Bar Empire Expands to East Austin With Bicycle-Themed The Wheel

The space slated to become booze whisperer Adam Bryan's cocktail lounge Motel will now have a very different identity. Austin-based bar and hospitality group FBR Management will open The Wheel, "a bicycle themed watering hole" at 1902 B East. MLK, at the intersection of Chicon. FBR operates large, high volume downtown bars like Mean Eyed Cat, Gibson, Star Bar, and Rattle Inn, so a tiny East Austin space outside an existing bar district is a departure. According to a press release, managing partner Max Moreland says, "The Wheel's intimate space will allow us to showcase some unique aspects to the bar that we haven't been able to conceptualize before." Apparently that means draft beer and sandwiches from Austin Daily Press.

Previously, former Congress bartender Adam Bryan intended to open a cocktail bar with a mid-century feel in the property. Bryan was able to nab a change of use for the property, paving the way for a bar to take over the space, only to suffered permit troubles, especially over parking. The location is also where The Wet Whistle unexpectedly shuttered earlier this week.