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Archie Schaffer IV Plans Big Star Bar in Beaver Electric Building

2 min read

Archie Schaffer IV last week moved one step closer to opening his Big Star bar in Fayetteville, the first solo venture for the northwest Arkansas restaurateur. Schaffer received conditional approval of his private club permit from Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control.

He co-owns five Flying Burrito restaurants in the area — three in Fayetteville, one in Springdale and one in Bentonville — with partner Mike Rohrbach, as well as Kingfish Bar in Fayetteville, a venture with Rohrbach and Ben Merryman.

Schaffer says Big Star will be more upscale than Kingfish, which he describes as a “dive.” That dive quality is intentional, however. Schaffer thinks of his bars in terms of years: Kingfish is 1966 (lots of Formica and old beer signs, a place that’s been there forever) and Big Star will be 1955, with lots of wood and craft beers and craft cocktails.

Big Star will be in a local landmark, the old Beaver Electric building at 208 N. Block Ave. The building originally housed the Packard dealership in the ‘20s, Schaffer said, and is just a few blocks from Kingfish, at 262 N. School Ave.

Big Star will have turntables behind a the bar so customers can bring in their vinyl to be played. And Schaffer plans a jukebox and a ricochet shuffleboard table and dart board in a game room in the back.

He was hoping to have his building permits in hand in a day or two so his contractor could start build-out of the building. Schaffer expects Big Star to open in April.

He decided against opening another restaurant because, Schaffer said, the area has reached a saturation point with dining spots, causing his restaurant sales to fall. “Unfortunately, a lot of them are these national chains that are coming and are just gobbling up all the sales that we used to have,” Schaffer said.

Big Star presented a unique opportunity because of its location, he said. “Block Street is growing,” Schaffer said. “It’s tied into Dickson Street now. That area is sort of becoming its own little entertainment district.”

And if you’re wondering, yes, Schaffer, 45, is the son of Archie Schaffer III, longtime politico, nephew of former Sen. Dale Bumpers and retired Tyson Foods executive.

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