First Black-owned wine bar in Arizona reflects on success ahead of Juneteenth

By Casey Torres

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    TEMPE, Arizona (KPHO/KTVK) — Juneteenth commemorates the end of slavery in the United States. It became a federally recognized holiday in 2021. It’s a time of celebrating accomplishments, like Arizona’s first Black-owned wine bar.

Celebrity Chef Nik Fields is the owner of Chic Chef 77 in Tempe. The wine bar opened in February, but things didn’t go off without a hitch. Two days before the grand opening during Super Bowl week, an alleged drunk driver slammed into the patio’s fence and broke a window. “I mean, we had to shut down. We couldn’t open. But we opened a week later. It is what it is. We feel everything happens for a reason, but we’re here now,” said Mesha Holmes, General Manager and Mixologist at Chic Chef 77.

She said the community stepped up to help. “I don’t think we really knew that we had that much support, but everybody came together,” said Holmes. With the continued support comes reflection ahead of Juneteenth. “Back then, we never really existed. We kind of had to fight for what we want here, and now we’re getting it,” said Holmes.

When asked how it felt when Juneteenth became a federally recognized holiday two years ago, Holmes said, “It just feels uplifting. It feels empowering. It feels like, okay, we got our foot in the door here too. We knocked down another door. We knocked down another barrier.”

Holmes said Fields is using her bar as a blueprint for other Black-owned businesses she mentors so that they can, too, reach success. “As a strong black woman, I love her. I appreciate it because she’s showing the masses what she can do,” said Holmes.

Chic Chef 77 is closed on Mondays. Juneteenth celebrations at the wine bar will take place the rest of the week.

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