By Dylan Sciacca | Reporter
Starting a successful business is no easy task in today’s world. Expanding that business by two stories and adding in two new entertainment areas is even harder.
Encore is a rooftop bar located in the heart of downtown Waco at 724 Austin Ave. Encore has recently planned a big renovation, where they are growing from their third-floor bar and billiard table to a venue that will include the Hippodrome Theatre for comedy performances and an upscale steakhouse.
Encore operations leader Omar Santiago is optimistic about the expansion and believes it is the turning point for the rooftop bar. While expectations are high, Santiago understands that challenges are inevitable and something every new or expanding business must go through. He said marketing should be the starting point.
“The people not knowing that we even exist will be challenging, and so we are going to start pushing hard on the market, but word of mouth goes really far with us,” Santiago said.
He also expects to see some changes to operations with the number of people coming through.
“We want everybody to feel like they are welcome here,” Santiago said. “We expect to have a high volume of people, so I’d expect to have more live music … we just want to play to the mood and play to the crowd.”
Dog Haus Biergarten is a newly opened sports bar and restaurant also located in downtown Waco, which officially opened October 2025. It has successfully navigated the hardship of a brand new business, but operations manager Brant Waite believes there are important strategies to surviving the first year.
“You definitely need social media,” Waite said. “Identify your target market, whether that is Baylor or Waco locals.”
While Baylor students can be a large source of revenue during the school year, Waite said it’s important to appeal to the locals as well.
“It helps to have your main base be Waco locals because that way when Baylor students leave for summer, you still have business that you can continue to operate without too much disruption,” Waite said.
While Santiago understands the challenges Encore will be facing in the near future, he is confident that the renovation’s success will strongly outweigh the challenges they will face. Santiago believes that bringing in big celebrities like Kenan Thompson to do comedy shows in partnership with 360 Comedy Network in their new theater will put them on the map far beyond Waco.
“This is not going to be just for Waco. It’s going to be big enough to where I honestly believe it is going to be for Central Texas and maybe even bigger at some point,” Santiago said. “… I see us in eight months to a year being the number one adult place to come and hang out,” Santiago said.
