Clark Cooper Concepts and Buffalo Bayou Partnership Plan Private Event Space and Grab and Go Service
Clark Cooper Concepts and Buffalo Bayou Partnership have announced plans to develop a multi-purpose private event space in Houston. The Dunlavy, overlooking the banks of Buffalo Bayou and Lost Lake, will be a private event and dining space, showcasing the different cuisines of the Clark Cooper restaurants – including Ibiza Food & Wine Bar, Brasserie 19, Coppa Ristorante, Coppa Osteria and Punk’s Simple Southern Food.
Slated to open Summer 2015, The Dunlavy will offer full-service event space and coordination. The venue is ideally suited to its location at the western end of Buffalo Bayou Park. The 160-acre, 2.3 mile park located between Shepherd Drive and Sabine Street, is currently undergoing a $58 million renovation by Buffalo Bayou Partnership.
Grab and Go @ The Dunlavy will provide counter service breakfast and lunch seven days a week. Patio chairs and complimentary Wi-Fi will be available. Additionally, the building will house a park visitor center and a canoe and kayak rental facility, operated by Buffalo Bayou Partnership.
Designed by Page, the sleek aesthetic of The Dunlavy will offer lakeside, bayou and downtown skyline views. The clean, modern 3,800 square foot indoor space will feature floor-to-ceiling windows, crisp gallery-like interiors and a large wraparound 850 square foot outdoor patio, and will serve as a blank slate with stunning views and lush green outdoor vegetation serving as the backdrop likened to a jewel box suspended over the bayou.
“Buffalo Bayou Partnership was fortunate to secure Clark Cooper Concepts to represent us to execute the vision for the Lost Lake event concept,” said Sis Johnson, board chair of Buffalo Bayou Partnership. “As one of the main gateways into Buffalo Bayou Park, this area overall will offer something for every park user, whether a picnicker getting a quick bite to eat, a cyclist picking up a park map, an adventure-seeker renting a kayak, or an event planner looking for an idyllic venue to host a gathering.”
With a restaurant-grade kitchen on site, patrons booking The Dunlavy can choose menus from any of the Clark Cooper Concept restaurants or have the culinary team create custom menus and wine pairings. The Dunlavy is also expected to become the setting for high-profile events, such as product launches, art installations, pop-up retail, weddings, gallery show and filmmaking.
“The Dunlavy will be a space that defines our city: bold, innovative and unique,” said Grant Cooper, principal of Clark Cooper Concepts. “The fact you can go from fine dining to BBQ is what will set The Dunlavy apart. It can serve as the location for a national retail product launch, wedding or film shoot. It will be a really cool, functional space where people can get creative.”
Left: Eleanor Tinsley Park during a special event. Right: The park during every day use.
The intersection of Taft Street at Allen Parkwary.
Photos by Katya Horner/Slight Clutter Photography.
Clockwise from top left: Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)’s trail widening work at Taft and Allen Parkway; Harris County Flood Control District channel realignment work at Jane Gregory Garden; TxDOT and City of Houston’s Shepherd Drive Bridge; Buffalo Bayou Partnership work at Police Memorial for new pedestrian bridge.
