Syntax Physic Opera

After a five-year stint as a talent buyer at the Meadowlark, Jonathan Bitz started what would become a three-year hunt for his own place. In August 2013, he took over the building at 554 South Broadway that most recently housed the Bar (and the Atrium before that) and began transforming the space into Syntax Physic Opera, which opened close to a year later. "Physic Opera is sort of a Latin phrase that the insiders would call a medicine show," he says. "The idea is that it is a medicine show -- that everything is medicine, from the food to the drinks to the art to the music to the conversation, hopefully." The venue hosts live music most weekends as well as weekly jazz nights, a songwriters' open-mic night and a comedy open mic.