Rendering courtesy of Robert Drummond.
An Austin bar known for innovative cocktails and dancing on Sixth Street will open a second location near Deep Ellum, according to a certificate of occupancy.
Construction on Green Light Social has begun at 2625 Floyd St. The building, which previously housed a youth center, has been demolished, leaving only three exterior walls. It will be rebuilt as a two-story bar with outdoor seating. The building will be three times the size of the Austin establishment.
“We’re going big with it,” said co-owner Robert Drummond, who runs the business with partners Ian Fletcher and Caleb Kilborn. “We’re elevating it big time for the Dallas area.”Â
They’ve been working on the concept for more than three years and hope to open in late summer or early fall, depending on the pace of construction. The permit was issued in November, and construction began a month later.
Unlike the Austin location, the buildout will include a kitchen. Green Light Social is developing a menu for brunch, happy hour and dinner scenarios, Drummond said.
Founded in 2016, Green Light Social was inspired by Prohibition-era allusions. “Green door” was a common pseudonym for speakeasy, and lit or unlit green lights signaled a speakeasy’s accessibility.
Green Light Social offers three different environments under the same roof. A cocktail lounge and patio bar constitute one area. Another is a DJ-driven dance venue. The third is a reservation-only hidden bar called the Ruby Room for ages 25 and up. It’s named after Dallas nightclub owner Jacky Ruby. Ruby is known for killing Lee Harvey Oswald, the alleged assassin of President John F. Kennedy.
“The development we’ve seen has got a lot more of a cosmopolitan feel, and there’s more of a nucleus down there than when I was growing up in Lake Highlands,” Fletcher said. “We don’t want to just be Austin guys. We want to be Dallas operators in a great community.”Â
