Say ‘howdy’ to the new Starduster Lounge. Opening this week in The Heights, Starduster Lounge is a throwback dive imbued with ’70s cowboy culture from entrepreneur and local musician, Will Thomas.
After a quiet sneak peak opening this Friday, Starduster Lounge has officially opened its doors in The Heights. The rugged new dive is housed in the 1940s building at 3921 N. Main, formerly occupied by Spanish Flowers restaurant. Before Spanish Flowers, the historical building was reportedly a brothel.
Starduster Lounge is a project from the partnership of Will Thomas (Dan Electro’s and White Oak Music Hall) with Winnie’s and Johnny’s Gold Brick owner, Benjy Mason. Thomas reportedly approached Mason with the project, conceptualized originally as a playlist filled with ramblin’-ready tracks from of Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Bob Seger, and the like.
Along with its Lonestar-like vibes, the two aim to honor the latin restaurant’s legacy with interior features ranging from hand-painted tiles, archways, vintage fixtures, to a Carissa Marx-Beaty-created desert mural.
“The building, the way its setup and the way it looks, the vibes are already there,” Thomas told CultureMap. “The idea was to bring that to life. Take what was here and give it some life again.”
From behind the bar Starduster Lounge offers a selection of local craft beer (including Lone Pint, 8th Wonder Brewery and Saint Arnold’s) as well as whiskey and agave spirits. Additionally, the venue have tapped local mixologist Justin Ware to whip up an array of Texas/Mexico-inspired cocktails including a hibiscus and lemongrass vodka-infused Freezer Cosmo and Mezcal Café de Olla Espresso Martini.
Once up and running, the venue plans to have a rotating crop of food trucks on-site. While live music won’t necessarily be a regular feature, Thomas hopes to stage singer-songwriter performances on site now and again.
Starduster Lounge is now open at 3921 N. Main in The Heights.
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