664243 Mon Nov 02 17:31:13 -0800 2009 12 6 Southwest 0 5150697 We are heading to Mesa for the weekend, and were looking for some suggestions of a good restaurant. No chains please! Mon Nov 02 17:31:13 -0800 2009 1121245 askrula 1 5152500 D'Vine Bistro is very good and very local. It's at the southeast corner of Power and McDowell. Here's the menu link - http://www.dvinebistro.com/ourmenu.php?loc=mesa If you like spicy, Los Dos Molinos is yummy! It's New Mexican - they have some of my favorite chips/sauce as well as very thick, fresh, delicious flour tortillas. It's at 260 S. Alma School Road in a super ugly, small strip mall with an mechanic shop. Great margs, too. Cornish Pasty is a good inexpensive, unique option. It has a great coal-minter theme (miners ate pasty's to avoid poisoning themselves), interesting beers and about 30 of their namesake baked meals (England's version of a calzone but crust is light, pie-like). Mesa is really spread out - if you let us know where you are staying you'll get places that are close to you. I kind a few faves from 3 different sections of Mesa - Dvine and Cornish Pasty are a half hour drive from each other. Tue Nov 03 11:26:28 -0800 2009 5150697 65105 hungryinaz 1 5153222 Being snarky here....Mesa is a town with a lot of restaurants but with no place to eat. Tue Nov 03 14:48:42 -0800 2009 5150697 153214 chimay5 1 5153301 Mesa is close to Tempe. Head there to the House of Tricks, nice local place. Also you are close to Scottsdale, lots of choices and different price points. Tue Nov 03 15:19:06 -0800 2009 5150697 148886 duck833 2 5154549 Askrula- Hopefully the map on the right helps. As mentioned before, Mesa is fairly large and depending on where the hotel is, House of Tricks could be 30 mins away. Wed Nov 04 06:34:44 -0800 2009 5153301 1098231 contemporaryscarlett 1 5153371 Hey thanks for the info. I am a chef from NYC who lives in Santa Fe so I think I will skip the southwestern fare. I am going to a military model competition with my husband so I need something to look forward to! We are staying near the competition at the palatial Days Inn in east Mesa. Tue Nov 03 15:44:00 -0800 2009 5150697 1121245 askrula 2 5176655 Red, White and Brew is a fine, easy, inexpensive, large-portioned spot but not a place I'd imagine an NYC chef getting too excited about. Not sure when you will be in Mesa, but if it's after the new Cafe Boa opens at Power and McDowell, I would highly suggest a stop there. A very good local chef (formerly of Digestif in Scottsdale) created the menu for the new Mesa location and just redid the menu at the original Tempe location as well. I'm expecting great things but, technically, it's untested. Thu Nov 12 13:42:17 -0800 2009 5153371 65105 hungryinaz 1 5154535 I work in East Mesa, so I can only give a sandwich type place recommendations where we go for lunch. Crackers and Co has a huge menu with pretty good food for lunch and breakfast. I like their burgers and sandwiches. I do not like their spinach/artichoke soup (so thick its like a dip), or their salads (poor quality lettuce). Flancers has good sandwiches. Cafe Mix has okay Greek food- I didn't like th e dressing on my Greek salad, and the chicken kebab wasn't the best I've ever had, but it wasn' t bad either. Finally, I've heard good things about Red White and Brew but have yet to go. Wed Nov 04 06:28:32 -0800 2009 5150697 1098231 contemporaryscarlett 1 5155206 East Mesa is pretty far away from a lot of the places that usually get recommended here (including everything in Tempe). How far are you willing to drive? And, what type of food and price range are you interested in? I like Benjarong Thai and Asian Cafe Express, both 15-20 minutes away and very informal/inexpensive. Lulu's Taco Shop in Gilbert is about the same drive time using the freeway, they have great lengua tacos, but that may be too SW for you. Wed Nov 04 09:41:06 -0800 2009 5150697 174150 bortukan 2 5159112 Good things have been said (I'm one of the one's that've been saying it too, admittedly) about Pasti's Eurogrille and Delicatessen. It's on Val Vista and Baseline opposite of the Dana Park area. A search on the board will find what's been said about it, it also was listed on Phoenix Magazines Top 23 New restaurants (for whatever that's worth). Highlight for me was the cheese stuffed tenderloin w/white wine sauce on it. Here's the website so you can peruse the menu and mapquest it: http://www.pastisaz.com/ The website isn't up to date so far as they now offer alcoholic beverages, but everything else is accurate. Thu Nov 05 14:19:26 -0800 2009 5155206 39835 Namius 3 5166949 I've had a few great lunches at Pastis. My DH and I usually split the Serbian Salad and the Sudjuk, or take the recommendations of the owner, who is very friendly and eager to talk about the menu and offer suggestions. Mon Nov 09 08:30:58 -0800 2009 5159112 95577 yamalam 1 5159149 There are In - n - Out's all over Mesa! Don't leave home without give them a try. Thu Nov 05 14:28:42 -0800 2009 5150697 148886 duck833 1 5184553 So just back from Mesa. Are all those chains really necessary? We did have some decent meals. Red white and Brew was decent, though at last check I don't think chicken Marsala is supposed to be that sweet. Cornish Pasty was an odd experience.Food was good, service was a little too slacker for my taste, but the 1980's blasting rock was sooo lame. The egg and eye(I know its a chain) provided a huge breakfast which was very well served but frankly we had a perfect breakfast at the village inn served by a waitress named "The queen Bee" which arrived perfectly cooked in 4 minutes.I think when you travel sometimes you need adjust your expectations to the town. Having said that, the absolute highlight of my trip was handmade pie by Kathy at Pie-O-neeer in Pietown New Mexico.This is a very "Chowhound" worthy tip.It's an amazing honest handmade piece of love in a flaky crust made of butter and lard.Can't beat it!pie Sun Nov 15 21:01:55 -0800 2009 5150697 1121245 askrula