PHX Super Bowl Dining Thread

[silverbear]

It is likely that the Southwest Board will receive numerous inquiries from Super Bowl visitors over the next 10 days. To avoid repetitive threads, I am attempting to create one thread for these inquiries. My guidance below is designed to reflect apparent board consensus rather than my personal preferences, and it is likely that I have overlooked many good options, so I welcome and encourage additions from others on the SW Board.

First, a quick geography lesson: The Super Bowl will involve many parts of the Phoenix Metro Area. The game itself will be played in the west-side suburb Glendale, the media headquarters will be in Downtown Phoenix, and many parties will be held in the east-side suburb Scottsdale. Guests will stay throughout the metro area, but a large number will be concentrated in upscale resorts in Scottsdale, the east side of Phoenix, and the Town of Paradise Valley. Keep in mind that the Phoenix Metro Area is enormous. Phoenix itself is over 500 square miles in size, and Scottsdale is a tall, narrow city that runs 30 miles from top to bottom. For that reason, it's necessary to group recommendations by zone. Click on the place links to find other threads discussing the particulars of each restaurant.

Zone 1: Northeast Phoenix and North Scottsdale (includes the Four Seasons, the Westin Kierland, the JW Marriott Desert Ridge, and the Princess)

Mosaic

Sassi

Sol y Sombra

Mastro's

Eddie V's

Binkley's

Zinc Bistro

Zone 2: Biltmore and Arcadia neighborhoods of Phoenix, southern and central Scottsdale, and the Town of Paradise Valley (includes the Arizona Biltmore, the Ritz-Carlton, the Phoenician, the Royal Palms, the Camelback Inn, the Mondrian, the Sanctuary, etc.)

Sea Saw

Elements at the Sanctuary

Tarbell's

Cowboy Ciao

La Grande Orange Pizzeria

Postino

Humble Pie

Rancho Pinot

Vincent's

T Cook's

Zone 3: Glendale (the community that is home to University of Phoenix stadium)

Most restaurants right by the stadium are chains. Downtown Glendale, about 5 miles to the east, has some interesing options:

Haus Murphy

Pedro's

La Perla

Zone 4: Downtown and Central Phoenix

Pizzeria Bianco

The Roosevelt

Los Dos Molinos

Fate

Barrio Cafe

Durant's

Please note that this a rough list. I encourage all Phoenix-area hounds to add their recommendations and clarifications, especially in Zone 1 and Zone 3, which are outside my usual territory. My hope is to keep the Super Bowl inquiries concentrated here for the benefit of both SW Board regulars and our welcome visitors.

[HomeCookKirsten]

Brilliant Silverbear! Very helpful and easy to use.

[Kari]

Add to Zone 3 in Glendale, Kiss the Cook for Breakfast and Lunch

4915 W Glendale Ave
Glendale, AZ 85301
[phone]
Open Hours M-F 6am-3pm, Sa 7am-3pm, Su 7am-1pm

[boingo2000]

Great idea. To Zone 3, I would add:

Roaring Fork

Delux Burger

[Sunkisst]

All Great Choices! *Bravo*

[JK Grence the Cosmic Jester]

Those would both be Zone 2, not 3.

[boingo2000]

Ack! You're right. My bad!

[jkgourmet]

Bravo, Silverbear. This is marvelous - for a long time beyond the Superbowl, I'm sure.

One additional comment to our visitors: Few restaurants take reservations, and those that do are booked already, I suspect. Expect to wait for a table at many locations.

[majik]

Thank you so much! I really appreciate the info!

[Bill Hunt]

Whoa Silverbear! Job well-done and good anticipation on the requests. Now, if folk will just look at the board, before they post their, "coming to Phoenix for Superbowl. Is there any good food?" There might be some personal fav's, of the posters here, that were missed, but those can come out, as time goes by.

What a great service you provided - be proud, be very proud.

Hunt

[Seth Chadwick]

Great job, sb.

If I may be so bold, one omission in and around Zone 3 would be Dillon's, a local BBQ chain that I like very much. Killer onion rings and great selection. On occasion, we have received somewhat disappointing service, but still I would recommend them if BBQ and Football is your thing.

[silverbear]

Thanks. I'm really weak on anything west of I-17, so I hope some of our West Side specialists will add more good options near the stadium.

[JK Grence the Cosmic Jester]

One I just recently picked up on near the stadium is a sub shop called Which Wich in the Westgate billboard collection and shopping center, just north of the Glendale basketball arena. It's a clever little concept: They have 51 different sandwiches on the menu. These are divided into ten categories by their meat (such as turkey, chicken, beef, vegetarian, seafood, et cetera), plus one on its own known as the Wicked wich. Once you decide which sandwich you want, you grab the bag for that sandwich from the holders on the wall and mark what you want for toppings on the bag. While it isn't destination dining (it's a franchised quick-service sandwich shop, were you really expecting something at the level of Pane Bianco?), it's worth a stop if you're in the area. Killer shakes too. Once things get in full swing over there you aren't going to be able to come CLOSE to the place, mostly because every parking space for miles will already be taken.

[1wino]

To Zone 3, I would add Sweet O Wine and Chocolate Bar in Westgate right by the stadium. Excellent, well-chosen, well-priced flights and very good food and sweets. It's one of the few independent joints in the area. Also, A Touch of European Cafe in downtown Glendale has some of the best Polish food in town, but is very, very tiny, so call ahead to make sure there's not a long wait. You can BYOB there. (Sorry if the links don't show up -- I am having trouble with them.)

[ipsedixit]

Here's a handy printable guide to dining specials and locations in and around downtown Phoenix (Zone 4).

http://www.coppersquare.com/downloads...

[emmaAmethyst]

Anybody know whether there's actually any chance of parking anywhere near the Zone 2 -- Old Town Scottsdale restaurants (Cowboy Ciao, Sea Saw, Fine's Cellar) ? Or are those just total futility to get to? (At least without a private limo driver.)

[ciaogal]

There is public parking garage on 3rd Ave just west of Scottsdale Rd....that may your best bet and walk to the restaurants in Old Town.
There is also a parking Garage @ Southbridge...it may be difficult to get in to as most of the High Profile events are taking place in the area.

[boingo2000]

As long as you're willing to walk a bit, you should be ok. Also, there are a lot of valet spots down there right now if you're willing to pay a few bucks.

Another option would be to park in one of the Fashion Square parking garages and walk across to Southbridge.

[eatmedrinkme]

The Eurpoean Cafe in downtown Glendale is open for lunch and dinner. Traditional Polish food family owned and operated. Very limited seating, byob w/no corking fee. Worthy of this list!

[mr mouther]

I've heard that phoenix has some interesting mexican but i cant find any on these lists. i'll be staying in Mesa near the falcon field airport and would appreciate some mexican recs, and also some less pricey recs. Also, i can't find arcadia or biltmore listed on google maps so i cant figure out where those places are. I'm assuming that I should be looking at "zone 2" restaurants based on where i'll be, but if i'f i've misunderstood phoenix geography, please let me know.

(anything is better than where i ate last time i had to be in phoenix: boston's....ugh)

[silverbear]

This thread is based on a list I posted nearly two years ago. A lot has changed since then, so I wouldn't even consider the list valid these days.

Let's start fresh: You're staying in northeast Mesa. You want Mexican food. The nearest place I can think of is Rancho de Tio Rosa. I've been there only once -- thought it was just okay, although it has some loyal fans. I'd research some reviews to see if it's worthwhile for you.

For other recommendations, the relevant question is how far are you willing to travel?

[MesaChow]

Tia Rosa has a beautiful patio and some items are very good. Another 1.5 miles down McKellips takes you to Restaurante Sinaloa (Mariscos) that has very good Mexican seafood. The Chicharrones de Pargo and Camarones en Chipotle are my current favorites there.

The Arizona Biltmore hotel is at 24th St & Missouri, and the Biltmore shopping area at 24th & Camelback. From where you'll be, it's an easy 25 minute drive via the 202 West / 51 North to the Highland/Camelback exit.

[mr mouther]

yah, i'm going to be at the mercy of my in-laws for this week in phnx, but they're used to me arriving with lists of places i'd like to eat, so let's say i can travel around 15-20 minutes for stuff. just be aware that i live in LA and eat a lot of mexican food, so anything unique is highly desired.
i've also put caroline's, tradiciones and salsa cabana on my list.

i'm also completely open to non-mex suggestions that are nearby and cheap to reasonable (no entrees over $10) since my chances of exploring local food is better the closer it is. (and i'd really like to have just SOMEthing to suggest when faced with the in-laws chain restaurant habits; please, don't let me get stuck at a boston's again!)

oh, and there are some times i'l be a little further afield from mesa and would love recs around these places: papago park, fountain hills park, emerald park, vista del camino park

[PaqpIn]

Joe's Farm Grill might work well for you http://www.joesfarmgrill.com/ as might the Cornish Pasty Co. Both are fun, inexpensive and in your general area (as far as the Valley goes). http://www.cornishpastyco.com/locatio...
Certainly better than a chain. Good luck