'Demos To Dining:' The Music Scene Behind Phoenix Bars And Restaurants

By Lauren Gilger, Katie Campbell
Published: Monday, September 16, 2019 - 11:44am
Updated: Thursday, December 12, 2019 - 10:10am

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Wayne Coats Grace Perry Lauren Cusimano
Katie Campbell/KJZZ
(From left) Wayne Coats of Instrumental Hospitality Group, Gracie's Tax Bar owner Grace Perry and Phoenix New Times food editor Lauren Cusimano.

Phoenix musicians are behind some of the most popular bars and restaurants in town.

Wayne Coats Grace Perry Lauren Cusimano
Katie Campbell/KJZZ
Perry, Cusimano and Coats.

Lauren Cusimano, food editor for Phoenix New Times, first reported on this trend in a piece she dubbed “Demos to Dining,” and she spoke with The Show at Gracie’s Tax Bar alongside the bar’s owner, Grace Perry, formerly of metal band Landmine Marathon, and Wayne Coats of Instrumental Hospitality Group.

Lauren has always been a fan of the local music scene, and she said her writing on music was a way to go deeper into the community. In that way, she became intimately aware of the changes coming to the Phoenix food and drink world as she recognized the names of some of her favorite musicians opening some of the hottest spaces in town.

So what does take someone from, say, the Phoenix metal scene, to the world of dining? For Grace Perry, the transition just made sense.

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