A bar inside a restaurant in southwest Fort Worth is facing criticism for its name. Owner Brent Johnson recently chatted with Texas Monthly about why he chose to call his establishment bar9eleven.
The pub is actually part of a Tex-Mex restaurant called Rio Mambo. On September 11, 2001, Johnson was preparing to open the doors to his new eatery when he received a call from his wife. She described the events as they were happening, and at the time, there were very few details. Johnson, not realizing how serious the situation was, rushed her off the phone so he could continue with the final touches. Only later, would the family realize how tragic that day would become.
When Rio Mambo remodeled over a decade later, Johnson decided to call the new addition "bar9eleven". Partly because that was the original opening day, and mostly to honor the victims of 9/11. There are signs and descriptions inside explaining why they named it such.
Recently, a Twitter user posted a photo of the brick-and-mortar, and suddenly Johnson had a lot of questions to answer.
He stands behind his decision to keep the name as a tribute. Interestingly enough, the name has been on the marquee for years, but it was just discovered by the Twittersphere.