New owners give SLO bar a makeover — as a space for vinyl and drinks. Here’s a look

Music has always been a central part of Jeff Root’s life.

Growing up near Detroit, Root’s family had a collection of vinyl records and a sound system. Friends would come over, bring records, dance and socialize. He listened to music in the car, danced at every school dance and even snuck out with his sister in their teenage years to go dance at clubs.

But it was Root’s time in Tokyo as a 21 year old that inspired his latest adventure — owning and operating a vinyl bar in San Luis Obispo called Jan’s Place.

In an interview with The Tribune, Root discussed the inspiration behind his business — Japanese kissas, a hundred-year-old tradition of cafes in Japan that specialize in playing jazz on vinyl.

“We don’t play just jazz,” Root said. “We’re multi-genre, but we have taken the jazz kissa idea and applied it across genres. It is the same concept — a small room and a large collection of records.”

Jan’s Place seats only 24 people and is designed to be intimate, Root said. Customers can request music and chill with a drink and a bite to eat. On Thursdays, customers can bring their own records and play them behind the bar themselves.

The acoustics in the room allow you to listen closely to the music or maintain conversation with the people around you.

“It’s the kind of place where you can end up talking with whoever’s sitting near you, if you want,” Root said in the business’s origin story page of its website. “We’re a simple mix of good sound and good lighting, with local beer/wine options and a few interesting snacks. This is a journey into sound. “

Today, Root and his wife Lisa still visit Japan, enjoy the kissas and shop for vinyl records to add to their collection.

A twist of fate: How Root and his wife came to own Jan’s Place

The Roots, who share ownership of the bar and both previously worked as DJs, relocated to San Luis Obispo a couple of years ago to be closer to Lisa’s parents, who moved to the area from New Zealand over 20 years ago.

Though the vinyl record listening aspect is new, the bar itself is not. In fact, Jan’s Place was a longtime neighborhood bar on Osos Street in San Luis Obispo’s Railroad District, owned by its namesake, Jan Horn.

One day, Root stopped in for a drink and overheard Horn tell another customer that she was looking for a pathway to retirement. It was almost serendipitous.

Root decided to draft up a pathway to retirement for Horn and began thinking about how he would change the bar if he took ownership.

After months of discussions and remodeling, the Roots took over the bar and reopened it at the beginning of the year.

The couple decided to keep the name “Jan’s Place” as an homage to its previous owner, though they changed the pronunciation to “Yahn.”

“We started talking, and we put the whole thing together over the course of about 9 months,” Root said on the website’s origin story page. “But it’s still a work in progress. It will continue to evolve.”

When asked about his hopes for the future of the bar, Root said their goal for year one is to have a year two and work to establish themselves and fine tune the daily business operations.

“We get really interesting people through the bar all the time,” Root said. “Its a good opportunity to extend our brand beyond our four walls. We are just going to see what comes our way.”

Root hopes to host various events and experiences at Jan’s Place and floated ideas about a record shopping tour of Tokyo and a bachelorette party where the bride gets to host a DJ set and spin records for her friends.

Beer, wine and menu offerings

Vinyl records aren’t the only thing on the menu at Jan’s Place.

The bar offers a full beer and wine menu with an emphasis on local breweries and wineries. All of the beer is sourced from breweries within a mile of Jan’s Place, and all of the wine is local to the Central Coast from Santa Barbara to Monterey.

Since there is no kitchen in the bar, Root has adapted and serves tinned fish. Along with their beer and wine, customers can enjoy sardines, mackerel and stuffed grape leaves.

To complete the menu, Root has partnered with local businesses including Morro Bay’s Babydudes.

Though the music is important to Jan’s Place, so is the conversation and the community.

“We would never hush the room to play a record,” Root said. “We want people to talk and hear the music. It is also super important to us to create a space where anyone can walk into the bar for a drink and feel completely comfortable.”

Celebrating 313 Day: A night of Detroit music

One special event the bar hosted on March 13 paid tribute to Root’s hometown of Detroit.

The area code for the Detroit region is 313, and every year on March 13, people gather there to celebrate the spirit of the city.

This year, Root brought the tradition to San Luis Obispo by hosting a 313 Day celebration at Jan’s Place with a night of music exclusively from Motown.

During the first hour, Root himself played an hour set featuring the likes of Bob Seger and early psychedlic rock born out of Detroit. He was followed by DJ Jason Perez, who played a four-hour set primarily dedicated to Detroit’s hip-hop scene.

“Jason is a really talented hip-hop DJ, and he has a bunch of stuff on vinyl,” Root said.

According to Root, Detroit is home to two vinyl record pressing plants and many legendary record stores. The Roots lived in downtown Detroit for several years in the 2010s and remember the city fondly.

“We have a huge love of Detroit,” Root said. “There is a very strong culture of music there and it spans across all genres. What this event is is a celebration of music in and of Detroit, regardless of genre.”

More information

Jan’s Place is located at 1817 Osos St. in San Luis Obispo. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 3 to 8 p.m.

For more information, visit www.jansplaceslo.com, call 805-439-1544‬ or email hello@jansplaceslo.com.