![[map and directions to Alta Coffee Warehouse and Cafe]](/images/map_go.png)
Alta Coffee Warehouse and Cafe
| Upcoming Dates | |
|---|---|
| Tuesday, May 29 | |
| Tuesday, Jun 05 | |
| Tuesday, Jun 12 | |
| Tuesday, Jun 19 | |
| Tuesday, Jun 26 | |
Is this mic still happening? Will be in Cal 11/8 and would like to check it out.
fred fraser (11/2011)
- Last night I attended the open mic at Alta. Apparently, they had one years ago but was supplanted by a songwriter focused evening. Times change and now it's returned. John is a gracious host and has a nice beefy portable sound system (Bose pillar type speaker with small sub woofer). It's situated near the window so you can hear the artists both inside and outside of the café. It sounds fine especially in a wood floored room. At first, the artists were granted 3 songs as the list was looking rather short, but it was later cut to two songs as more artists came in. I think even John was a little surprised at the larger influx that had to be accommodated that night. All around, it's a nice play to play for the attentive patrons. The downside though is really just one; it's crowded. I suppose that's the best kinda complaint an artist can hope for, but it makes for difficult navigating especially with guitar cases, harmonica cases when you have a lot of players as open mics usually do. The main access to the playing area is blocked somewhat by the order line at the counter. Needless to say, Alta is a popular Newport Beach mainstay and the constant activity is a testament to that fact. As with all open mics, there is a range of talent but on the most part, everyone was decent. Some artists were holdovers from the songwriter evenings and the calibre was definitely noticeable. In some ways, I sort of miss the songwriter night as it assured a level of musicianship, made for a less chaotic system, and was more uniform of an evening, but a straight up open mic brings it's own surprises as well. I recommend to tune up outside, and wait near the window until your name is called so you can get up there quickly. Nice job John. I'll be back soon.
BB1970 (6/2011)
- Signups at 7:30pm
John Carrillo (6/2011)
List the 29 clubs with open mikes in this area.