Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill makes Huffington Post’s “Best Celebrity-Owned Restaurants” list
Oklahoma country music star Toby Keith stands in Toby Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill in Bricktown at the Oklahoma City restaurant's opening in 2005 (AP file)
Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill in Oklahoma City has been featured on The Daily Meal’s list of 25 “Best Celebrity-Owned Restaurants.” TheDailyMeal.com is part of the Huffington Post website.
The Oklahoma country music star started his growing chain of restaurants with the opening of the location in Oklahoma City’s Bricktown food and entertainment district in 2005. The chain has since expanded with locations inside the Tulsa Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and WinStar World Casino in Thackerville. The three restaurants in Keith’s home state are part of the Hal Smith Restaurant Group.
There also are locations in Las Vegas; Denver; Auburn Hills, Mich.; Mesa, Ariz.; and St. Louis Park, Minn.
For its list of top celebrity-owned restaurants, The Daily Meal considered eateries owned by actors, musicians and athletes, but not by celebrity chefs.
More than 100 restaurants were considered, including those owned by Michael Jordan, Ashton Kutcher, Justin Timberlake, Bill Murray and Robert De Niro. Price was not factored, but food, décor, and service were among the criteria. The Daily Meal used Zagat as a primary source, with local reviews and Gayot breaking ties.
Keith’s Oklahoma City bar and grill was ranked No. 22, sandwiched between Timberlake’s New York restaurants Destino at No. 21 and Southern Hospitality at No. 23.
“There are high ceilings, large neon beer bottles, and oversized pictures of Keith with his patriotic guitar held above his head,” The Daily Meal writes in its ranking of Keith’s OKC location. “Food-wise, it’s all about Tex-Mex and barbecue. Nachos, chips, and queso with salsa. Favorites on the menu include St. Louis ribs, chicken fried steak, meatloaf, and sandwiches made with cheese, steak, chicken, and fish.”
The list includes the calf fries (hand-breaded and deep fried with spicy, horseradish cocktail sauce) and the fried bologna sandwich (with barbecue sauce, Jack, Cheddar, lettuce, and tomato) as notable items on the OKC restaurant’s menu. (Personally, I recommend the chicken-fried steak, but only if you share it with a friend and both of you fast for at least a day in advance and plan for a nap and a vigorous workout after.)
Keith’s eatery is the only Oklahoma restaurant on the list. Other restaurants in the Southwest U.S. to make the ranking were NBA star Yao Ming’s Yao Restaurant & Bar in Houston at No. 19 and NFL great John Elway’s Elway’s in Denver at No. 3.
Skateboarding icon Tony Hawk’s Market Restaurant and Bar in Del Mar, Calif. topped the list.
-BAM
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[...] run by Michael Jordan, Ashton Kutcher, Justin Timberlake, Bill Murray and Robert De Niro made the list, which includes only entertainment famers — not celeb [...]