Youth: Touching science
Tinkerfest 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 29 Science Museum Oklahoma 2020 Remington Place sciencemuseumok.org 405-602-6664 Free Of the many cars expected at Science Museum Oklahoma for this year’s Tinkerfest, two will be completely taken apart. Clint Stone, vice president of programs at the museum, said the free event, now in its second year, is designed to…
Fall Guide: Seasonal smoke
personal wood smokers, fall personal smokers, personal smoker guide, cold smoked cheese, smoked butternut squash,
OKG Sneak Peek: Ned’s Starlite Lounge in NW OKC
Ned’s Starlite Lounge, 7301 N. May Ave., is set to open Sept. 24. Located in the former Nomad II location, the restaurant from veteran operator Ned Shadid (Ned’s Catering) focuses its menu on sandwiches,hamburgers, chicken-fried steak, and more. Appetizers of chicken wings and arancini will please diners along with its retro décor completed with gold wallpaper and lounge…
Long-serving city manager for OKC to announce retirement
OKCTalk has learned that James D. Couch, city manager for Oklahoma City, plans to issue a press release later today announcing his retirement. Couch was appointed November 9, 2000, making him the longest-serving OKC city manager by a wide margin. Of the previous 35 predecessors, the average tenure is 2.5 years and the longest had…
Bricktown tech
An Atlanta-based technology service company is seeking financial incentives to aid in bringing up to 150 jobs to Oklahoma City. Rural Sourcing, Inc. currently has 420 employees and is rapidly growing. It has targeted OKC for an expansion office and plans to add 150 new jobs over the next three years. The average first-year wage…
Added texture
Voilà: Viola! 7:30 p.m. Sept. 25 St. Paul’s Cathedral 127 NW Seventh St. brightmusic.org Free-$20 What’s the difference between a radio and a viola? A radio plays music. How do you know there’s violist at the door? They can’t find the key and don’t know when to come in. What’s the definition of “perfect pitch”?…
Speedy food
A driveway conversation between friends has developed into a business designed to help families and single people cut out the meal planning and prep time associated with cooking at home. Ashley Myers and Christy Stearns met in graduate school classes in the child development program at University of Central Oklahoma and strengthened their bond while…
COVER Fun factor
Beyond Sept. 22-Dec. 21 Factory Obscura 1522 S. Robinson Ave. factoryobscura.com $10-$25 A multitalented artist is currently seeking a home in Oklahoma City. She has many parents who continue to nurture her, and she overflows with creativity, artistic skill and diplomacy. She excels in networking, logistics and politics. One thing is for sure: She never…
Lighter lyrics
Travis Meadows 8 p.m. Sept. 19 The Blue Door 2805 N. McKinley Ave. bluedoorokc.com 405-524-0738 $20 If you went to see Travis Meadows in Oklahoma City in the ’90s, he was probably delivering a sermon. “Way back in the preacher days,” Meadows said, “I used to speak at some churches out that way, but it’s…
Buyer beware
Medical marijuana regulations rolled out by the state health department in July were met with heavy pushback from the community at large and caused Gov. Mary Fallin to call for revisions and set forth emergency rules on Aug. 1. The new regulations govern the growth, sale and purchase of medical marijuana but don’t address testing,…
Auto Alley warehouses to be transformed to restaurant and rooftop bar
Twin warehouse buildings at 19 NE Sixth St. and 23 NE Sixth St. will be converted to restaurant and other lease space by an LLC headed by local developer Basil Rayan. The design calls for a large restaurant for the west building, with an indoor/outdoor space in an added second level that will offer panoramic…
Fishing expedition
Shawn’s Sushi 5612 Northwest Expressway shawnssushi.com 405-792-2211 What works:The service is prompt. What needs work:The overall qualityof the fish is lacking. Tip: It offers a good happy hour at itsbar most evenings. It might come as a surprise, but the case can be made that sushi is now more popular in the United States than…
Flying high
Late 1920s America is brought to vivid life on the pages of Flying Jenny, a historical novel by Oklahoma-born writer Theasa Tuohy. The book, published in May, captures both the exhilaration of early flight and the rough-and-tumble world of New York journalists, through the eyes of two young female protagonists. The women embark on a…
Mindful stretching
YogaFest OKC 9 a.m. Saturday – 2:15 p.m. Sunday Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N. Walker Ave. 21c Museum Hotel, 900 W. Main St. Bicentennial Park, 201 N. Walker Ave. yogafestokc.com Free – $150 2018 is shaping up to be the year of the stretch as the fifth annual YogaFest helps downtown OKC find its…
Gazedibles: Tasty bird
Chicken outside the fried variety doesn’t hold a high enough position in the U.S. protein power rankings, but it can be much more flavorful than the sad, dried-out chicken breast that sometimes tops an uninspired salad. We pay tribute to the best non-fried chicken dishes the city has to offer. By Jacob Threadgill Photos by…
Chicken-Fried News: Exotic plot
It all makes sense now. Joe Exotic ran for governor of Oklahoma as a Libertarian, and while that political doctrine is oriented toward maximizing individual rights and minimizing the role of government in people’s lives, it has its limits. According to David Boaz’ Libertar-ianism: A Primer, a true libertarian believes that “each person has the…
Chicken-Fried News: ‘Mainstream’ fundraising
After country singer and The Voice judge/coach Blake Shelton spent the spring as an accidental mascot of the Oklahoma teacher walkout, Shelton will become an actual fundraising mascot for the state’s wildlife conservation effort. In April, an Ada elementary school student gained attention for finding that she shared a textbook that was used by Shelton…
Chicken-Fried News: Ol’ Nelly
Remember the time that one Yankee asked if you rode your horse to school when you told him you were from Oklahoma? You laughed it off, rolled your eyes and secretly dubbed him an idiot for so willingly accepting stereotypes as truth. Well, Chicken-Fried News just met the guy who gave that guy something to…
Track record
Guestroom Records Turns 15 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Friday-Saturday Guestroom Records 125 E. Main St., Norman guestroomrecords.com 405-701-5974 Free If you’re a fan of vinyl in the Oklahoma City area, chances are you’ve stepped into Guestroom Records at some point. Maybe it was the Norman location, 125 E. Main St., with its concrete floors and industrial…
Corporate intimidation
There’s a common adage that where there’s smoke there’s fire. The claims of nearly three dozen current and former employees of Oklahoma Corporation Commission lie within a more than 50-page report and range from harassment and physical intimidation to bigotry and a toxic work environment, all of which suggest that a fire has been burning…
Brain traffic
Welcome to the Traffic Jam 1-5 p.m. Mondays-Fridays through Oct. 31 Inasmuch Foundation Gallery Visual and Performing Arts Center Oklahoma City Community College 7777 S. May Ave. occc.edu Free Alexis Austin stood in a gallery filled with her paintings, looking at them. “It’s just me doing all this,” she said. Welcome to the Traffic Jam,…
Heat conductor
Oklahoma City Philharmonic’s 2018-19 season sounds off Saturday with a classic selection featuring Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor conducted by a new leader in music director Alexander Mickelthwate. Though the baton was officially passed to Mickelthwate in May 2017, the German-born maestro has spent the last year acclimating to OKC, diving…
Upscale dive
Prior to the opening of Good Times, 1234 N. Western Ave., in June, co-owner Claire Hampton admitted that she had some apprehension about its location, which was previously Fat Dog and changed concepts a few times over the years. “The location scared me the most, not if we could execute it well,” Hampton said. “I…
Money talks
Ward 2 Oklahoma City Council member Ed Shadid is optimistic about two resolutions he said the council will vote on during its next meeting on Sept. 25. Shadid briefly discussed his reasoning behind the resolutions with council members in July after he said he noticed a trend of discreet meetings taking place between city council…
Tensions overflow
Oklahoma City Black Lives Matter president Sheri Dickerson said it was ironic but not coincidental that she was pulled over by Del City Police while en route to protest the swearing in of the department’s chief, Steve Robinson, on Sept. 4. “I wasn’t ticketed,” Dickerson said. “They pulled me over and just took up my…
