If the name Rebel doesn’t stand out to you as you walk through Downtown Mesa in the evening, don’t worry—you’ll see the people, hear the laughter and conversation happening and you will feel the beckoning to go and find out what is going on. Feel free to stop and stay awhile. Everybody is welcome.
Walking into Rebel Wine Lounge feels like that first breath of fresh air on a beautiful spring day. From the green couch that is centered against a beautifully designed accent wall with cream paint and wood fluting, to smaller, green, tufted back bench seats, to the brick columns that accent the spacious bar everything at Rebel feels intentional and inviting. You want to take off your coat (if you’re wearing one) and find a place to sit, maybe even make a new friend.
Christina Goldsmith, one of the owners, designed the boutique lounge giving visitors a taste of her impeccable design skills. She knew she wanted to use earth tones—the design started with the green couch. The result is an easily flowing space that makes you feel like you're in a desert oasis. Coming to Rebel Wine Lounge is showing up for a relaxing experience, a break from the day, a place to unwind. Rebel Wine Lounge is the experience.
The owners, best friend duo Christina Goldsmith and Macee Tillman, first met a decade ago, working together at a mortgage company. They both describe the shift from working in a corporate office to becoming entrepreneurs the same way, “the corporate world couldn’t contain us.” Thankfully, they burst free from those confines. Their escape from the corporate world allowed them to pursue their passions. Between themselves and their husbands, a lot of favorite places in Downtown Mesa are owned by these two families. Within their group they own Rebel Wine Lounge, Outcast Doughnuts, Level One Arcade Bar, and the speakeasy below Level One, Alchemy 48.
Rebel Wine Lounge though, is the baby of Macee and Christina. Rebel Wine Lounge opened in April of 2024 but the process started in 2022. Macee and Christina were up in Cornville, having wine at a winery, when the discussion of the suite next door to Outcast came up. Macee and her husband knew it was going to be available and they were thinking about opening up a Wine Lounge. Christiana says “she invited herself into the concept” and everything started from there.
Macee was quick to interrupt Christina though, “I don’t know about that, it was like ‘if we don’t do this together it’s not going to be what it is. It’s not going to be right.’” The decision was made in December 2022— starting the process of what we get to experience when we visit Rebel Wine Lounge today. Clearly, the magic of best friends working together was exactly right.
When asked about the name, Rebel Wine Lounge, Christina is quick to point to Macee as the one who came up with the name. “Macee had it and I loved it…” All attention is drawn back to Macee as she starts to explain the name Rebel and where it comes from. “It’s constantly evolving...” she starts off. The word rebel has its obvious meaning that we’re all aware of. However, this word holds a special place in Macee’s heart. It was her father’s nickname for his sister. Hearing Macee talk about it, you get the sense that she was close with her aunt. The way her dad would call her “Rebel” always had that sibling mischievous, teasing undertone. Over time as Macee has grown up and learned what the word meant it has become something she has aspired to, “Just being willing to do things differently, to like think outside the box, get your hands dirty.”
Since choosing the name, the word “rebel” has been an undertone in almost every aspect of business, from hiring to the wine selection, there is a bit of rebel hiding underneath. It has evolved even to this day— Rebel has become their whole community.