Bar Cleeta & Big Lieutenant- Trae & Weisi Basore

Flavors of Northwest Arkansas

On episode 37 of the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas, we hop back up to Bentonville to talk with restaurant power-couple Trae and Weisi Basore. They’re the owner/operators of Bar Cleeta and The Big Lieutenant- really enjoyed my conversation with them… but before we get to them???

*Food News*

Here’s some quick food news…

• As you’ll recall, we interviewed Todd Golden from Mermaids at the end of September, and he told us that Mermaids would be closing at the end of the year. According to the Fayetteville Flyer, they have since found a new location but have yet to disclose where, as there’s still working to secure it. That’s something that we’ll continue to follow.
• KYYA chocolate has relocated their operations to Bentonville at 5400 SW Regional Airport Blvd and had their grand opening last week. Owners Rick and Kristi Boosey tell us why they made the move when they did. It also gives them some much needed additional space, and that means some new items.
• Gelatissimo is opening in downtown Rogers on Saturday morning at 11. They’ll be just the fourth Gelatissimo store in the U.S. and if you get there early on Saturday, you could get a scoop for free!
• If you have some restaurant news that you want to shoot my way, you can shoot me an email to [e-mail] or DM me on Facebook or Instagram at the Flavors of Northwest Arkansas

Now onto Bar Cleeta and the Big Lieutenant as we talk to husband/wife team Trae and Weisi Basore, and they are all about family, including the names of the restaurants and menu items.

Trae is a Bentonville native, and he and Weisi worked in the New York restaurant scene. They met at a Met’s game by happenstance. They were supposed to meet earlier. You’ll love that story.

They got married and wanted to try something different than New York, so they did the extreme opposite and moved to LA. They’ll explain.

During this time, Bentonville was growing up, and they were taking notice on their trips back.

After a year in LA, they decided to make the move to Bentonville. Once here, they got busy with pop-ups and started searching for their own spot. They’ll tell you how they found their spot for Bar Cleeta, and how they survived during Covid. We’ll also hear about the Big Lieutenant. It’s different from Bar Cleeta in that it’s not as upscale. They’ll tell us the story behind opening it.

We’ll also hear about some popular dishes from both places, including a 6-day wagyu brisket, rabbit bologna, pastrami lamb ribs, and the Arkansas Tomato Dish.

Thanks for checking us out!