Juanita's
Juanita's Cafe and Bar is a Mexican restaurant and live music venue in Little Rock.
Juanita's is one of Central Arkansas's most noticeable venues. They have great food and play host to band's hailing from the local scene as well as the occasional "big" name band (which is always exciting.) If you ever make your way out to Juanita's, take my advice and try some of their salsa. You will not regret it. I have always found the staff to be very friendly and I can't say I have had a bad experience there to date.
As a viewer, Juanita's is a dream. The music area has a very unique layout and the huge paintings of blues musicians drawn on the walls definitely add character. My favorite part of watching bands play at Juanita's is how personal the experience can be between viewer and performer. Not long ago, I went to Juanita's to watch a band named Phantom Planet play. They are not huge, but they frequent venues much bigger than Juanita's on a regular basis. Actually, the intro to the television show "The OC" is a phantom planet song. Anyway, I went expecting to watch them play and leave feeling very content. What actually happened was a perfect example of why Juanita's is a great venue. My friend and I ended up meeting the band outside of Juanita's at their trailer before the show. We introduced ourselves and talked music for a while, and we even got to carry in a few of their guitars. This may not be a regular occurrence between bands and fans at Juanita's, but it does serve as an example of the amazing environment that surrounds the establishment.
As a performer, Juanita's is just as fulfilling. The positioning of the stage and the relaxed seating arrangement exudes a no pressure atmosphere where one can really get to enjoy playing music. There are ample outlets (which is very important, and surprisingly uncommon), and a reasonably sized band can find plenty of room on stage. Juanita's serves as a vibrant musical meeting place in the Central Arkansas area.
