New bar The Flying Moose brings a fresh look, fun games, a mug club and more to one of Clive’s old haunts.

By Amber Williams

It’s not by mistake that I have been assigned to write Belly Up. Since college, I have been a bit of a carouser. Though my taste in bar atmospheres has changed in the 10 years I’ve been legal, it seems one bar I’ve always called home has changed with me. As of opening day on Aug. 1, that bar is The Flying Moose — likely to be shortened to just The Moose in no time.

Ten years ago it was Club Iguana Jake’s, which was cool, until it wasn’t. Then it became Club 7, and my girls and I would get all sexified on the dance floor bumping to DMX. Then it became Diesel, a high-energy gay bar off the typical Clive crawl that was a lot of fun… while it lasted. Then Bogie’s Pub opened there, and it was a chill, neighborhood bar with extreme Jenga and pool, fitting for me as I aged into a chill, neighborhood bar kind of drinker. Last year, Speezy’s opened in that spot, and my only experience with it was closing day when everything was $1 — I kind of remember that.

Needless to say, the sign out front of what looks like an ordinary office space surrounded in trees has had a ladder leaned up against it a time or two… or five. But new owners of the bar promise The Moose isn’t going anywhere any time soon. And, if they had their way, the bar would shed its past skins as of Aug. 1, when it will be reborn as The Flying Moose.

“We plan to bring this back to being a local, neighborhood bar. That’s when it works. That’s when it’s successful,” said RD Summers, co-owner and former longtime bartender at the location. “It’s the neighborhood bar you’ve been waiting for.”

Among its many new charms will be an interactive game called “Drink-O,” which follows the same premise as “The Price Is Right” Plink-O game, but with drink specials and bar prizes instead of cash.

“The bartender will pick someone every hour to play Drink-O,” said co-owner Brad Cowger. “The bartender will pick whoever is having the most fun, because that’s what we’re hoping to create — an atmosphere of fun. That’s what we’re trying to sell, not just drinks, but a fun place to go.”

The Flying Moose will also have a mug club, which, for $50, a member receives a beer mug, a T-shirt and $1 off all drafts all the time. So, after 50 draws, your membership has paid for itself in savings.

Speaking of draws, The Moose is big on keeping things local. That’s why they promise to have at least five locally-brewed, Iowa beers on tap at all times, each taking turns as Beer of the Month. The drink menu also has an impressive martini list, and Summers and Cowger plan to host martini-tasting events monthly.

Regardless of what you’re used to calling it, Cowgers and Summers ask patrons to belly up to The Moose with a fresh perspective. CV

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The Flying Moose

8980 Hickman Road, Clive

515-251-7000

Theflyingmoose.com

Hours: 3 p.m.-2 a.m. every day

Happy Hour: 3-8 p.m., Mon.-Sat., nightly specials 8 p.m.-close

Entertainment: Karaoke, Tues. 9 p.m.-close

Capacity: 185