UPDATE (July 3, 2018): RFD Social—Located in Ponce City Market’s Tower—Has Officially Opened
The Roof at Ponce City Market will expand this spring with the unveiling of RFD Social in the building’s tower, featuring a revamped 10th-floor lobby area and a private event venue on the 11th floor.
Slater Hospitality, the owner/operator of Ponce City Market’s Skyline Park, Nine Mile Station, and Rooftop Terrace, is behind the forthcoming concept.
The hospitality company last week released details for RFD Social. What Now Atlanta first broke the news of the plans in August 2017 when restoration on the tower began.
“With RFD Social, we are hoping to preserve the vintage feel and history of the tower, while offering two new event and entertainment experiences for our guests on the Roof,” Mandy Slater, owner of Slater Hospitality, said in a prepared statement.
“This expansion has been a project of passion and dedication for our team and we look forward to unveiling the finished space next month.”
Upon arriving from the freight elevator’s 10th-floor entrance to the Roof, guests will now be welcomed by The Parlour, an extension of the indoor lobby, featuring a public bar area.
The full bar and lounge will feature 77 seats and eclectic European-inspired finishes such as reclaimed vintage French chandeliers, bistro-style tables, custom brown leather banquettes, and a display of old-fashioned radios and manipulated 1920s photography.
The Parlour will offer early century style games including bumper pool, tabletop shuffleboard, and an antique poker table. Open to the public during Skyline Park’s regular hours, the expanded lobby area will also be available for private event bookings.
The newly restored 11th floor will boast 3,970 square feet of private meeting and fully private event space called the Roebuck Room, equipped to host up to 175 guests for a variety of gatherings including team building, training, off-site meetings and social events.
Local design firm ASD | SKY was tasked with designing RFD Social, using Ponce City Market’s industrial roots to define the design palate for each level.
Throughout the design will be the use of “plush textures” such as velvet, marble, and leather, in addition to stenciled concrete floors, wood-paneled walls, and aged tin ceilings.
The name “RFD Social” was inspired by Dinner Bell R.F.D. (Radio Farmer’s Democracy), a local radio show originally broadcasted from the tower’s 11th floor in the 1920s.
Sears & Roebuck would air the show three days a week at noon when rural farmers and housewives took a break from their day to gather around the table.
At the start of each program, host and harmonist Dewey Burnett would ring a dinner bell, followed by a show full of farming and homemaking advice and music by local musicians of the time, from John Carson to the Wompus Cats.
