louis has bigger sports fans than Chicago b/c the Ozzie Smith restaurant thrives whereas Jordan's restaurant comparatively didnt last long.

 

Ha. Supply & demand much?

 

 

I know Mike Shannon (broadcaster) had a restaurant (or still has) in St. Louis downtown...not sure if the Bucks were a partner or not.

 

Does Ozzie Guillen have one? He's about the only Sox player I think who could compete with Ozzie Smith in terms of popularity. MAYBE Willie McGee or Joe McEwing.

 

If never seemed to the be the kind of thing someone like McDowell, Ventura (I know they spend most of their time in Cali now), Fisk, Baines, etc., would have much of an interest in...and opening it in the teeth of a recession doesn't seem like wise timing for new bars and restaurants.

Is it in any way related to Wilder's bar?

Hopefully it'll be a Sox bar.

I'd LIKE to go, but it's hard to spend a dollar if I only have 50 cents.

I would go to Billy Beane's restaurant, though.

 

That's a great line....ask if you can get a 25-50% discount (50 to 75 cents on the dollar) because you could barely afford to pay for your White Sox season tickets AND eat at KW's restaurant. Somehow I have a feeling it won't be cheap.

 

Or if there's a smaller crowd of people, offer to turn off the lights to save on their electricity bill.

I'd imagine KW actually has money invested in this venture. Most celebrity bars have zero invested by the celebrity. Harry Caray had no money in his restaurant but he got paid to give it some pub and make appearances. Its funny 11 years after his death most of the Cubs still go there and all Harry had into it was hanging out there. McMahon had nothing in his place. Ditka had nothing in his first place, but actually does in his most recent. KW doesn't live in the area anymore so they couldn't have him make appearances, his name isn't on the bar, plus he's kind of busy with his job. So he's probably just an investor who they could throw a little bit higher of pct. of profit to compared to his investment by throwing his name out there. If I lived in the West Loop, I'd probably check it out. At least it isn't in Wrigleyville.

Edited March 1, 200917 yr by Dick Allen

Any truth to the rumor it'll be called Grinders?

I know Mike Shannon (broadcaster) had a restaurant (or still has) in St. Louis downtown...not sure if the Bucks were a partner or not.

 

 

Shannon has his own bar and grill, thats where the kid for the Cards got drunk and died...The bucks have their own seperate restaurant in downtown STL, but I thought I heard they might be closing it down...Im going to STL this weekend so Ill find out

Any truth to the rumor that they'll have a lunch buffet and when lunch is over someone in a KW mask will flip the table over?

I know Mike Shannon (broadcaster) had a restaurant (or still has) in St. Louis downtown...not sure if the Bucks were a partner or not.

 

Does Ozzie Guillen have one? He's about the only Sox player I think who could compete with Ozzie Smith in terms of popularity. MAYBE Willie McGee or Joe McEwing.

 

If never seemed to the be the kind of thing someone like McDowell, Ventura (I know they spend most of their time in Cali now), Fisk, Baines, etc., would have much of an interest in...and opening it in the teeth of a recession doesn't seem like wise timing for new bars and restaurants.

 

Ozzie Smith, Albert Pujols, Mike Shannon, The Bucks, Al Hrabosky, and Jim Edmonds all have places in St. Louis that are still open.

This one Cardinals fan told me St Louis has bigger sports fans than Chicago b/c the Ozzie Smith restaurant thrives whereas Jordan's restaurant comparatively didnt last long.

 

Ha. Supply & demand much?

 

Supply and demand is absolutely correct. St. Louis has a great fan base but this is just retarded.

 

River North is a huge tourist area full of gimmicky theme restaurants that were a lot cheaper for a family to eat at after a day at the Museum Campus and Niketown. If you wanted to eat a steakhouse, there were plenty of better steakhouses in that area that weren't sports bar/celebrity theme park inbreds. Be all that as it may, MJs enjoyed a good long run and had lines around the block for years.

 

This kind of thing happens all the time in the restaurant business: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jordan's_Restaurant. Feuding ownership, differing opinions on direction, all choreographed with Jordan's unceremonious departure from the Bulls. Chicago teams have a way of chasing their star athletes out of town. Bobby Hull. Jeremy Roenick. Chris Chelios. Michael Jordan. Carlton Fisk. Feel free to put Frank Thomas in that group if you wish.

 

As for Market, I'd expect it to be a pricey gastropub type of place—the Market district is where many of the best, most cutting edge restaurants in one of the top 3 restaurant towns on the Continent have been opening for the past decade or so.

Edited March 1, 200917 yr by Drew

St. Louis Cardinal fans are unique. I really haven't found anyone like them.

 

They annoy the hell out of me. They reaallllllly, um, worship their players, I guess is the best way to put it. "Albert". I don't really think we are anything like that, we seem to have a deepfelt, sentimental appreciation for our players, St. Louis fans create this cartoonish superhero out of theirs.

 

It's hard to explain. I guess they are just kind of the dorkiest baseball fans on earth.

I say the same thing about Packer fans. But how much else is there to live for in Wisconsin?

Any truth to the rumor it'll be called Grinders?

No, that's Dave Wilder's second gay bar.

No, that's Dave Wilder's second gay bar.

 

LMAO.