In most restaurants, the music accompanies the meal.
At Carli’s, I’ve always suspected it’s the other way around.
When we opened Carli’s Fine Bistro & Piano in Old San Juan in December 1998, I had a rather simple idea: create a place where good food, live music, conversation, and a little magic could coexist.
Nearly three decades later, I’m still trying to figure out which one is the main attraction.
Perhaps that’s the beauty of it.
Having spent a considerable portion of my life traveling, performing, and recording with musicians ranging from The Beach Boys to some of the great figures of jazz, I eventually returned to my native Puerto Rico with an appreciation for something that touring rarely affords: a place to call your own.
Not just a place to play the piano, but a place where music could become part of people’s lives.
And so Carli’s was born.
Over the years, I’ve watched our little corner of Old San Juan become a meeting place for travelers, artists, musicians, lovers, old friends, and complete strangers who sometimes leave as friends.
There’s something wonderfully unpredictable about it.
A couple celebrating an anniversary, a visitor discovering jazz for the first time, an unexpected conversation at the bar, or a familiar melody that suddenly brings back a memory.
These are the ingredients that don’t appear on our menu.
Of course, there’s the food.
And the cocktails.
And our wonderful staff, who somehow manage to keep the entire enterprise functioning while I sit at the piano pretending that everything is under control.
But the real secret of Carli’s has never been any single ingredient.
It’s the chemistry between them.
A restaurant, like jazz, is a daily improvisation.
You prepare, you rehearse, you establish a structure. Then the doors open, the audience arrives, and anything can happen.
Sometimes it’s glorious.
Sometimes you just have to keep playing.
Which brings me to this blog.
After nearly three decades of running Carli’s, I’ve decided it’s time to share some of the stories, reflections, and occasional absurdities that accompany this rather unconventional life.
We’ll talk about food and music, naturally. But also about art, poetry, travel, fascinating people, the history and character of Old San Juan, and whatever else happens to wander into my imagination.
I may even share a few stories from my years on the road.
Some will be serious. Others will be irreverent. And a few might leave you wondering whether I should have stuck to playing the piano.
But that’s the point.
Life, like music, becomes infinitely more interesting when we allow ourselves to improvise.
So welcome to Notes from Carli’s.
Pull up a chair.
Pour yourself something wonderful.
And stay awhile.
The music is just beginning.
Carli Muñoz
Pianist, composer, writer, and occasionally bewildered restaurateur.
Carli’s Fine Bistro & Piano
Old San Juan, Puerto Rico
Established 1998
