Private club opening in Lexington’s former Cross Gate Gallery with restaurant, bars, terrace
Another new dining club is coming to Lexington, but this one will be all private.
The Camel Club is expected to open at 509 E. Main St, in the former Cross Gate Gallery mansion, in late March or early April.
The club won approval from the Lexington city council in November 2023 for a zone change over the objections of residents in the Bell Court neighborhood concerned about the impact that the club would have on traffic and noise.
But club owners reassured the neighborhood that the impact would be minimal and that it would not be a “party club.”
So what is the Camel Club exactly?
What the Camel Club will offer members
According to Hank Morris, one of the developers, along with Tyler Bromagen, Field Ladd, William Ryan and Brian Babbage, the Camel Club will be “a melting pot” for Lexington.
Morris came to the Bluegrass area in 2021 to help develop The Manchester, an award-winning Distillery District hotel. Over the three years he lived here, he said, he came to love the area.
“There’s incredible cultural diversity across the city, but it rarely came together,” he said. “There are so many interesting people, but they tend to keep to their bubbles. We want this to be a melting pot.”
They plan to have lots of varied programming, he said. “We have taken deliberate steps to ensure that we are a place that offers something for all Lexingtonians, both for those who have lived here their entire lives, and for those who have recently arrived, providing a space for everyone,” Morris said. “Our membership team, led by Samantha Kline, will be focused on curating a slew of thoughtfully assembled and near daily member programming and cultural events that will integrate the club into our member’s daily lives and build a true community. These will range from wines and spirits tastings, a weekly book club, chef tasting dinners and film screenings, to art exhibitions, seasonal soirées and guest speaker series.”
He also addressed rumors swirling that the club would be male-only.
“We want to be the opposite of an old man’s club. We really do want this to be a melting pot and not a country club,” Morris said. “We plan to celebrate arts and culture.”
Why it’s called Camel Club
Why a camel? In part because it’s similar to but very different from a horse.
“The name was actually first suggested to us by a good friend of ours locally, Will Coffman of Bullhorn Creative,” Morris said. ”The initial inspiration came from the camel statue that sits atop a plinth at Lexington’s true center point in Phoenix Park. We found the camel to really stand for the concept of resilience and adaptability as we were looking to create a legacy, multigenerational fixture to the city. So I suppose we really chose ‘Camel Club’ as a symbol of a welcoming, enduring and inclusionary space where we hope people will gather, connect, and push forward together for many years to come.
“On an aside, but also relevant, we too liked the camel’s similarities to a horse, but also its distinct, often rather amusing differences and quirks. At the club, we will, of course, cater to Lexington’s more familiar social scene and love of all things equestrian and Thoroughbred racing, but also to those who happen to not be in those social circles at all,” Morris said. “I suppose it was a subtle way of hinting, ‘We are not your traditional country club or member’s club. We’re a space for all.’”
The people behind the new private club
Ladd, the son of Cross Gate Gallery owner Greg Ladd, bought the property from his family with Bromagen, another hotel developer who has just opened two new boutique properties in Frankfort.
“Tyler and Field conceived the idea of a social club, and that aligned with what I felt was lacking in my time there. We came together and took on two other partners. ... We’ve since fully renovated the property and plan to open at the end of March or early April in time for the Keeneland season.”
As the club’s developer in charge of creating the concept, Morris said that he’s worked with long-time collaborator and interior designer Jenny Bukovec, who helped design the look of The Manchester, to update the iconic pink Colonial Revival mansion and turn it into a hub of culture.
The former art gallery now houses a restaurant, two bars, a screening room, hi-fi listening lounge, library, co-work spaces, meeting rooms, private dining rooms and more, as well as a large garden terrace.
The restaurant and bars will be open to members and their guests; the public will not be able to make reservations without an invitation from a member.
“It’s a small property, only about 14,000 square feet, but we’ve squeezed in a lot of really interesting programming,” Morris said. “A big part of it is co-working space where, as a member, you can fully work out of the space. It’s ideal for freelancers who may not have an office, or those who have an office but want to work from the club one day a week and take lunch downstairs.”
There will be seating indoors for about 180, with another 150 seats outdoors.
The chef, hospitality team
To enhance the ambiance, they’ve hired some hospitality heavy hitters, including a well-known local chef.
Nathan Vorhees, formerly of Eppings on Eastside and Coles on Main, will run the culinary program at the Camel Club. The bar program will “be very much split down the middle between classic Pre-Prohibition cocktails and exploratory new-age cocktails,” Morris said.
There also will be lots of non-alcoholic drinks and a big wine cellar.
“We hope to have the most impressive wine collection in the city,” he said.
Menu and cocktail prices will be “very approachable,” he said. “We’re not a fine dining restaurant and we appreciate that members are already paying a fee.”
Hospitality veteran Brooks Sherrel, formerly of Blackberry Farm’s High Hampton Resort in North Carolina, The Cloister at Sea Island resort in Georgia, among others, will be the Camel Club’s operating director.
The club will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner five days a week, Wednesday through Sunday, with beverages and snacks available Mondays and Tuesdays. Most of the seating will be low-set lounge seats, but there will be some tables. Members will be able to bring up to three guests a day to dine or to enjoy programming such as wine tastings, lectures and films.
Applications for membership are available online; Morris said they hope to open with 350 members and grow from there. Membership prices range from $125 a month after a $1,500 initiation fee to $350 a month after a $4,450 initiation fee.
Members will be able to park in two nearby lots, he said, as well as in limited street parking.
This story was originally published February 17, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
