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Grand Avenue

Grid Bike Share

Before the interstate, Grand Avenue was the gateway to Los Angeles. Today, the diagonal roadway has morphed into the city’s most boho, free-spirited district, with storefronts and commercial buildings filled with galleries, cafés, yoga studios and nightspots.

MEET

• Check out works by emerging local artists at 9 The Gallery and nearby Frontal Lobe Community Space and Gallery, where a recent show was called “Mutant Piñata.” 

DO

• Rent a lime-green bicycle from Grid Bike Share to pedal up Grand Avenue or all over downtown. 

EAT

• Open until 4 a.m., Grand Avenue Pizza Company’s corner building isn’t much bigger than the slices of ooey, chewy pies it serves.

• At Treehouse Bakery, wash down vegan cupcakes and lemon-blueberry scones with almond or soy milk.

• At the elegant and intimate Barrio Café Gran Reserva renowned local chef Silvana Salcido Esparza pairs favorites from her original restaurant, Barrio Café, with daily tasting-menu specials.  

Barrio Café Gran Reserva

DRINK

• Bring cash (no cards), order pitchers and revel in vintage 1940s tiki decor at the Bikini Lounge, a mixology-free zone.

Written by Nora Burba Trulsson. Originally printed in the 2016 Greater Phoenix Destination Guide: Meeting & Travel Planner Edition, published by Madden Media.