LGE Design Build broke ground on the new Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row in downtown Gilbert, which will be designed to connect with the town’s agricultural roots.
Country music star Dierks Bentley, Gilbert Mayor John Lewis, David Sellers, LGE Design Build president; Swen Anderson, LGE Design Build vice president of business development; and Ryan Hibbert, Riot Hospitality Group CEO; recently attended a ceremony on Feb. 2 to kick off the groundbreaking.
The 8,000-square-foot restaurant, 323 N. Gilbert Road, is expected to be complete in November/December 2016. The restaurant features a 10,000-square-foot patio, a large dance floor for country line dancing, outdoor area for games such as cornhole and ping pong and large interior space to host birthday and bachelorette parties. The entry and large exterior windows will face Gilbert Road, fostering connectivity to the lively downtown atmosphere.
“We are creating a restaurant authentic to Gilbert that will add more energy in the already bustling downtown area and provide entertainment and food experiences targeted for East Valley residents,” said David Sellers, LGE Design Build president.
“I love being on stage, my family and country music,” Bentley said. “We want each Whiskey Row to be a place where people can go and find like-minded people. The Heritage District is going to be a great place to bring that environment to Gilbert and I’m honored to be associated with this team.”
“While the Gilbert restaurant will include a bar like all Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row locations, the new downtown Gilbert restaurant is designed with families in mind. The restaurant will include large family tables and areas for families and friends to spend time together,” said Ryan Hibbert, CEO of Riot Hospitality of Scottsdale, which owns and operates the Whiskey Row restaurants. “Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row, an American gastropub with a Southern flair, is the millennials’ take on a country music restaurant/bar.”
The restaurant will be constructed with reclaimed wood, steel, high ceilings and natural lighting. Designed to remain cool and breezy, the restaurant will ventilate easily.
“From a design perspective, we were influenced by Gilbert’s agricultural roots and the feeling of a barn or trading post,” said Artie Vigil, architect and urban designer with AV3 Design Studio of Phoenix. “We’ve applied contemporary finishes to provide Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row with the ambiance of an agriculturally inspired warehouse. The restaurant is pedestrian-orientated with significant visibility on Gilbert Road.”
Last year, LGE Design Build renovated a 7,300-square-foot existing bar/restaurant in Tempe for Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row at 640 S. Mill Ave. LGE Design Build also constructed the shell for the Old Town Scottsdale location at 4420 N. Saddlebag Trail in 2013.
“The renaissance and growth of the Heritage District has been marked by a tremendous amount of office, residential and new restaurants. As a result, the Heritage District has been named one of the five best food neighborhoods in Metro Phoenix and is affectionately referred to as Delicious Gilbert,” said Gilbert Mayor John Lewis. “We believe that Dierks Bentley’s Whiskey Row will contribute to the diversity of the restaurant mix, will provide a venue for live entertainment and will be another great location for families and friends to gather.”
