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When is a scoop not a scoop? When it gets pulled at the last minute. Man about town Robin Leach announced last week that Las Vegas local and former Cincinnati Reds player and manger Pete Rose was readying to open the Pete Rose Bar & Grill at the Hawaiian Marketplace. But almost as soon as the story was digested, it was deleted.
Within the article, Leach revealed the Pete Rose Bar would take over the current People’s Republic sports bar "in partnership with HIG Management" and quoted an Oct. 13 opening date. HIG Management rush debuted the 6,540-square-foot People's Republic back in July, hastily replacing their almost completed Rathaus German beer hall concept and completely abandoning the original European tavern theme, name and design once planned for the ground floor space.
The only current public record of Pete Rose Bar & Grill is a skeleton Facebook page listing the exact same address and phone number of People’s Republic.
A possible Pete Rose Bar would immediately feature a patio on the Strip with views of CityCenter across Las Vegas Blvd., a flagship Chili's flagship restaurant located directly above and would take over a restaurant with 32 TVs already installed, wired with "every sports package known to man and the UFC."
As for an October 13 debut date, Pete Rose himself is currently scheduled to be at his regular day job, signing autographs from noon to 4.30 p.m at The Art of Music memorabilia store at Mandalay Place. This would not be Rose's first venture into the culinary world, having logged time as the figurehead of the now shuttered Pete Rose Ballpark Cafe in Boynton Beach, FL.
Leach signed off his story with the tidbit that Rose was "finalizing the menu items as I type." An undisputed baseball legend, including owning the title of all-time Major League leader in hits, "Charlie Hustle" hopes to sign off on his reinstatement to Major League Baseball by the end of the year, following a 25 year ban for betting on the Cincinnati Reds while managing and playing for the team.
