Weekend Fun

Posted on 27. Aug, 2010 by Tony Arranaga in News

A Critical Mass of bikes on the streets of Phoenix, The Torch Theater improvises at Practical Art, and new entertainment destinations open at the high rise developemtn called CityScape. These are some of the events on my radar for this edition of Weekend Fun along the light rail in Phoenix.

Friday 8/27

Critical Mass is the monthly group bike ride through the streets of central Phoenix. The nationwide event is meant to draw attention to the growing bike culture in most cities and to get motorists accustomed to traveling on the same roadway as bikes. The group leaves the 3rd Street entrance to Steele Indian School Park at 7 p.m. and takes the following route: Indian School to Central Ave. North to Missouri. East to 7th street. 7th street south to McDowell. McDowell east to 3rd Ave. North on 3rd avenue (source). The ride usually ends at 8:30 p.m. and afterward, many people head over to the Clarendon Hotel for a dip  in the pool. Be sure to ‘like’ the Critical Mass Phoenix Facebook page and stay up to date on future rides. Steele Indian School Park is located directly across the street from the Indian School and Central Station on the east side of Central.

Improvisors with The Torch Theater are taking a break from renovating their new uptown digs (4721 N Central Ave) and heading to perform at Practical Art on Central Avenue just north of the Camelback Station. The event is free, but donations are being accepted to help The Torch Theater with work on their new home. I’ve heard so much about The Torch Theater and I’m looking forward to seeing my first performance at one of my favorite stores in central Phoenix: Practical Art has a wide selection of everyday household items hand crafted by local artists. The result is art that you can use at home. Show starts promptly at 8pm. For more information, check out the Facebook invite here.

Friday 8/27 and Saturday 8/28

The new kids on the block are a restaurant and a bar called Bliss and reBAR, which are taking over the spot once occupied by NINE 05 on 4th Street just south of Roosevelt. Bliss and reBAR promise to be the new downtown hot spots, offering American comfort food and a rustic contemporary outdoor bar. Read about the opening, and some of the low calorie options offered at both places in the Chow Bella blog over on the Phoenix New Times website here. FYI: There’s a brief, five block walk from Roosevelt Station.

Lucky Strike Lanes and Lounge opens this weekend at the new entertainment destination called CityScape, located in the heart of the downtown Phoenix. Lucky Strike is an upscale bowling alley with a full bar and a menu that has a dish for every appetite. (The Tuna Lolipops and Tomato and Cheese S’mores sound interesting!) I had the opportunity to attend the VIP preview last night – Lucky Strike is stylish and sexy…and gives visitors another option for entertainment in our urban core. You can read about the other stores and restaurants opening in CityScape over on the Downtown Phoenix website. CityScape is located near the Central and Washington Station for westbound trains and near the 1st Avenue and Jefferson Station for eastbound trains.

Information on how to ride the light rail to any of these destinations can be found here.

That’s about it from this end. What’s on your radar for Weekend Fun along the light rail? Share your event by posting a comment below.

Tags: CityScape, events, METRO light rail, PHOENIX LIGHT RAIL, Ride Light Rail, things to do