The Boardroom is not out of business, even though a sign on the front door of the closed Victory Park sports lounge indicates the landlord's changed the locks.
"I don't want to say it's closed," says Lonnie Moore, owner of management company The Dolce Group. "We're closing for the summer. Summer's the slowest time, and we want to get ready for football season."
Moore dismisses the lockout notice as a "formality."
"We're partners with the landlord," he says.
Moore attributed the sabbatical to inconsistent traffic, a problem that's plagued countless bars and restaurants that have tried to establish a foothold in Victory Park.
"There's something about that location," he says. "When there's no game, on a dead Tuesday night, it's like an invisible force field or something."
The Dolce Group is now trying to overcome the Victory Park curse with a rejuvenated concept that Moore says involves "a possible new alliance." He confirmed the partnership is neither with an existing franchise nor an individual sports celebrity, but refused to elaborate further.
"It's something sports-related," he says.
The Boardroom opened in 2008, positioning itself as a sophisticated sports bar where stylish patrons might knock back dirty martinis and seared tuna salads by the light of 20 large-screen, HDTVs.
Moore said he wasn't sure whether the bar would retain The Boardroom name when it reopens this fall.
"It might be a face lift, it might be more than that," he said of the planned changes.
