walking into beatstro, diners will think they’ve stumbled upon a record store plucked from the ’70s or ’80s. the speakeasy concept is a creative “insider” interpretation of the borough’s hip-hop block parties, like the ones pioneer grandmaster flash used to host, before finding fame in the ’70s. we don’t want people to feel like we came in and changed things; we want to keep it as familiar as possible. we’re very sensitive to what’s going on in the bronx. shelves full of x clan and def jam vinyl — with a few more current options, like wu-tang clan — set up the “speakeasy” entrance, separated from the dining space by a black curtain.

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