First it was an art gallery. Now it's an art gallery that serves booze.
The Lost Leaf opened in a historic home in Phoenix's Roosevelt Row arts district in March 2006 as an art gallery and kind of hangout space for artists and others, and close to 15 months later finally was approved for a liquor license.
Arguably the most attractive feature of the Lost Leaf is that, unlike so many places downtown, especially on Mondays, it's open every day. As a gallery, it was open only on First Fridays, but now the gallery is open 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily and features live music frequently during the week as well as on often shoulder-to-shoulder-packed Fridays and Saturdays. (A list of upcoming shows is at thelostleaf.org.)
The Lost Leaf's approach to being a bar is as idiosyncratic as the 1920s-era house in which it's located. The place serves only wine and beer, and all the more than 80 kinds of beer are in bottles, including a few that are organic or gluten-free.
The scene: The intimate, mostly candle-lit bar is filled with dark wood throughout, with wooden chairs and a few high-top tables and has a very dark, very chill atmosphere.
The cool kids know: Happy hour, from 5-7 p.m., offers $1 off all beers, most of which are in the $4-$6 range. The beers stretch all the way from $2 for Old Style, Schlitz, Pabst Blue Ribbon and Miller High Life to $9 for a 24-ounce bottle of Three Philosophers, a dark ale with an alcohol content of 9 percent. The Lost Leaf also recycles all of its cardboard, reuses drink coasters and tries to leave the smallest possible carbon footprint.
The crowd: Lots of neighborhood residents. The bike rack out front rarely is empty. Many of the local artists whose work hangs from the walls can be found milling about. The Lost Leaf, unlike most traditional galleries, gives 100 percent of art sales to its artists, who produce a stunning variety of paintings and drawings displayed nearly everywhere. The crowd can vary wildly depending on that night's musical act, which may be a DJ or the local acclaimed jazz band Sonorous. All shows are free and usually start around 9:30 p.m.
The deal: The Lost Leaf now accepts Phx Bux (Phoenix Bucks), the recently launched downtown currency that worth roughly $1, depending on the proprietor.
The drink: Really, there isn't one drink at the Lost Leaf, the beauty of which lies in its variety. All wines by the glass are $5-$8.
