Restaurants: Right Place - Right Time >>

• Best New Restaurant
  Medizona
  7217 East Fourth Avenue, Scottsdale
  480-947-9500
  This small enterprise features a constantly evolving repertoire of Mediterranean flavors that provide a mischievous zing to our Southwestern staples. Everything, from the crusty, baked-on-site breads nestled in a painted wooden box with ramekins of dips, to the signature prickly pear tiramisu,... More >>
• Best Place to Take a Foodie
  Gregory's Grill
  7049 East McDowell, Scottsdale
  480-946-8700
  So how do you entertain an out-of-town "foodie," that live-to-eat restaurant buff who wants to sample our city's edgiest cuisine? If you're lucky, you secure a reservation at Gregory's, where chef-owner Gregory Casale has put together a menu that takes world cuisine on a whirl. Ginger and... More >>
• Best Upscale Breakfast
  Bistro 24
  The Ritz-Carlton
  2401 East Camelback
  602-952-2424
  Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. And it sure feels special when we lounge in Bistro 24's gold-and-green-striped silk booths, taking in country French accent pieces, sophisticated artwork and peeks at Valley glitterati sucking down $7.50 French press coffee. This is where the... More >>
• Best Continental Breakfast
  Pierre's Pastry Cafe
  7119 East Shea, Scottsdale
  480-443-2510
  There's just something so civilized about a continental breakfast. It makes us want to toss on a long silk robe, tuck our tootsies into monogrammed slippers and snap open an Important International Newspaper to read while we nibble. Unfortunately, our bathrobe is coffee-stained terrycloth, our... More >>
• Best Place for a Grease-Soaked Hangover Breakfast
  Bill Johnson's Big Apple
  3737 East Van Buren
  602-275-2107
  (and other Valley locations)
  Your head feels like it's going to wrench itself violently from your body. Your stomach's threatening to eject its contents all over your shoes. You shouldn't have had that last drink. Now, you need grease. The kind of good, old-fashioned, fatty, dripping grease served at Bill Johnson's to... More >>
• Best Sunday Brunch
  Marquesa
  Scottsdale Princess Resort
  7575 East Princess Drive, Scottsdale
  480-585-4848
  Anyone can serve a huge Sunday brunch. It takes alarmingly little skill to toss together pedestrian scrambled eggs, table after table of mayo-based salads, endless wheels of cheeses, chicken done in by chafing dishes, and roast beast carved by sleepy resort staff. Most skilled chefs can easily... More >>
• Best Reason to Visit the State Capitol
  Capitol Coffee Co.
  1722 West Van Buren
  602-716-0243
  The area around the Arizona Capitol has always been pretty grim, and not just because it's populated half the year with the humorless mouth breathers we elect to represent us in the Legislature. The area is dense with government offices and run-down buildings, and there's never been so much as a... More >>
• Best Place to Eat a Meal Stoned
  Richardson's Cuisine of New Mexico
  1582 East Bethany Home
  602-265-5886
  Booths shaped like couches, throw pillows provided for the lumbar-conscious and portions so large they'd stymie late stoner Chris Farley -- Richardson's is the place to be after an early-evening bong session with your buddies, wife, dog or whomever. Who needs the harsh light of reality when you... More >>
• Best Downtown Lunch
  Coronado Cafe
  2201 North Seventh Street
  602-258-5149
  From the raspberry iced tea to the fresh-baked cookies, lunch at Coronado Cafe is the highlight of any workday. Nestled in an old house in a historic corner of downtown Phoenix, the restaurant features a breezy patio and cozy rooms decorated with the work of local artists. Diners are seated in... More >>
• Best Lunch-Hour Getaway
  The Farm Kitchen
  6106 South 32nd Street
  602-276-6360
  Long to escape the ugly, overheated concrete of downtown Phoenix during your noon repast? Located just 10 minutes from downtown, this pecan grove-cum-country oasis is the perfect lunch-hour antidote to civilization. From September through June, The Farm Kitchen serves hearty sandwiches and... More >>
• Best Lunch Hideaway in an Industrial Park
  Crackers and Co. Cafe
  535 West Iron Avenue, Suite 131, Mesa
  480-898-1717
  Location, location, location? Don't tell it to the owners of this culinary find, a swell little soup 'n' sandwich joint hidden away in the bowels of a Mesa industrial parkway. Despite its less-than-high-visibility locale, however, Crackers and Co. sees a lot more business than many of its... More >>
• Best Place to Get Aroused While Waiting for Your Burro
  Dos Gringos
  4209 North Craftsman Court, Scottsdale
  480-423-3800
  The consummate scene for Scottsdale's partypoids, this Rocky Point-themed taco joint offers several walls of shame with hundreds of patron photos. Many depict that most peculiar of modern mating rituals known as the Body Shot, which is always more about the body than the shot. The bodies... More >>
• Best Late-Night Alternative to Denny's
  Punky's Corner Cafe
  816 East Camelback
  602-265-6956
  Looking for the best place in town to start the morning after? Then end your evening at Punky's after-hours breakfast bar, Phoenix night owls' noshery of choice. Open from midnight to 4 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, the all-you-can-eat $6.95 buffet offers a staggering array of tempting breakfast... More >>
• Best Place to Eat Burgers and Shoot Pool at Lunch
  Harvey's Wineburger
  4812 North 16th Street
  602-248-9950
  Why go to a bar in the middle of the day when you can't down a few brews because you have to head back to work? At Harvey's, the burgers and a quick game of pool are reason enough. Harvey's is small -- just a few booths, tables and a bar. Harvey's is dark -- most of the lighting comes from the... More >>
• Best School Meal
  The Desert Oasis
  Scottsdale Community College
  9000 East Chaparral, Scottsdale
  480-423-6241
  The Desert Oasis makes a mockery of the term "starving student." This restaurant showcases the skills of students enrolled in Scottsdale Community College's Culinary Arts Program, and it offers complete five-course meals for a mind-boggling bargain of just $17.50 per diner. So maybe the... More >>
• Best Place to Take Your Harley to Dinner
  The Hideaway Grill
  6746 East Cave Creek Road, Cave Creek
  480-595-0358
  Harley-Davidson owners are a special breed. After spending multi-thousands to buy their bikes, and many thousands more customizing their wheels into nothing short of motorized art, it's understandable that they wouldn't want to be separated from their bicycle babies. Even if it's more of a... More >>
• Best Place to Get Sauced and Sloppy
  Dusty's BBQ
  10637 North Tatum, Phoenix
  480-991-8888
  This charmingly messy 'cue joint is doing things a bit differently. Step up to the counter, order your choice of meat or poultry -- even prime rib and trout -- in whatever quantity you want. As Dusty's menu says, "by the pound or by the slice, how much you order determines the price." The... More >>
• Best Place to Have Dinner Pushed Through the Wall
  Hart & Soul
  2019 East Broadway
  602-276-4255
  Normally, having your meal slid through a small opening in the wall isn't a good thing. It reminds us of a brief time when we had a little, shall we say, less liberty than we do now. Of course, it was all a big misunderstanding, and as far as we know, our records were wiped clean years ago.... More >>
• Best Place to Expect the Unexpected
  Chary's Place
  20 West Adams
  602-712-1918
  Downtown dining. What's it mean to you? Sports bars galore? Coffee shops? Nondescript pizza parlors and burger joints? How about top-quality, inexpensive Cuban chow? Chary's is something special, situated unexpectedly in what's otherwise pretty much a culinary no man's land. From the... More >>
• Best Room With a View
  Wrigley Mansion
  2501 East Telawa Trail
  602-955-4079
  Must be nice to be rich. We've never gotten a 50th wedding anniversary gift like the one Ada Wrigley received from her husband, William, back in 1929. For his beloved bride, the chewing-gum magnate put a bow on a $1.2 million mansion, perched high atop a hill overlooking the Arizona... More >>
• Best Place to Eat If You're Starting a Diet Tomorrow
  Mrs. White's Golden Rule Cafe
  808 East Jefferson
  602-262-9256
  Call it the dieter's bachelor party. The choice of where to indulge in a final meal before bowing to Jenny Craig is simple: Mrs. White's. There's no need to get gourmet with descriptions here -- just imagine the best-ever Southern fried chicken, pork chops, smothered chicken, chicken and... More >>
• Best Place to Step Back in Time
  Somewhere in Time Tea Room
  7003 North 58th Avenue, Glendale
  623-847-5100
  It's the millennium. Babies know how to use computers. Pets have cell phones. Great-grandmothers surf the Net. Sometimes it all seems so crazy. When we need an escape, we disappear into Somewhere in Time. The clock has stopped in this quaint shop, with creaking hardwood floors, the scent of... More >>
• Best Romantic Restaurant
  Convivo
  7000 North 16th Street, Suite 140
  602-997-7676
  For some folks, a romantic restaurant means being insulated from the world, tucked in a tiny space, preferably sitting in the dark. That's all well and good, but we can get that at home, especially when we don't pay our APS bill. No, for us, romance thrives in a little more open setting, where... More >>
• Best Old Arizona Charm
  House of Tricks
  114 East Seventh Street, Tempe
  480-968-1114
  Newcomers may find it hard to believe, but there once was a time when the Valley offered more than stucco-wrapped pink houses with red-tile roofs. It's true. Once upon a time, we had a lovely landscape of eclectic, Victorian-inspired homes. You can still see one of those relics, a charming,... More >>
• Best Place to Romance Your Lover
  T. Cook's at the Royal Palms Hotel
  5200 East Camelback
  602-808-0766
  Just walking through the Royal Palms makes us swoon. Built around a 1929 Mediterranean-style mansion, this grand property flourishes with exotic palms, lush shrubs, specimen trees, cactuses and masses of flowers. T. Cook's is set to the back of an intimate, fountain-strewn courtyard, and... More >>
• Best Place to Break Up With Your Lover
  The Melting Pot
  8320 North Hayden, Scottsdale
  480-607-1799
  (and 3626 East Ray, Ahwatukee, 480-704-9206)
  We, of course, are so universally adored that no one would ever consider dumping us. But should someone ever do us wrong, prompting us to end a relationship in a dramatic fashion, we'll be doing it at the Melting Pot. The setting is discreet -- there's even a private dining table closed off... More >>
• Best Place to Take Visitors (1 Comment)
  Crazy Ed's Satisfied Frog
  6245 East Cave Creek Road, Cave Creek
  480-488-3317
  First-time visitors to Arizona give us a chance to go to some of those slightly cheesy places we secretly love but never get to on our own. The Satisfied Frog is one of those; it's an outright hoot, and it gives our guests that warm, Western welcome they're expecting. It's comfy, casual --... More >>
• Best Place to Have Your Portrait Painted While Eating Dinner
  Beeloe's Cafe & Underground Bar
  501 South Mill, Tempe
  480-894-1230
  Forget those goofy Polaroid photos many tourist restaurants try to push on you. For a true memoir of a fun evening out, nothing beats the original portraits created by Beeloe's "resident" artists. In this funky restaurant/art gallery, local artists and craftspeople create their unique pieces... More >>
• Best Place to Eat After Working Out
  Fitness Cafe
  Plaza Shopping Center
  13610 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale
  480-905-7227
  Anthony Angelini operates his cafe under the quaint premise that all of us are potential hunks, if we will just buckle down. Well, a guy can dream. Still, with his impressive pecs and other musculature, Anthony himself looks like he's been eating right and lifting major weights for years.... More >>
• Best Place to Eat at the Bar
  McCormick & Schmick's
  2575 East Camelback
  602-468-1200
  We love a bargain. We love beer. We love bars. And we love burgers. So it makes sense that we're at our happiest when we're perched on a stool in the bar at McCormick & Schmick's. This upscale place is known for its fresh seafood, with diners paying upward of $25 for a nice, aquatic entree.... More >>
• Best Chain Restaurant
  Roy's Pacific Rim Cuisine
  2501 East Camelback
  602-381-1155
  (and 7001 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 480-905-1155)
  Most people crave consistency. They seek out the safety of sameness. They want to know that no matter where they go, they haven't really left home. That in part explains the incredible popularity of chain restaurants. It's comforting to know that dinner at a chain will be the same whether you're... More >>
• Best Place to Watch First Wives and Lounge Lizards
  The Velvet Room
  7111 East Fifth Avenue, Scottsdale
  480-941-6000
  Go to this sultry joint for the people-watching -- parades of twentysomething, swing-dancing poseurs rubbing shoulders with aging lounge lizards in crazy-wide lapels. Both are perfectly in style with the 1940s and "Golden Age of Jazz" theme at this funky supper club. The kids, some decked out... More >>
• Best Place to Catch a Wave
  Aloha Kitchen
  2950 South Alma School, Mesa
  480-897-2451
  Sometimes, we're surfing for a fast, simple, inexpensive supper. That's when we say "Aloha!" to the Hawaiian-themed kitchen of the same name. Short of the slow-roasted sow you'll find at a South Pacific luau, there's nothing better than the luscious Kalua pig served here -- tender, subdued and... More >>
• Best Place for Old-Fashioned Tableside Preparation
  Le Sans Souci
  7030 East Bella Vista, Cave Creek
  480-488-2856
  Sans souci is French for "without a care." That may be true for us, the lucky diners relaxing in this elegant French chateau, but not for the servers concentrating on preparing our elaborate meals right next to our tables. These professionals, under the watchful eye of legendary Valley... More >>
• Best New Arizona Charm
  Rancho Pinot Grill
  6208 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale
  480-468-9463
  It's a kinder, gentler Arizona these days, where upscale restaurants don't limit themselves to impressing us with exotica from faraway lands. The new fine dining experience celebrates the products born and raised in our own Valley of the Sun. Chefs like Rancho Pinot's Chrysa Kaufman insist on... More >>
• Best Drive-Through Gourmet Food
  Latino Express
  8880 East Via Linda, Scottsdale
  480-451-8880
  Can't face another drive-through meal of burger and fries? No problem. Latino Express comes to your rescue with gourmet, South American treats created by local chef Erasmo "Razz" Kamnitzer, owner of the upscale Razz's in Scottsdale. Housed in a former Jack in the Box, the drive-through... More >>
• Best Place for a Twilight Drink
  The patio at Persimmon Bar & Grille
  Anthem Golf and Country Club
  42149 North Anthem Heights Drive, Anthem
  623-742-6200
  It's a hefty drive -- some 35 miles north of downtown Phoenix -- and there's not a lot to look at on the lonely stretch of highway leading to this massive master-planned community in the middle of nowhere. But that's exactly what makes the final destination so spectacular. Once parked on the... More >>
• Best Midnight Snack
  Barmouche
  3131 East Camelback
  602-956-6900
  At a time of night when other restaurants along Camelback's gourmet row have long since rolled up the kitchen, Barmouche sizzles with its first-rate, creative French cuisine. Midnight munchies include portobello lasagna with made-on-site mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan, goat cheese and spinach, an... More >>
• Best Place for Coffee and Dessert Under the Stars
  Coffee Talk
  48 North Robson, Mesa
  480-844-2353
  You can grab an after-dinner latte and biscotti just about anywhere these days. But you'll gladly drive past strip mall coffeeterias and shopping center java joints to relax in this charming little spot. Located just north of Main Street in downtown Mesa, its sparkling white decorative lights... More >>
• Best Private Party Room
  Dick's Hideaway
  6008 North 16th Street
  602-241-1881
  To say that this private party room is a little hole in the wall is entirely accurate. It's hidden, in fact, behind a door set inconspicuously into the paneled wood wall of the tiny bar called Dick's Hideaway. There's no sign anywhere -- not even outside, for the bar itself. You've just got to... More >>
• Best Private Dining Room, Upscale
  The Praying Monk
  The Phoenician
  6000 East Camelback
  480-423-2530
  It's so hard to get good help. Sometimes the serfs at our castle revolt against us, and refuse to cater the elaborate dinner parties we like to throw. How gauche. No matter, we've got a back-up with the ultra-luxe private dining room we can reserve at the Phoenician resort. Happily, it looks... More >>
• Best Place to Tell Mom and Dad You're Having a Love Child
  Romano's Macaroni Grill
  7245 East Gold Dust Avenue, Scottsdale
  480-596-6676
  (and other Valley locations)
  This category reminds us of an old schoolyard gag: Q: Are you in favor of matrimony? A: Only with cheese. But seriously, ladies, when it comes time to tell the folks you're in the family way without the benefit of wedlock, we can't think of a better place to bite the bullet than this... More >>
• Best-Kept Restaurant Secret
  Palm Court
  Scottsdale Conference Resort
  7700 East McCormick Parkway, Scottsdale
  480-991-9000
  The Palm Court has been around for years, quietly catering to a dedicated clientele of conference and convention guests, plus savvy business lunchers who know a good thing when they see it. It's a little worn around the edges, as any grand old dame is wont to be. But the lady's got more life... More >>
• Best Breakfast
  The Farm House
  397 South Gilbert Road, Gilbert
  480-926-0676
  Farmers used to start their days in a big way. Stacks of pancakes as high as a silo. Backhoe loads of bacon. Troughs full of toast, spread thick with jam, butter and cheese. Eggs, ham, waffles. Of course, nowadays even farmers can't afford to eat like that every day, much less we couch... More >>