A sports bar and lounge featuring full-sized golf simulators and an indoor patio situated for people-watching will become a new feature of Oak Park Mall in September, with the opening of AME Golf and Brew.
What is it? The lounge is a new concept from Minnesota-based business owners Ryan and Jennifer Marshall, who own AME Sports, a memorabilia shop already open in the mall.
- AME Sports, which stands for Autograph and Memorabilia Experts, has locations in Oak Park Mall as well as the Minneapolis suburbs of Edina and Maplewood.
- Those stores are focused on selling sports memorabilia, like autographed jerseys, often promoted withe events that include player appearances.
Background: But the lounge concept has been a dream for the Marshalls that became feasible when a 3,800-square-foot former Microsoft store space, complete with plumbing for water and ice machines, became available, Ryan Marshall said.
- The lounge, which is not close to the original AME Sports store within the mall, will have televisions, a bar and appetizers in addition to the golf simulators.
- Some sports memorabilia will also be available for purchase, he said.
What’s next: The original AME Sports store is expected to remain open at least through the holidays, and the Marshalls are targeting a September open for the lounge.
What they’re saying: “The new store will have less memorabilia but more of a sports experience with the golf simulators,” Ryan Marshall said. “People can come in with their own clubs or we’ll have clubs for them to rent and play golf inside when the weather’s trying to kill us.”
Roxie Hammill is a freelance journalist who reports frequently for the Post and other Kansas City area publications. You can reach her at roxieham@gmail.com.