West Valley is set to get a futuristic nightlife experience with Emersa, an observatory-inspired cocktail lounge from the team behind Phoenix’s speakeasy 36 Below, opening later this year at Buckeye’s Verrado Marketplace. The domed bar will host timed 90-minute sessions, using projection mapping, image stitching, and high-resolution screens to create shifting visual environments. A central bar will be surrounded by booths and tables, ensuring every guest has a front-row view of the immersive visuals.
Design And Experience
According to the Phoenix New Times, owners Josh and Chiara Katz, known for 36 Below and Sip Coffee and Beer, have been selected by the developer to bring their new concept, Emersa, to the West Valley. Designer Dala Al-Fuwaires of House of Form, who also worked on 36 Below, said Emersa “This is meant to feel like an astronomer’s lab where you look out into the universe” and will offer a rotating quarterly theme. Each theme will inspire a menu of six to eight specialty cocktails, alongside classic drinks, wine, beer, and small bites, aiming to provide a fresh and immersive experience for guests.
From Subterranean To Dome
36 Below built its following with a timed, subterranean cocktail experience tucked beneath Sip Coffee & Beer, re-theming the space several times a year to match fresh menus and storylines. On its site, the lounge is described as a walipini-inspired shelter “where immersive storytelling and avant-garde mixology converge.” The Katzes are now taking that formula above ground with Emersa, scaling it up for a larger domed space while keeping the strict 90-minute sessions that make the experience feel a bit like live theater.
Where It Will Live
Emersa is set to land in Verrado Marketplace at the northeast corner of I-10 and Verrado Way, a 500,000-square-foot development from Vestar that is scheduled to open in spring 2026. Leasing materials outline major anchors and a long roster of restaurants and services, positioning the center as a community hub that can support nighttime concepts as well as daytime errands. Construction updates and demographic snapshots for the project point to the West Valley's rapid growth as the backdrop for a destination bar like Emersa.
Menu, Timing And Tickets
House of Form will layer the interior with custom tile, mirrors and metal finishes that are meant to catch and intensify the projected imagery. The buildout will blend image stitching, projection mapping and high-resolution screens to create environments that can shift throughout each session. Josh Katz told the Phoenix New Times that “the sky is really the limit” for the scenes the team can design. As with 36 Below, guests will book 90-minute blocks, with rotating themes, six to eight corresponding cocktails and a tight menu of light bites available for each run.
Why The West Valley?
The new Verrado marketplace is part of a broader surge of retail and entertainment projects shifting more activity west of central Phoenix, and operators see that momentum as a chance to build out local evening options. Coverage of House of Form's recent work in Hospitality Design highlights the firm's emphasis on immersive hospitality and place-making, a through line that shows up in Emersa's concept. If the bar opens on schedule, it could be one of Buckeye's most distinctive late-night draws when Verrado Marketplace starts welcoming visitors next year.
Menus and a firm opening date are still being finalized, and the team says booking and ticket information will be announced as construction nears the finish line. For now, Verrado Marketplace's leasing updates and 36 Below's site remain the key places to watch for new details in the West Valley hospitality scene. We will share confirmation of an opening date and ticket info once the team locks them in.
