We'll be in PHX for Labor Day weekend, cashing in some points from the Hilton HHonors 50K promotions, and would like some nice places for dinner. I've read a number of restaurant review guides and come up with some names - Mary Elena's (at the Phoenician), Victor's, Roxsand, and Cafe Terra Cotta - that sounded interesting.

We would really appreciate any comments from anyone who has eaten at any of the above or similar type places in PHX or Scottsdale. Other suggestions are most welcome, of course. We'll be staying at the Hilton Tapatio Cliffs. Thanks.

Jerry

Hi JerryFF - You will enjoy the Tapatio Cliffs Hilton, their pool area is especially nice. Be aware it will still be really HOT while you are in Phoenix, so pack cool clothing accordingly. We are familiar with several of the restaurants you’re enquiring about.

Are you going to have a car? The Tapatio location is quite a long taxi ride from the restaurants you’re asking about. A rental car really is necessary to enjoy the sights around Phoenix, but I do NOT recommend renting a car at the Phoenix airport due to extortionate taxes on rentals there (being used to fund various city projects). Check to see if transportation is provided to your hotel. If so, rent a car from the Avis office at 3rd St. and Bell (run by a friend of mine, Vince) or from a nearby Enterprise rental office at about 12th. St. and Bell. Be sure to reserve well in advance for the holiday weekend.

The Phoenician resort is about 30 minutes drive from the Hilton where you’re staying. I was there a couple of days ago and the chef mentioned that Mary Elaine’s is closed right now. It’s their premier restaurant. Other excellent restaurants at the resort include The Terraces (great Sunday buffet), and Windows on the Green (southwestern fusion cuisine, restaurant itself in a separate building right on the golf course). There is a lot of information on the resort and restaurants at the Phoenician website. You would want reservations for any meal there, even during the current “low” season.

A little closer to you (at the northeast corner of 24th St. and Camelback Rd.) is an upscale shopping mall, Biltmore Fashion Park (Macy’s, Saks, Arden Red Door Salon, Cartier, Neiman Marcus Gallery, etc). Warning, this center is outdoors, not an enclosed mall. At the eastern end of the center are a number of very good restaurants, kind of a restaurant row. These include Roxsand’s, Steamers, Sam’s Cafe, and others. We really liike Roxsand’s. Another great restaurant (our favorite in town) is just west of the center, Eddie Matney’s. It’s on the west side of 24th St., just north of Camelback, with valet parking.

Another favorite resort of ours is the Princess, located in North Scottsdale. Any of their restaurants are very good. I’m not familiar with some of the places you mention: Victor’s, Terra Cotta. One other sleeper for your trip is a little “neighborhood” strip center just a few blocks from your hotel. On the southwest corner of 7th Street and Thunderbird (just 1/2 mile north of your hotel entrance) you will find “A.J.’s” a gourmet grocery store with excellent deli, coffee bar, wines, etc. A couple of doors south of the grocery store is a little tea room (open for lunch and afternoon tea) and gift shop, “Gooseberries,” and two doors further down another of our favorite restaurants, “Saluté,” a fairly upscale Italian place.

Hope this Phoenix-resident perspective helps your planning. Feel free to e-mail me directly if you have other questions. I’ll be out of town August 7-15 and NOT on e-mail during that time.

Jerry--

Dianne is right on the mark...I lived in PHX for 2 years myself and got out frequently to experience the favors of the city.

I agree that you will enjoy the Pointe at Tapitio Cliffs...The hotel is inlaid in a mountain, with many small buildings with maybe 10-20 rooms per building. A MUST is to go to the bar at the top of the hotel's mountain, called 'A Different Pointe of View' (If I remember correctly)...At night it offers a BEAUTIFUL view of the entire city.

I think all rooms are suite format, but scratch and claw to get an upgrade to a large suite...They're quite nice.

As for dining in the city, many of the places previously mentioned are indeed excellent (especially Steamers, love their seafood, and if you carry a Diners Club CC, 20% off the bill), if I could add my input for (relatively) nearby places, Obi-Chine (sp?)--I believe it's a Wolfgang Puck place with eclectic-Asian cuisine, very good.

For lunch/breakfast, every time I go back to Phoenix, I have to go to Chompie's Deli...Hands down the best deli I've been to...Several hundred items on the menu--HUGE portions and great food. It's up on Greenway and maybe 23rd St.

Have a great trip!

Alas, Wolfgang Puck's restaurant closed a while back. Chompie's is indeed an excellent traditional deli, located on NE corner of 32nd St. & Greenway, facing 32nd. This is not too far from Tapatio Cliffs. Mountaintop Point of View restaurant at your hotel does have a fabulous view, would be great for a drink or dessert. The restaurant used to be very good, but received a poor review in the local paper recently.

Wow - thanks for all the great suggestions. Too bad we're only staying 3 days! I'm not too disappointed about Wolfgang Puck - we've been to Spago and Chinois in Las Vegas and Postrio in San Francisco, and to be honest, the only one that really stands out is Spago. At any rate we're happy to be trying something new.

I'll let you know what we decide and how things go. Thanks again.

I'll second the choice on Roxsand and give a thumbs-up to Cafe Terra Cotta, too. The original CTC in Tucson is excellent (they just moved to a brand new location) and I would think that the PHX version would be decent.

Thanks, RK7. Terra Cotta sounded pretty interesting and Roxsand gives AA miles, so I think those will likely be our two choices for main dinners. We will try to hit some of the others for lunch etc.

We're back from what turned out to be an excellent trip, despite the 100+ heat. Pointe Hilton at Tapatio Cliffs was a very pleasant surprise. I know several people indicated we would like it, but I did not expect it to be as positive an experience as it was.

As HHonors Gold, we were upgraded to a corner king suite with a great view. Breakfast coupons every day for both of us - and no charge for late check out. Everyone was extremely friendly, helpful, pleasant. The multiple pools scattered around the resort offered lots of variation and convenience.

As far as meals, we only had two dinners "out" as everything was closed on Sunday. First night at Roxsand was a disappointment. Maybe it was our personal taste, but one problem was that there just weren't too many things on the menu that interested us. I had a seafood sampler - in contrast to this type of dish elsewhere, where each item is presented separately, often with its own sauce, this was a mish-mash of everything piled into one large soup-like dish. If there had been broth, it would have been fish stew. My wife had seared ahi tuna - nothing special compared to that dish we've had elsewhere many times. There were few appetizers of interest, and although there were many desserts, they all seemed rather heavy. Although the restaurant was half empty, we were seated next to another couple unnecessarily - with tables rather close, this seemed a bit odd. Also, we were charged for a $14 glass of wine when I ordered one that was $7. They did correct the bill, however.

Vincent, on the other hand, was excellent. This is the second time we've been there, and it was excellent both times. I had a superb grilled shrimp appetizer and a fine salmon entree, and my wife had a truly excellent lamb. They gave us complimentary desserts because they told us we had a "bad" table with a lot of traffic. We didn't think it was a problem and hadn't complained about anything, since there really was nothing to complain about. If you go there, ask for James and tell him the folks from Santa Cruz recommended it.