A new pub in Bend aims to combine live local music and a British-inspired vibe. The Commonwealth Pub is the latest project for Dan Larsson, a former immigration lawyer, and his partner Bob O'Connor. Larsson is also a local musician who plays in bands including Beatles cover band Juju Eyeball, Superball and Shine, he told the Source Weekly. O'Connor, meanwhile, is a "former collegiate soccer player and music buff and has been part of building several top venues here in Bend, such as Drake, Washington, Mountain Burger and the new Cascade Lakes Brewing, to name a few," Larsson described in an email.
The Commonwealth Pub, planned to open in October, is located in the Century Center area off of Century Drive on Bend's west side. The pub is British-inspired but will also have offerings inspired by Commonwealth nations such as Canada, Australia, Jamaica and India. Outside the pub will sit at least two food trucks, including Hand Held Happiness, a British-inspired truck offering hand-held meat pies, fries and other foods from Commonwealth Nations. Another local cart, Whappo's, featuring Caribbean food, will also set up shop outside the new pub, Larsson told the Source.
Hand Held Happiness replaces the Italian street food truck, Cotto, which moved out of its location Sept. 3 and will take a few weeks off before setting up at The Podski food cart lot, its owners told the Source Weekly.
The pub will feature TVs for watching sports found in the Commonwealth — including rugby, soccer, cricket and hockey— and will also focus on live music.
"Our focus is on treating musicians and performers fairly with proper compensation as well as a professional stage, sound system, and lights," Larsson described. "As musicians ourselves, we know that sometimes performers get a raw deal and music lovers and the audience often suffer for that. We created a venue specifically to disrupt that system, with voluntary cover charges, fair wages for the bands, and much more!"
Look for an opening date announcement soon.
