20 July 3rd - July 9th, 2025 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | Lucky Find Meet Indigo Room, Phoenix’s hidden coffee counter. BY SHOSHANA LEON T he Phoenix area has a lot of great coffee shops, many offering something unique. One of the Valley’s newest is Indigo Room, a coffee shop housed inside a vintage shop in the Coronado historic district. Quinn Unrein and Carder Mehr opened the new cafe in March inside Urban Collective, a shop co-owned by Unrein’s mother. “During the pandemic, my mom got into thrifting furniture and home goods and selling them online,” Unrein says. “She opened a storefront in north Phoenix, which moved closer to downtown in October 2024.” Mehr has worked in coffee for over five years, Unrein explains, noting that he’d dreamed of opening his own cafe. Her mom’s shop, although small, was the perfect fit. “It’s very cozy,” Unrein says. “We inten- tionally curate everything in the shop. It feels like you’re in someone’s house drinking coffee.” Menu favorites include an Earl Grey matcha, ube sweet potato latte, honey cardamom latte and agave cold foam Americano with cocoa powder on top. Indigo Room also offers a rotating selec- tion of pastries. “I’ve always enjoyed the process of making coffee, learning about it and improving my craft, as well as the commu- nity aspect,” says Mehr, who previously worked at Press Coffee and Aftermarket. “It’s been great getting to know our regular customers and seeing new people come in.” Indigo Room’s location inside Urban Collective is mutually beneficial to both businesses, the owners agree. “A lot of people who come into Urban Collective don’t know there’s a coffee shop in the store, and some Indigo Room customers don’t know it’s located inside a vintage shop,” Unrein says. “We get some business from Urban Collective and they get some from us, so it’s a very symbiotic relationship.” Indigo Room also gets customers from its viral TikTok and Instagram posts. As more people discover Indigo Room, the hours have expanded. The shop now serves its creative sips Thursdays through Sundays. Indigo Room, which is named after the couple’s dog, has truly become a family affair. Unrein’s brother contributes to the menu and now works in the shop along with his girlfriend. “We really enjoy working with family,” Unrein says. “It’s great working in the same space with my mom. It can be tricky having a business within a business, but because it’s my mom, we can have open, honest conversations and work together when we need to compromise and set boundaries.” In just a few months, Unrein and Mehr have received great feedback about their cozy coffee shop, and Indigo Room’s clien- tele continues to grow. “Looking to the future, we want to expand our hours, expand our menu and offer more food options,” Unrein says. “We may open our own shop, although we’ve been more than happy to be housed inside Urban Collective. It’s a really nice experience for us and so rewarding to see our small business grow and become a part of the community.” Indigo Room 702 E. Coronado Road, Phoenix Couple Carder Mehr and Quinn Unrein opened Indigo Room in March. (Indigo Room) Indigo Room creates unique drinks with ube, sweet potato, black tea and matcha. (Indigo Room) (Indigo Room) ▼ Food & Drink Chef’s Week New restaurant week aims to get ‘butts in seats’ this summer. BY SARA CROCKER S ummertime is tough on restaurants in the Valley. A new 10-day dining event from the Arizona Restaurant Association aims to help fight the slow season. Arizona Chef’s Week will follow a format similar to the association’s popular spring and fall restaurant weeks. From Aug. 1 to Aug. 10, at least 20 Valley restaurants will offer diners three- course prix fix menus priced at $55 or $66 per person. “Summertime in the Valley serves as a particu- larly challenging period for many restaurants, and therefore, it is more vital than ever to go out and support these establishments,” Steve Chucri, the association’s president and CEO, said in a press release. “This event is truly about local residents supporting local restaurants while experiencing an incredible meal.” There is one difference between Chef’s Week and the spring and fall restaurant weeks: Chefs are encouraged to cook off-menu or one-off specials that diners can only find during these 10 days in August. Here are the restaurants that are confirmed to participate so far: Beckett’s Table • Beginner’s Luck • Citizen Public House • Espiritu • EVO North Scottsdale Filthy Animal • Fire at Will • Hush Public House Indibar • Marisco Boys • Pa’La Downtown Phoenix City Grille • Rusconi’s American Kitchen The Americano • The Gladly • The Italiano The Mexicano (Chandler and Phoenix loca- tions) • Thompson 105 • Vecina • Wren & Wolf Chef and restaurateur Bernie Kantak says summers are always tough, but last year was “brutal.” So he and his team went into this summer season with the aim to “put more butts in seats” at Beginner’s Luck, Citizen Public House, The Gladly and the soon-to-open Minnow. Among those strategies, Kantak says he approached Chucri about hosting a special dining week in the peak summer season and the associa- tion head “was totally game.” “It’s more focused on locally owned and chef- driven restaurants who don’t have the big coffers of money to help us get through summer,” Kantak says. The restaurant association said the event will be limited “to just a small number of restaurants to help further boost the economic impact for these establishments and showcase their culinary talent.” Kantak says events like this “really support Arizona restaurants.” All participating restaurants and their Chef’s Week menus will be posted online beginning in mid-July.
