Sweets & Beats

Maybe I’m completely biased because the people who own this place are friends of mine, but I think I’m being pretty honest. This is a great record and candy store with lots of odds and ends, rarities, and local art. My pal Stacy makes hand puppets and things for them and a couple other friends also make healthy home-​made dog treats, too. A great addition to the Grandevelt block next to the Bikini Lounge and of course, the ever-​wonderful Trunk Space. Go support awesome local businesses, guys!

I’ve never been so intrigued and cheered up by a store before.
This place is so… miscellaneous, so I’ll try to break it down.
Candy: A wall of Haribo products that I didn’t even know existed, a long with a boatload of other sweets that I haven’t seen since childhood. Major nostalgia points.
Toys: A variety of faux fireworks, like ‘snakes’, sparklers, or those things that pop when you slam them on the sidewalk. Nothing mind blowing except the selection and arrangement, which gives you strong impulses to purchase them all and go on a rampage of immaturity.
Books: Made me LOL more than anything else. My buddy picked up Postsecret for only $ 12, and as I perused the books, one stood out. It was by some author by «Mr. Pottymouth» and had some crude drawing on the cover with contents that may or may not be appropriate for a Unilocal review.
Records: A decent selection of 70s and 80s music. I picked up a Rick James vinyl for $ 2. It said «special prize inside!» and when I poured out the contents there was a condom. Queue immediate laughter.
One day, I’m going on a shopping spree to recreate a long summer day of my childhood. There will be lots of little knicknacks flying around and popping in every direction, while my parents listen to music from the days they were allegedly cool. Another Unilocaler described this place as a «yard sale»…I wish yard sales could be this awesome!

Sweets & Beats is amazing! Plenty of cool/​weird/​unusual stuff to look at, besides the records… I find something I want everytime I go. This is unlike any other store you’ll find in AZ.
The candy that foams in your mouth is awesome… I highly recommend.

I don’t think I’ve seen such a strange mix of items ever before. This place has a lot of weird and off the beaten track sort of things for sale and it’s really one of those places that just make you perplex. It’s only fitting that it’s next to the Bikini bar. Anywhere else and would have felt completely out of place.
The store has plenty of records to sort through, a couple of tables full of strange candy. Book shelf with a lot of odd books that, well are really beyond strange. I found one long time out of print book «How To Be Italian», Let me tell you, with a title like that and the dry wit and comedic satire found in that book, it had me cracking up and was the perfect gift.
This is also where I found my plastic lobster. They had a table in the middle of the room with $ 1 plastic lobsters. Now you’re probably wondering what function a plastic lobster would have in your every day grind… The truth is that it has none.
Zero, no use, nothing of value. It’s really actually a waste of resources as I’m sure that plastic could have gone towards making a pace maker or some sort of container for orange juice. But you know what, it’s a fucking plastic lobster for a dollar. I LOVE IT!
Who can say that they went to Phoenix and came back with an Arizona Lobster? Ha! Not many at all. I’m sure I’ll get a lot of confused faces when I do say that I have an Arizona Lobster. but let’s face it, this plastic lobster is from there. So yes, I have an Arizona Lobster. It’ll be something I have around.
The store owners were also really really nice to us. In admiring their autographed picture of Adam West (I dare say one of the BEST Batmen ever) they told us a cool story about when they met him. Now, I’m going to name drop here, but I have met Adam West before. We’re in Hollywood, after all. That sort of thing happens often, especially when you hang out where I’m usually at daily (on a studio lot) But to hear this couple’s story about how awesome it was for the to meet Adam West, it was really nice. I dug it.
So big ups to them, big ups to this location. It’s really a place to find just about that strange gift for that one friend who has everything or likes a good comical joke gift.

Thank God for mustache combs. My Boyfriends beard can be unruly at times, and sweets and beats had the remedy! My Friend bought one for her fiancé as well (along with some pop rocks and gummy treats of course! How could we resist!) This shop has a great atmosphere, not to mention fun candy, records, books, records etc. I wish I could peruse this establishment more often!

Yummmm … I likes candy! I think they have a better selection than Smeeks … lots of stuff from my childhood. Yum

What a great concept! What poor execution! This place is rubbish. It is literally like a yard sale inside a building. There is no atmosphere, no color, no style, no substance. The record selection is minimal and the candy selection is actually worse than Smeeks (which I didn’t think was possible). I have no idea how this place pays rent but it should be closed. At least then homeless people would have a place to stay — providing more value than it does right now.

I was terribly disappointed. This place has nothing on Smeeks. We weren’t even acknowledged as we walked in the store despite it being mostly empty in there. That was rude. The candy selection pretty much sucks and none of it was anything I hadn’t seen before. Prices were fine I suppose, but this place just left me underwhelmed. I don’t do vinyl, so I can’t say anything about that, and there were some shirts there too, but again, I came in for candy so I left empty handed. Sadly, this place just reinforces my belief that Grand Avenue is full of businesses that just don’t care.

I just got home from Sweets N Beats and I already want to go back for more candy and vinyl.
This place is a small shop specializing in music and old school candy. They are nestled between The Trunk Space and The Bikini Lounge.
I found lots of great records ranging from Talking Heads, various ska bands and a Rudy Ray Moore album. Good selection of yummy candy like squirrel nut zippers (a chewy, nutty candy), lemon heads, cherry heads, bubble gum cigrars and cigarettes.
They also have a selection of books, t-​shirts and novelty items.
Definitley check Sweets N Beats out. It’s a great addition to the downtown area and it’s owned by two wonderful people.
Cash only here folks, so bring the green. Everything is pretty cheap, so you can walk out with a bag of candy under $ 3.