Movin' on down: Lodo sets up shop in former Jeremiah's building

It's a warm, quiet weekday night downtown; not too hot to walk.

In fact, the muggy river air makes stepping into LoDo's cool, neon ambience especially soothing.

The Broncos hold a seven-point lead above the bar as a trio of lightly tattooed girlfriends, sipping cocktails and tipping craft beers, scroll through photos of another friend's pink-faced newborn.

Owner Brad Pool sits at the bar, talking with bartender Sarah, greeting the occasional regular and idly checking the score.

"It's just preseason," he says skeptically. "They lost to the Rams last week, after all."

Sara Krim pours two drinks at Lodo, Saturday night, Aug. 9, 2014. (GLENN LANDBERG)

He's spent the day doing handiwork around the bar and looks genuinely relaxed to be done for the day. LoDo is in the midst of an evolution of sorts.

After 10 years in Cape Girardeau, LoDo now is settling into its third location, 127 N. Water St., in what used to be Jeremiah's. The familiar decorations have made the move well; the Pabst clock with the bent minute hand reads 10 and rusted antique beer cans line the north wall. The cluster of stickers and magnets cover the fridge, a Denver Bronco among them.

The high, wooden ceiling with exposed beams and ductwork gives the bar a bit of breathing room. At the moment it's not much bigger than the old Main Street location, but it feels more open. Cedar-lined shelves dot the brick interior walls.

Google "LoDo" and the first result will be the bar's namesake: the Denver nightlife district responsible for the "lower downtown" abbreviation.

And Pool didn't just swipe the name; returning to his hometown after living in Colorado, he decided to re-create LoDo's distinct, loungey vibe.

Sara Krim, bartender at LoDo, laughs with a customer Saturday night, Aug. 9, 2014. (GLENN LANDBERG)

"It's all about vision," he says, rubbing his newly beardless jaw, searching for the words to articulate that vision. "You go out to a place in Denver, St. Louis, Kansas City even, and you can find really great bars. Places with a specific identity."

That was the germ of inspiration for LoDo a decade ago: not to open another bar, but to construct an imported milieu. A place where patrons can have a Colorado evening. Even some of the brews are from Colorado; half a dozen big tin O'Dell's signs line one wall, advertising half a dozen Colorado IPAs and lagers.

That's not to say there isn't standard bar fare; the jukebox meanders from "Fancy" to Incubus to Tom Petty. A group near the door cheers one guy's dartboard heroics. But there's a certain panache to the place.

"I wanted there to be a place in Cape where people wouldn't necessarily feel like they were in Cape," Pool explains.

He says that's one of the most frequent comments he hears from customers; and one he takes as high praise.

Roman Smith throws darts at LoDo's New location, Saturday night, Aug. 9, 2014. (GLENN LANDBERG)

"When I hear that, I feel like I'm doing something right."

He says he's had his eye on the old Jeremiah's building for a couple of years and that the new space is perfect for further fine-tuning of the LoDo concept.

"It gives us a chance to have a room for craft beer as well as a space for the cocktails that we were originally known for," he explains.

But he added with a laugh that the location is about as apt as is physically possible.

"We're as far 'lower downtown' as you're going to get without being in the water."

tgraef@semissourian.com

388-3627

Pertinent address: 127 N. Water St., Cape Girardeau