Yeehaw! York’s newest cowboy bar opens its saloon doors tomorrow (Thursday 6 August).
The hotly anticipated live country music bar and line dancing destination Ruby Rae’s is getting ready to open to the public.
The ‘Nashville-inspired experience’ will open at 2 Micklegate in York, from tomorrow at 5pm. Ahead of the opening,* YorkMix* took a sneak peek inside to find out more.
Inside, the venue has been transformed with neon lighting, long tables, Nashville-inspired decor, American flags, and lots of cowboy hats.
The opening times will be 5pm – 1am on Thursdays, 3pm – 3am on Fridays, 12pm – 3am on Saturdays, and 2pm – 12am on Sundays.
“It’s been a lot of stress but also a lot excitement getting things ready in time,” said co-founder Dan Cooke. “Now we just can’t wait to bring Ruby Rae’s to York.”
Its flagship store opened in Newcastle just over a year ago by founders Dan Cooke and Dean Saunders, and has drawn a huge following since – drawing visitors from the UK, Europe, and as far as the USA.
Ruby Rae’s in York will feature live country music, line dancing, cowboy hats, a Nashville-inspired drinks menu and country music atmosphere.
The Nashville-inspired cocktails include the ‘Ting from Texas’ with vodka, Amaretto, Archers, Ting and cranberry; ‘Rootie Tootie’ with passion fruit vodka, melon liqueur, pineapple juice, and grenadine; and ‘Ruby’s Rumrricane’ with spiced rum, cherry rum, pineapple juice, orange juice, and Tiki fire.
There’s also spirits, draught beers, mocktails, and non-alcoholic beers.
It’s been a record turn-around for the new venue in York, as it was only announced a few weeks ago that the brand was coming to the city. “We’ve got to give a lot of credit to the builders for that,” said Dan.
“The team at DHG Build Solutions – which also did the one in Newcastle – have been working around the clock.
“They’re in at 6am every morning and doing about 12 to 13 hour days, getting everything done in time.”
Ruby Rae’s at 2 Micklegate in York, was previously home to cocktail bar Jalou, but is also the Former Church of St John the Evangelist, a Grade II listed building.
During a trip to Nashville, Dean and Dan were inspired by the legendary Mother Church, the Ryman Auditorium and the atmosphere it creates for live music.
“The church aspect and the church link is going back when we were in Nashville,” explained Dan. “The Mother Church is a church in Nashville where country music started, and we try to base it off that and get a lot of the inspiration from Nashville.
“We just want to show the church off,” added Dean. “A lot of the decor, it’s authentic. We’ve brought a lot of inspiration back from Nashville.”
The reaction on social media leading up to the opening has been extremely positive. “We’ve had a lot of comments about people excited to come to York,” said Dean, “even people saying where they want us to go next already!
“It’s just good that people want us and they want us to be where they are. So it’s York’s turn this time, and we can’t wait to get started.”
The venue will open from 5pm tomorrow (Thursday). “The first thing we want people believe when they walk in is that they’re in Nashville,” said Dan.
“Authenticity is a massive thing for us, so we want people to walk in and basically feel like they’re stepping into Nashville.
“The music that we play, line dancing, the decor of the building, everything like that – we want people to feel like it’s the most authentic Nashville experience, but at home.”
There will be a live music schedule every single week. “We’ll have plenty of live music all the time, and it’s always country music.”
York-born country star Twinnie is rumoured to be among those giving live performances over opening weekend.
There is also Ruby Rae’s merch available to buy including cowboy hats, t-shirts, and caps, starting at £5.
Find out more about Ruby Rae’s at their website, Facebook, and Instagram pages.
Gallery
