The group runs Tell Your Friends, a Gatsby-esque underground lounge serving craft cocktails, and Cala, a Mediterranean restaurant filled with lush greenery and well-heeled patrons.
But now, the team is diverging from their theme to bring a "new dive bar" to Tempe.
Neon Spur welcomed its first customers on Jan. 30. The bar "combines the laid-back vibe of the 1970s with a retro cowboy aesthetic," according to a news release. It features an indoor space outfitted with vintage furniture, Western-inspired decor, a pool table and American flags. Neon signs buzz and disco balls spin overhead. An outdoor space is home to a trailer bar.
“Neon Spur is designed to stand out amongst the local bar scene,” Mikis Troyan, Clive Collective co-founder and managing partner said in the release. “The intention is to foster a lively, hospitable space where locals and visitors come together to socialize and enjoy cold cans, stiff drinks and good backyard grub.”
That grub was created by MacMillan and the menu focuses on "recognizable American comfort food," the release says.
MacMillan is known for his frequent Food Network appearances. The celebrity chef, along with Clive Collective co-founders Troyan and Justin Massei partnered with kNOw Name Concepts on the new bar. Run by Eric Ferrone and Ed Oakes, kNOw Name Concepts recently opened the espresso martini bar Three Beans Cafe in Old Town Scottsdale.
Neon Spur has teased its arrival on social media with videos of cowboy boot- and bikini-clad models dancing through the desert.
"We heard Tempe is in need of a new dive bar," a Jan. 6 post reads. "Meet Neon Spur, where country and '70s basement meet to form a new dive bar experience."
