Here’s an upcoming spot to have a glass of wine, a beer, and a bite to eat in a new frontier, so to speak. Over Keel at The Kent is slated to open in a few weeks at 61 Keel Avenue in Uptown Memphis.
As for other bars and restaurants around them, The Kent director of operations Toni Williams says, “There are none.” She describes Over Keel at The Kent as ““Just a little neighborhood wine bar. Not a ‘bar.’ Just beer and wine. There will not be spirits. We’ll have an occasional specialty cocktail, like margaritas on Cinco de Mayo, that kind of thing. But not where you can come in and get spirits.” And, she says, “We’ll have a small menu: charcuterie, humus, flatbread, salads.”
The 27,000-square-foot-space, which takes up two floors and seats 90 people, is in the building with The Kent. “It was where Linkous Construction had their offices while they were building Harborside and Conwood Flats, finishing up construction on apartments across the street from us and retail. We knew Linkous was going to be there for quite some time. They’ve been here since 2020. Then everything moved out and we were looking for something to do with the space.”
Over Keel at The Kent includes a bar and two rooms with sofa-and-chair conversation areas upstairs and downstairs. “We have a board room area and then we have our restaurant area, which can be rented out for private events.”
The Kent, which opened four years ago, has been a big success, Williams says. It’s been the home to the Youth Villages Soup Sunday and Memphis Restaurant Association’s Food Festival events. “It is a great space. We do things with St. Jude. Le Bon Appétit (the Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital fundraiser event) is going to be here again this year on June 6th.”
Over Keel at The Kent, which will be open Wednesdays through Sundays, is a perfect spot for a neighborhood bar, Williams says. “A lot of apartments here. And I think even from the island we’ll have people coming over. And the medical district is moving over this way. We’d love to be that place they stop and go have a drink before they go to the Orpheum or downtown activities. A drink on the way. Just that little pre- and post-dining room at Over Keel at the Kent. An event stop. This is the perfect place for that.”
Summing up Over Keel at The Kent, Williams says, “It’s just a great space to have that downtown feel.”