In January we showed you Ohio State University’s Newark campus where we salvaged what we could of their old bleachers.  Today we’re sharing bleacher boards in their second life at the newest Houston TX sport’s bar, Biggio’s.

Astros Baseball Hall of Fame Member Craig Biggio and the Marriott Marquis Houston formed a partnership which includes the new sports bar named Biggio’s. The eatery is a sprawling two level space overlooking Discovery Green. Leading the decor lineup is a wall of TV screens that span two stories. Not to be missed is a variety of sports-minded design details, including the bar front showcasing the Craig Biggio’s wooden bats and various expanses of our Reclaimed Bleacher Boards.

“This product was meant to be for the Biggio’s space! [Pioneer Millworks] happened to be in our office when we were finalizing plans and you introduced us to this perfect option that could be extremely unique for the space. It was something we had never done before and knew it could be a risk, but it sure turned out to be one worth taking. Since the reclaimed bleacher wood could be from anywhere, we wanted to make sure we had pieces that could tie back to the story of the Houston sports scene that surrounds the Houston Marriott Marquis from almost all directions – the Astros Minute Maid Park being the closest. We knew that the guests of this sports bar would truly appreciate this unique product- it’s so fun to think of the stories that are “within the wood.”” notes Julianne Cary of Looney Associates, leading hospitality designers.

Aiming to meet the budget and time frame for Biggio’s, our team including Carolyn, Roblyn, and Alex put their skills together landing on reclaimed bleacher boards. The boards for Biggio’s were sourced from several different salvage projects including: Hinsdale High School, Illinois; Pittsburg State University, Kansas; Altoona High School, Pennsylvania. Biggio’s embraced and celebrated the original grey paint [from the Pittsburg reclamation] and the labels/numbers [from Altoona], giving them predominate space behind the Biggo’s main level sign, the elevator walls, on the hostess station, and surrounding booth seating.

The sports bar has local Texas ingredients prepared in unexpected ways and some familiar ways too. Chicken wings, loaded nachos, a giant pretzel, guac and chips to Texas caviar served with tortillas and bison chili. Entrees include chicken and potatoes or chicken and waffles to Texas wild boar Bolognese with pasta and red-fish with corn and succotash. There are various and changing draft beer selections on each level and crafted cocktails featuring spirits from local and small craft distilleries.

Seating options are numerous inside Biggo’s, ranging from the large central bar, to cushy chair/sofa combinations, to high-top tables, to semi-private booths and group boxes, to a long line of soft chairs facing the two level televisions and a smaller, boutique-like second level bar. Each area is accented with a mixture of bleacher planks adorning the walls.

Bleacher boards used for atmosphere and celebrated as sports memorabilia – Biggio’s has given us another exciting venue to experience the character, food, and fun of Houston!