The people behind State 48 Brewery are adding bourbon to their pallet. Phoenix Bourbon Room — a full restaurant and bar, complete with two patios, a lounge, and a dining room — will open on May 10th downtown on the second floor of CityScape, in the former home of Tilted Kilt at 2 East Jefferson Street.
The restaurant and bar will specialize in bourbon, rye, and whiskey, and will offer over 650 bottles of spirits to choose from.
“We’ll be pouring a lot of sought-after bourbons, as well as some barrels made specifically for us in Kentucky,” says owner Mario Rana, who also has a 36oz Tomahawk steak and a 44oz Porterhouse on his menu. According to the restauranteur, “There aren’t a lot of places in the area to sit down and have a nice meal with a fork and knife. Phoenix Bourbon Room will give the neighborhood that option. Of course, we’ll also have burgers and sandwiches.”
To add to the restaurant’s Kentucky vibe, Rana has renovated the space to give it the feel of an old-school Kentucky lounge, with leather couches, walls of Old World Stone, imported Italian porcelain and terrazzo floors, and whiskey staves (the type of wood used to make barrels) decorating the walls.
“We want to do for bourbon what we’ve done for beer at State 48,” Rana says, “instill it with some American pride. It is, after all, the most American of spirits.”
Also distinctly American is the restaurant’s new entrance, which has been moved front-and-center and revamped with awnings and a front patio. Come May, head there for some aged whiskey and a rare steak before walking down the block to watch the Diamondbacks hit one out of the park. I mean, can you get more American than that?
