Phoenix, AZ - Market has been a Phoenix institution for many years. The building was built in 1917 then opened up as Roland's Market in 1941 by owner Roland Ong.
Roland's Market
Phoenix, AZ Photo courtesy Elgin MacMillan
The old Roland’s Market building has watched the traffic roll down Van Buren Street for more than a century. By the time these photos were taken, its red brick walls had been covered with tired white paint and the market appeared to be fading away with the rest of the old highway. Look closely, though, and plenty of character remained. The vintage signs, corner entrance and familiar Roland’s name hinted at a much livelier past.
Roland's Market on the Southeast corner of 15th Street
and Van Buren
Phoenix, Arizona Photo courtesy Elgin MacMillan
The building went up in 1917, when this stretch of Van Buren was still developing on the eastern edge of Phoenix. It began as a secondhand-goods store and later became a neighborhood grocery, passing through the hands of MacMarr and Pay ’n Takit before Safeway occupied the corner.
After 30 years, Roland and his wife Jean closed down the store in 1971 and eventually sold the business.
Roland's Market (Gone)
Phoenix, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
In 1941, Chinese immigrant Roland Ong put his savings into the old grocery and opened Roland’s Market with his wife, Jean. For the next 30 years, the couple served the surrounding neighborhood from behind its counters. This was the sort of small market where customers stopped for groceries, caught up on neighborhood news and probably knew exactly who would be waiting behind the register.
Roland's Market (Gone)
Phoenix, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
Roland and Jean closed the store in 1971 and eventually sold the business. Later owners continued using the Roland’s name, keeping the market alive into the early 2000s. Time was not especially gentle to the old place. The brick was painted white, the building deteriorated and Van Buren changed around it. Still, the old signs remained attached to the building as traffic hurried past.
The business and building eventually deteriorated and the building was painted over with white paint.
Here's a zoomed in view of the lettering in front of the market
Phoenix, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
A new chapter began in 2018 when chefs Armando Hernandez and Nadia Holguin of Tacos Chiwas joined Chris Bianco to open Roland’s Café Market Bar. The renovation peeled away the white paint, exposed the old red brick and brought the original pressed-metal ceiling back into view. The old market signs were kept in place, allowing the new restaurant to feel as if it had grown naturally from the building rather than simply moved into it.
Roland's Market then became Roland's Market Cafe in 2018 but did not last the year. The building is currently home to the Pane Bianco Van Buren Italian restaurant.
Roland’s Café mixed Chihuahuan cooking with a few Italian touches, an unusual combination that seemed perfectly suited to the old neighborhood market. Unfortunately, the restaurant closed in early 2019 after less than a year. Pane Bianco followed, and the building later became home to Bianco’s Tratto restaurant. After decades of decline, this little corner market had suddenly become one of the most interesting dining spaces along Van Buren.
Close up of the Roland's script lettering on the sign
Phoenix, AZ Photo by RoadsidePeek.com
UPDATE: Tratto has moved to a new location on North 20th Street, but the historic Roland’s Market building remains standing and preserved. The space continues to be used for special culinary events, while the original market signs and restored brick exterior keep Roland Ong’s name visible along Van Buren Street. Not bad for a neighborhood grocery that first opened more than 80 years ago. 09-26
Roland's Market
Roland's Market on the Southeast corner of 15th Street
and Van Buren
Roland's Market (Gone)
Roland's Market (Gone)
Here's a zoomed in view of the lettering in front of the market
Close up of the Roland's script lettering on the sign
