Reba McEntire is saving a place at her table — and there's sure to be good bread and iced tea!
The Grammy award-winning singer, 67, has opened Reba's Place, a 15,000-square-foot restaurant, bar and live entertainment venue in her native Oklahoma.
Situated in Atoka, which is about midway between Tulsa and Dallas, the new business is already attracting attention — even before its grand opening this Thursday, McEntire tells PEOPLE.
"I am so proud of everyone involved, even the patrons, the people, my friends, relatives, people from Texas, Northern Oklahoma, out of state, even, who have already come to be at the restaurant, to taste the food, give great reports, hear the music, the merchandise, everything," she says. "It's been very successful so far without even having a grand opening. We're thrilled. We're just beyond thrilled."
Becoming a first-time restaurateur was not something "on the menu" for the busy Big Sky star, who's up for another Grammy next month (alongside Dolly Parton for best country duo/group performance for "Does He Love You - Revisited"), currently stars in the Lifetime movie The Hammer, will resume the spring run of her "Reba: Live in Concert" tour, and has a lifestyle book set to drop this fall.
She admits opening Reba's Place "wasn't my idea — I can assure you that! I've always heard that's the hardest thing to get into."
But when her mother Jacqueline died in March 2020 right as the pandemic put a stop to travel, McEntire found herself in her home state for a prolonged period for the first time in a while.
"I stayed in Oklahoma to help settle up the estate and clean up Mom and Daddy's house," she recalls. "I got myself reacquainted with everyone in the state and the love that I have for the state of Oklahoma," and that's when she was approached about a restaurant concept designed to revitalize tiny Atoka's downtown.
Along with the city council and the Choctaw Nation, McEntire moved forward on the plan, which is hosted on three floors of a former Masonic temple. She gave her input on menu items and shared a few of her must-haves with the team, with one guiding principle: "What it's supposed to be, is fun!"
On that list of restaurant requirements? "Oh, my gosh. Down-home atmosphere, which is knocked out of the ballpark. We wanted music — on a small stage. Not big bands. Not big loud. It's going to be something that people can remain eating, visiting, while the music's going on. I will go in and do some music, singing, absolutely. It has to be friendly. It has to be great food."
About that food: The restaurant's chef is Kurtess Mortensen, formerly of the Pioneer Woman Mercantile (Ree Drummond's restaurant in Pawhuska, about three hours away). And he definitely understood the assignment.
"I told them, 'You got to have great iced tea. Great bread. I want chicken fried steak. Chicken fried chicken. I want beans and cornbread,' " McEntire says. "I gave Chef Kurtess my recipe for my smashed potatoes with caramelized onions and garlic. And have to have good drinks. That's very important."
Those good drinks will have names familiar to Reba fans (yes, there's a "Fancy" cocktail on the menu, and nods to her days running barrels at the Ken Lance Sports Arena) and "all of the employees have been schooled with history of Atoka, history of the place, history of me."
But more than anything, McEntire says, it's a family affair: Her partner and Big Sky costar Rex Linn will join her at the grand opening, her niece Lucchese Luchsinger will be bartending, and her dream list of performers includes her sister and brother-in-law Susie McEntire-Eaton and Mark Eaton. That family touch extends to the third-floor library, which is filled with books from her late mother's personal collection.
"We took all of Mama's books and made a library into it, so people can come in, get a book, read a little bit. Very nice atmosphere where they can sit and visit and also have a drink," she tells PEOPLE. "She would've loved that. Books, they were her treasure. They were something that she hoarded. She would be thrilled."
