From a distance, OAK OKC glistens and soars like Oz. Sprawled across 43 tree-lined acres across the street from Penn Square Mall, the new mixed-use district is unlike anything OKC has seen before, comprising 320 urban residences, a central green space, contemporary art sculptures, a boutique hotel and 135,000 square feet of new-to-market retailers and restaurants.
The huge project, courtesy of Veritas Development, feels like a brand-new neighborhood, reflecting the rapid rise of our Modern Frontier. The sheer scale of the district is staggering in and of itself, but the restaurants—high-caliber brands marking their Oklahoma debuts—are particularly emblematic of a city abloom.
The creative vision of Veritas Development founder Ryan McNeill, the restaurants at OAK were selected for their shared community-driven approach to hospitality. From a tropical bar to a shimmering rooftop oasis, here is where to eat now—and what to look forward to—at OAK OKC.
For a city rife with steakhouses both classic and contemporary, The Capital Grille still manages to carve out its own niche. At its first location in Oklahoma, the upscale steakhouse boasts 10,000 square feet of swanky space, featuring a sommelier-curated wine list and creative spins on steakhouse traditions. Here, best-in-class ingredients lend themselves to lobster and crab cakes with lemon basil aïoli, caviar and caramelized onion dip with housemade potato chips and thick slices of cherrywood-smoked bacon with Korean BBQ. The steaks are showstoppers, like the filet mignon—hand-carved by an in-house butcher—with cippolini onions, wild mushrooms and fig essence, or the Kona coffee-crusted dry-aged bone-in NY strip with shallot butter.
A blend of Tex and Mex, Mesero is a Dallas-based restaurant with an outdoor patio overlooking Heartwood Park. Modern Mexican cuisine and cocktails is the bill of fare, from its signature queso mesero, bubbling with spinach, poblano and brisket, to tangy tiger shrimp ceviche, ahi tuna nachos and chicken enchiladas draped in creamy mole. Don’t miss the quenching cocktails, including frozen housemade sangria, jalapeño-infused margaritas and Mezcal Mules.
Drop anchor at Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar, a nautical restaurant and bar—attached to the first Tommy Bahama store in the state—with beachy live music, garage-style windows and a central bar emblazoned in palm-themed wallpaper. The menu matches the vacation vibes: Think rum-soaked Mai Tais, frozen piña coladas and coconut martinis, while shareable snacks include guacamole, street corn dip, coconut shrimp and key lime pie.
Nestled in the Lively Hotel, Cloud Puncher is the self-proclaimed “living room” for OAK OKC, and a neighborhood bar indicative of our fast-growing metropolis. At once sophisticated and comfortable, the all-day restaurant sports an eclectic menu rooted in modernized Southwestern inspiration—think venison carpaccio with oak-smoked elderberries; cowboy meatballs with ranchero sauce and shaved manchego; black-eyed pea hummus with pickled okra; and sloppy Joe sliders made with ground Angus beef, avocado coleslaw and fried okra. Come evening, the space segues into a posh cocktail lounge, proffering nightcap-worthy drinks like the Oil Slick, made with brown butter fat-washed Old Forester bourbon, citrus oleo and walnut bitters.
The newest—and most stylish—addition at OAK is RH, a 42,000-square-foot design gallery and furniture store that looks like something out of Beverly Hills, complete with an expansive rooftop restaurant and garden bar. Under a glass ceiling and a canopy of trees, the chic restaurant has “power lunch” and “date night” written all over it. Ritzy dishes include caviar-clad lobster rolls, shaved rib-eye sandwiches and whole grilled branzino enlivened with olive oil and grilled lemon. Along with a robust wine list, specialty cocktails include rosé spritzes, classic martinis and bellinis brimming with fresh peach puree.
And the first-in-Oklahoma eateries just come keep coming. OKC’s inaugural Shake Shack, due this fall in a glass-enclosed jewel box space next to Heartwood Park, is famed for its elevated takes on classic Americana, like freshly sizzled Angus beef burgers, hand-breaded fried chicken sandwiches, fluffy crinkle-cut fries and frozen custard.
Phases II and III are still forthcoming at OAK OKC, promising even more game-changing dining destinations at a groundbreaking development.
