It’s a record store attached to a bar attached to a café attached to a theater. You’ll find the co-owner of Hitt Records, Kyle Cook, running between them all. You also might find him running down the street. In the middle of the night. For fun. But when this marathoner-slash-music buff isn’t on the move, he’s probably waiting for the next movie to start. So while you’re here, grab a beer, grab a bite, browse some vinyl and say “hi” to Kyle. You’ll be glad you did. So will he.
THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HITT
This building, known as Hittsville, consists of Ragtag Cinema, Uprise Bakery and bar, Hitt Records and 9th Street Video. All the businesses are very symbiotic. Ragtag is a two-theater cinema dedicated to independent films. The theaters have really comfy sofas and you can take in food or drinks. Uprise has a bar, café, great food and the dining room also serves as an art gallery, with rotating collections from local artists. Coming here, grabbing a beer, shopping for records before you see your movie…it’s just a very natural and mutually beneficial operation that we have here. I don’t know many places like this.
BEST PART OF COLUMBIA
Columbia is like a magnet city. It has this energy that just draws you in. I feel like people come here for a reason, but then get enchanted and leave with something they didn’t even know they were looking for. Kind of like a record store. We have awesome food and shops that you would expect to find somewhere like L.A., but none of the drawbacks of a big city. It’s very eclectic. Very charming.
BEST PLACE TO SEE A SHOW
I love shows at Café Berlin. It’s this great breakfast and lunch place that closes at 2 p.m. But it’s also this secret, hidden place that holds shows at night from time to time too. We’ll book shows for local artists there, then sell music from those artists here. Then bands can work their way up to Rose Music Hall or the Blue Note from there. Sometimes we even have bands set up and play in here at the record store.
BEST PLACE TO TAKE AN OUT-OF-TOWNER
The trails would be #1 on my list. Columbia’s trail system is amazing and so expansive. You can get on the MKT connector trailhead, right here in downtown, and ride or run it all the way out to the Missouri River. I’ve lived here for 15 years and run up to nine miles a day, and I’m still discovering new trails. Then there are the places that only the locals know about, like Peace Nook, which is a book store/convenience store/shop/counterculture hub. It’s very inconspicuous, down a steep staircase under some shops on Broadway, and completely volunteer-run.
