THE DISH
The Downtown Mall gets Lucky
The former Citizen Bowl Shop gets a new look—and sound—in its rebirth as Lucky Blue’s bar By Nathan Alderman
“Coming out of the pandemic era—that’s what we’re doing, right?—I felt that what I, and everyone atrick McClure had spent four happy years really, needed, was a comfortable neighborhood bar running Citizen Bowl Shop on the Downto help us ease back into our formerly normal social town Mall—“Well,” he says, “not 2020”— behavior,” McClure says. “Lucky Blue’s is intended as when he decided it was time for a change. that ‘something for everyone’ kind of place, where you You wouldn’t know it from the outside, where can have a civilized lunch with friends or co-workers, the old CB sign still hangs. But the old Bowl Shop’s a lively dinner of comfort foods and beverages that been reinvented on the inside as Lucky Blue’s, a bar don’t require lengthy explanations, or blow off steam where rock n’ roll, burritos, and killer cheese steaks after dinner, whether you’re a bourbon aficionado or happily hang out alongside vegan tofu bowls. love shots of Fireball.” Lucky Blue’s beverage menu balances variety with simplicity, offering enough beers, wines, ciders, and cocktails to give imbibers plenty of choices, without ever feeling overwhelming. McClure describes Lucky Blue’s as a throwback to the days of “good bar, great jukebox”—even if it doesn’t actually have a jukebox. Having traveled the country as he wandered in and out of the orbit of his and his brother Andy’s various Charlottesville restaurants, McClure wanted to evoke the old bars of San Francisco, which “feel worthy of reverence, yet look like places your mother might warn you about.” He’s dreaming of live music one day, when health and safety permit, but for now, he’s making do with some truly excellent playlists. Though cheesesteaks and burritos remain Lucky Blue’s mandate, McClure’s equally proud of the bar’s less artery-clogging offerings. “The Bowl Shop menu lives on, and my amazing lunch regulars that depended on that healthy-eating ethos will not be forgotten,” he says. So far, McClure says, the Delta variant hasn’t squelched Lucky Blue’s success. “We have to take everything with a grain of salt, dash of Tapatio salsa, and a cold beer these days, but people have really enjoyed our space, and the feedback has been tremendous!” he says. “That, despite the lack of a new sign and very little advertising, shows us that we’re on our way Lucky Blue’s owner Patrick McClure envisions his new bar as a to being a Downtown Mall ‘must do.’” day-to-night kind of eatery.
TRISTAN WILLIAMS
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