Pete Rose Strikes Out at Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill

By Scott Roeben, on August 18 2016
2 min read 3 comments
Las Vegas Las Vegas Bars Las Vegas Restaurants

Baseball icon Pete Rose is no longer involved with the former Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill at the Hawaiian Marketplace on the Las Vegas Strip.

As evidence of his parting ways with the venue, Rose’s name has been unceremoniously blacked out on the restaurant’s signage.

Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill
So much awkward, so little time.

Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill had its official opening on Oct. 14, 2015. Before it became Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill, it was the People’s Republic Beer Garden & Kitchen.

The opening of the Pete Rose Sports Bar & Grill was curious given it seemed to materialize overnight. Pete Rose’s involvement in the place appears to have ended just as abruptly.

Pete Rose sports bar Las Vegas
The baseball seams on the ceiling are one of the few reminders Pete Rose was ever involved with the restaurant. They’ll be painted over soon.

While we haven’t heard from anyone at HIG Management, the company that operates the restaurant (and which was involved with the defunct F.A.M.E. at the Linq promenade), we can take a pretty good stab at what the official statement will be. It’s Las Vegas, after all.

“We can confirm Pete Rose is no longer involved with our bar and restaurant. Pete Rose is a baseball legend, and our relationship has been a mutually beneficial one. However, in reviewing our business needs and licensing agreements, we’ve made the difficult, mutual decision to discontinue our collaboration on this project. We wish Pete Rose the best in all his future endeavors.”

Las Vegas translation: “The business hasn’t doing all that well, and having Pete Rose’s name slapped on it wasn’t a big draw, so why are we paying these licensing fees?” Or something along those lines. It happens.

The bottom line is Pete Rose is out, but the bar and restaurant will continue to operate. Staff believe a new concept is in the works, although no specifics are available at this time.

Virtually all traces of Pete Rose are gone at the establishment, including all the memorabilia, presumably from Pete Rose’s private collection.

Pete Rose Las Vegas
This case was once full of autographed baseballs, bats and other Pete Rose memorabilia. Now, not so much.

The Pete Rose-inspired menus remain intact, but not for long.

Also gone is the throne made with bats (67 to be exact) made in Pete Rose’s honor by one of venue’s bartenders.

Pete Rose throne of bats
We’re curious where this ended up. It was a popular photo op.

If we hear anything official about all this, we’ll certainly pass it along.

Special thanks to loyal reader and citizen journalist Jeremiah W. for tipping us off to this story.