26-02-2025
Owner of Hello, Marjorie is opening a new sports bar
Nick Tillinghast is well known for his creative cocktail lounges, but the owner of Good News, Darling; Secret Admirer; and Hello, Marjorie is stepping into new territory: sports bars.
Driving the news: Des Moines Athletic Club is set to open late this year inside the Equitable Building downtown.
There will be TVs, beers and seltzers, but expect the vibe to be more similar to his cocktail bars than wall-to-wall neon beer signs and sticky floors, Tillinghast tells Axios.
How it started: Tillinghast, a downtown resident since 2016 and major Cyclones fan, wanted a sports bar where locals could easily walk over and hang out.
He lives in the Equitable Building and has spent the last six months talking with the landlord about plans for the vacant ground-floor space.
State of play: The 1,400-square-foot space will feature a shotgun bar and be reminiscent of a "cozy" establishment you'd walk into in the middle of Chicago or New York.
The cocktail program will feature classic drinks and event-themed specials for tournaments like Wimbledon and The Masters.
But when Iowa State plays, "sound TVs will be all Cyclones," Tillinghast jokes.
The big picture: Tillinghast says the project is also about making his own neighborhood a better place.
The downtown business district has struggled with foot traffic in recent years and his nearby properties are more destination spots than places people stumble upon.
Once the new spot opens, he envisions bar crawls between all his properties.
"I miss a lot of business sometimes because people don't want to just come to Marjorie," Tillinghast says. "They want to have the ability to walk to other places really quickly."
The intrigue: The Des Moines Athletic Club's name is a nod to the early 1900s, when major cities had grand athletic clubs housed in striking buildings — a style Tillinghast hopes to channel within the Equitable's architecture.
What's next: Renovations are already underway.
