Late this afternoon, the media will get their first look at the renovated bar in the 126-year-old Yale Hotel on Granville Street.

Then on Friday (November 13), the public will be able to walk through the doors of what's going to be known as the Yale Saloon.

It comes four years after the bar closed for a major renovation.

For decades, the building on the north end of the Granville Bridge was home to one of Canada's most famous blues bars.

Over the years, it entertained musical giants like Jimmy Page, B.B. King, and Johnny Winter.

Earlier this year, the father-and-son team of Waide and Joe Luciak sold the Yale Hotel to the MRG Group, which runs the Vogue Theatre and the Biltmore.

In its newest incarnation, the famous Yale will feature jazz, karaoke, and other live music as well as the blues.

In a news release in September, the new owners also revealed that there will be cow-print carpet spreads and a mechanical bull, all to add a country-and-western feel.

Patrons can step right up in the dining area for slow-smoked meats, lettuce wraps and tacos, and corn bread and coleslaw.

Yes, the famous neon sign featuring a saxophone will still glow off the building. Some things never change. 

When the Luciaks owned the Yale, they sold its air rights to Rize Alliance. The developer applied the density to its 23-storey condo on the former Cecil Hotel site.

As part of the deal, the city required the Luciaks to preserve 43 low-cost housing units in the Yale Hotel.