Park Place dealerships opens Lotus of Plano

Park Place dealerships opens Lotus of Plano

Grand opening celebration benefits Dallas Moustache’s efforts to raise awareness of men’s health issues

Stephen James, General Manager, Lotus of Plano, with Natalie Tastle, Dallas Moustache . Photos by David Alvey.

(Plano) When the new Lotus of Plano dealership made its debut recently, Park Place Dealerships converted the glass showroom on Plano Parkway into the ultimate man cave.

DJ Andre set the mood with Rat Pack favorites. And Park Place made a $2500 donation to Dallas Moustache, a local non-profit that raises awareness and funds for men’s health issues, specifically prostate and testicular cancers.

Park Place Lotus of Plano
Lotus Exige S 260

“Lotus is a very sporty brand with a proud racing heritage,” said Rob Sumner, marketing director, Park Place Dealerships. “We wanted to create an environment that represented the spirit of the edgy, high-performance sports car while appealing to the sophistication of our guests. And, of course, our clients know when they buy any vehicle from Park Place, they receive the ultimate in service and client experience.”

Bill Moss, Plano Chamber of Commerce, with Cory Brenner of Irving.

Lotus cars are born on the track, designed for the streets and built around the driver.

Park Place Lotus of Plano
The Elise SC

Lotus offers three models: the tactile Elise, the track-inspired Exige and the practical Evora. The Elise SC is the ultimate evolution of a pure-bred sports car with a new supercharged, 1.8 litre, 218 HP, 16 valve, 4-cylinder engine, delivering instant acceleration and even torque accessible from low in the rev range.

Weighing only 2,000 pounds, the Exige S sports a supercharged 1.8 litre, 257 HP, mid-mounted 16 valve, 4-cylinder engine, combining the best of raw performance and civilized handling.

The Evora 2+2 brings comfort and performance to a daily driver with adjustable, leather trimmed sports seats and a practical 2+2 rear seat.

Park Place Lotus of Plano
Kyle Paris of Jaspers Restaurant at the Shops @ Legacy, winning mixologist works on his Maple Dram-hattan
Brad Hensarling of Campo Modern Country Bistro creates his Montpelier Manhattan

Park Place and Brown Forman invited six area mixologists to create their version of the perfect Manhattan using Woodford Reserve bourbon.

Austin Bird, mixologist at The Usual, created The County Line; Sean Connor – The Whiskey Cake Cocktail; Chris Dempsey – Winter in Manhattan; Brad Hensarling of Campo Modern Country Bistro – a Montpelier Manhattan; Scott Melton of The Gin Mill – The Five Points Manhattan; and Kyle Paris –of Jaspers Restaurant at the Shops @ Legacy – the Maple Dram-hattan. Kyle Paris was the people’s choice, with Chris Dempsey coming in second and Brad Hensarling third.

Lotus of Plano
Mike Thibodeaux, Jr., Mike Thibodeaux and Dante Thompson of Plano
Cigars were hand-rolled by House of Cigars.

Naturally, the food choices complemented the caliber of the drinks with tantalizing fare such as ceviche marinated with a touch of Woodford Reserve and oso bucco quail legs served atop plantain mash and a Woodford Reserve chipotle pomegranate glaze from Agave Azul; Kobe beef sliders and grilled chicken skewers served with a spicy peanut sauce by III Forks Steakhouse; and smoked scallop mousse éclair with lobster and shrimp bisque by Tony Gardizi. Honey Girl Kitchen provided sweet temptations, including petite double chocolate bites and organic zest petite lemon bars.

Dapper Magazine transformed the dealership’s service drive into a Cigar Den with premium cigars, hand-rolled on-site by House of Cigars, and special tastings of Woodford Reserve.

Brown-Forman Spirits also provided Chambord Vodka, Finlandia Vodka, Herradura Tequila, and Sonoma Cutrer Wines.

Park Place Lotus of Plano
Mike Kellis-Murphy of Frisco with Judith Bridges of Frisco

Mike Kellis-Murphy of Frisco won an Agave Azul Tequila dinner for 10, including a three-course meal paired with tequilas, and a Lotus gift bag.

Albert Plunkett of Allen won a Woodford Reserve Bourbon Tasting for 10 and a golf bag.

Lotus of Plano is located at 4422 West Plano Parkway in Plano.

Park Place Dealerships was founded in 1987 by Ken Schnitzer with a Mercedes-Benz dealership on Oak Lawn in Dallas. Celebrating 25 years as “Experts in Excellence,” Park Place Dealerships now operates two Park Place Bodywerks locations and 16 full-service dealerships across Dallas-Fort Worth, representing luxury brands Bentley, Jaguar, Lexus, Lotus, Maserati, McLaren, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, smart, Volvo and Rolls-Royce.

For more information, go to parkplace.com.

Story and photos by David Alvey.

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