A downtown Phoenix cafe, bar and radio station aims to be more than the sum of its parts
Jake Stellarwell along with a group of 18 other artists soft-opened Central Records cafe and wine bar in downtown Phoenix at the beginning of February. "We are an agency, a radio station, DJ group," he said, adding that the new space is a destination for music, food, drinks, coffee and even a radio station.
Plants are interspersed between wooden bins of LPs in the center of the room and shelves of more LPs and books about music line two walls. The bar serves wine, beer and cocktails and a DJ spins music in a glass-encased room for Recordbar Radio, a streaming platform for local DJs. Sound-absorbing panels that look like canvases hang from the walls and music fills the room.
"Music, food and coffee and entertainment are age old pairings," said Stellarwell, who has been DJing for 26 years. "We are not re-inventing the wheel. We are just bringing really, really well-intentioned and well-curated aspects to a single space."
Jazz kissas — kissa means cafe — started in the 1920s in Japan. Similar establishments, Stellarwell said, also exist in other major cities like Chicago, New York and San Francisco.
"Phoenix is becoming a metropolitan city in contention with those major cities. For us, it's our way of showing the city that we too can have nice things."
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What kind of music do they play at Central Records?
The owners try to carry music of different genres from ambient music to hip hop, soul and jazz and books, mainly about music, but also covering other topics that interest them, "like marijuana, sex, politics, graphic design and film."
The records, Stellarwell explained, are a hodgepodge of some of the owners' records they were willing to part with, imports from Europe and local collections.
And this is just the beginning. According to Stellarwell the group has plans to open even more elevated concepts.
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What's on the menu
Chef Dana Arbel, who previously worked at Cha Cha Tea Lounge, is responsible for the menu, which incorporates her Israeli and Argentinian backgrounds. It's divided into three sections: breakfast, lunch and lounge, based on the time of day.
Arbel said she designed the menu to fit the concept. For breakfast, available from 9 a.m. to noon, she offers a rotating assortment of pastries and a few toast options, such as butter and banana toast and egg and cheese toast.
Lunch, served from noon to 4 p.m., includes two salads and a few sandwiches, like gabagool sandwich made with capocollo, manchego, roasted bell pepper, arugula and toum, a creamy garlic aioli on focaccia.
Lounge, served from 4 p.m. to close, is a selection of small plates, like mushroom pate or tagine spiced olives and Marcona almonds.
Vegan and vegetarian options are also available.
"We are trying to intentionally resonate with a wide group of people and keep our menu affordably priced," Stellarwell said.
The drinks menu features coffee, wine, beer and canned cocktails.
Details: 824 N. Central Ave., Phoenix. 602-638-0433, @central.records on Instagram.
Prices: Breakfast items range between $10 and $15.50; Lunch from $10.50 to $15.50 and the evening menu items are $4.75 to $13.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday; 9 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix restaurant and bar is serving coffee, booze and vinyl downtown
