From an alley in Old San Juan to the streets of Mayagüez, bars on the Island are betting on something different: spaces where listening to music feels like an art.
Imagine a place where every note plays with the clarity of a recording studio, where craft cocktails accompany carefully selected vinyl, and where conversation flows to the rhythm of jazz, salsa or house.
That is what high fidelity bars (known as hi-fi bars) are: spaces designed with high-quality sound equipment that are drawing the attention of music lovers on the Island.
Hi-fi bars, also known as listening bars, have their roots in the Jazz Kissas of Japan. These cafes reached their peak during the 1950s and 1960s, when they gave young music fans the chance to listen to jazz records that were expensive.
Over the following decades, the concept evolved into bars and gained popularity in the West by the '60s and '70s, according to the newspaper El País.
The West Coast of the United States, for example, saw the concept arrive in 2018 with In Sheep's Clothing, one of the pioneers of the Japanese concept in Los Angeles.
The expansion of hi-fi bars in recent years has also reached Puerto Rico.
"The concept closest to us is in New York, Miami, Minneapolis and a lot of other cities where there are super modernist projects along those lines, like in London and Madrid, Spain," said Yenia Rivero Pérez, co-owner of the hi-fi audio bar and restaurant El Más Allá in Old San Juan.
In New York, for example, Secret NYC, a site specializing in things-to-do guides, has a list of more than 10 of these bars located in the city.
In Minneapolis, they are putting a unique spin on the concept with places like HiFi Hair and Records, which combines listening to music with a beauty salon service.
Back in an alley off Calle San Francisco, El Más Allá already sets itself apart from nearby bars through its design and sound equipment, both of which were strategically conceived so that the space's acoustics would support the faithful, original sound of the music they share.
The design of the space was a collaborative effort led by her husband, Carlos Soto Vargas, who worked with artist Fabián Wilkins on the acoustics and cabinetmaker Máximo López Dinardi on the selection and development of the furniture.
According to the owner, all the furniture is made from nogal wood because, beyond being "aesthetically beautiful," it "helps with sound reception."
"There are vinyl nights, salsa nights, classics nights or jazz nights, but the hi-fi concept is really about the fidelity of the sound, not so much the content itself."
– Yenia Rivero Pérez, co-owner of El Más Allá
Although the focus is on design, the business stands out for the variety of musical genres it plays, including house, soft rock, hip hop, techno, Afro, punk, experimental, cumbia, salsa and other styles.
Audio bars: another musical approach
While hi-fi bars prioritize sound quality, there are other establishments that place the emphasis on musical curation: audio bars.
Unlike hi-fi bars, audio bars are spaces centered on musical content.
These venues take sound equipment into account but do not necessarily design the entire space around it; instead, they build around the musical content they will share.
"I think the terms hi-fi bar or audio bar are very technical and involve the music system you use," said Enrique Caldas Medina, owner of Lucía Audio Bar in Mayagüez.
Lucía Audio Bar is a small club that aims to give the Mayagüez community a musical offering different from what bars in the municipality typically play, which is regularly reggaetón, according to Medina.
Looking for an innovative concept, Enrique chose to create a bar with a diverse song repertoire spanning soft house, salsa, hip hop, instrumental, classics, rap, reggaetón and even pop classics from the group RBD.
"It's an opportunity to have a different, more relaxed space, with a different kind of music, a little more specialized in drinks and cocktails," said the 32-year-old owner, whose menu includes a selection of classic cocktails and house originals.
While Lucía focuses on the appreciation of music and cocktails, El Más Allá aims to create a culinary and auditory offering that complement each other.
"We believe in a complete, well-rounded experience. Our space is for going to dinner, for eating and enjoying the music. We work with local fishermen, with fresh products, and it has been designed with a great deal of care in every sense," Pérez said.
The appreciation of vinyl at hi-fi and audio bars
Both hi-fi bars and audio bars put vinyl records at the center, an element that, beyond the visual aesthetic they can bring, contributes to the authentic appreciation of music.
El Más Allá uses them for both purposes, while Lucía Audio Bar has them for aesthetic reasons that add to the welcoming atmosphere of the venue, which takes its name from two family generations of Caldas, his mother and grandmother.
Other options for music lovers
As an innovative and recent concept on the Island, El Más Allá is one of the first hi-fi bars in the country. Even so, other venues have similar concepts and likewise offer a space for the appreciation of music.
Among them is the bar or soft club La Disquera, on Calle Cerra, a space that blends vinyl music, cocktails, wine and a food menu of Eastern and Western dishes such as longaniza mortadella and ramen.
Another spot for listening to vinyl is El Cuartito Record Store, a business in Río Piedras with the goal of "contributing to the cultural and economic life of the historic downtown," said Fianeli Arvelo, co-owner of the venue.
This content was translated with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
