A Sonoran desert rule: your favorite hometown restaurants shouldn’t be closely guarded secrets. The places that Phoenicians love visiting for sumptuous pancakes and flawless spare ribs are meant to be shared, much like the entrees and desserts served there.
At a beloved Italian spot in North Central Phoenix, a James Beard Award winner wows diners with new tastes and textures. In Kierland Commons, a Parisian bistro serves the city’s best croque monsieur, layered with braised leeks. Fans line up for fragrant bowls of tom yum noodle soup at a Thai gem in Chandler.
These restaurants dazzle diners with one-of-a-kind feasts and flavors. Read on for a guide of 12 neighborhood restaurants in Phoenix, long treasured by locals.
Fuego at the Clarendon (North Central Phoenix)
Phoenix locals are not easily impressed with an excellent chile relleno, which makes Fuego’s version all the more notable. One imagines chef Carlos Ortiz Sanchez burning the midnight oil to determine the perfect combination of chicken-stuffed pasilla pepper, jack cheese, and black beans. However he came up with this powerhouse blend, it’s a Phoenix favorite, and a perennial on Fuego’s revolving Latin fusion menu. Owners Amanda and Jeff Ward book local live music on the roomy patio seven nights a week, providing a pleasant background for tasty plates such as tortilla-crusted tilapia and slow-cooked pork pernil asado.
Ocotillo (Downtown Phoenix)
Locals were elated when chef Walter Sterling (formerly of fine-dining icon, Mary Elaine’s) opened this sprawling New American restaurant, complete with a beer garden, outdoor lounge, and coffee bar, in 2015. Sterling’s refined touch elevates everyday ingredients, resulting in dishes such as miso-soaked Persian cucumbers, eggplant meatballs, and roasted cauliflower. Diners return for seasonally changing sides and starters (recent hits included a potato salad, studded with dates). Though Ocotillo’s beloved entrees, including chile-and-citrus chicken and rock shrimp ravioli, are always available.
The Greene House – Kierland Commons (Kierland Commons)
The Greene House is a Kierland Commons favorite thanks to its distinct staycation vibes. Diners are drawn to its laid back, California-inspired setting. They’re also here for shareable plates including herb-and-feta infused hummus and a fresh black mussel and chorizo appetizer that’s served with so much grilled sourdough it’s practically an entrée. The Green House also stocks many California boutique wines—another reason why a meal here feels like an idyllic getaway.
Shimogamo Restaurant (Chandler)
Phoenicians regularly make the trek to Chandler for the contemporary creations at this beloved sushi spot. They include the signature Shimogamo roll, an umami-packed bundle of panko shrimp and flying fish roe, and spicy yellowtail wrapped in pickled burdock root studded with shishito peppers. Those who prefer their raw delicacies unadorned can choose from an excellent spread of sashimi, nigiri, and maki. Shimogamo also draws regulars for its history: the restaurant was opened by Japanese immigrants, Sanae and Yoshio Otomo in 2003 before they handed over the reins to their daughter Mika and her husband Daisuke, who are both professionally trained sommeliers.
The Henry – Phoenix (Central Phoenix)
The Henry’s full-service restaurant, bar, and cozy coffee shop are all popular stops in the bustling Arcadia neighborhood, home to many Phoenix faves. Parmesan truffle fries put this place on the map among connoisseurs, and the Henry house salad (greens tossed with tomato, egg, cucumber, and bacon) sealed the deal as a lunchtime staple. The restaurant’s Gatsby-era grace, stellar New American plates, curated wine flights, and many private spaces make it ideal for parties and business meetings.
The Gladly (Biltmore)
The stakes are high in this tony midtown neighborhood, so one opens a restaurant and whiskey bar at their own risk. Yet the Gladly, a contemporary spot serving lunch, happy hour, and dinner, has a solid reputation thanks to chef Bernie Kantak’s inventive dishes and a stunning lineup of craft cocktails, fine wines, and more than 300 different whiskeys. If it’s not on the menu, ask about the sea bass entrée. Though the star player is the original chopped salad, a Kantak creation made with smoked salmon, couscous, arugula, and pepitas, considered Arizona’s unofficial state salad.
Mora Italian (North Central Phoenix)
Since opening in 2017, Mora has risen from just another Italian restaurant to one of Phoenix’s most adored dining spots. Chef and owner Scott Conant, a James Beard Award winner, doesn’t just rest on his laurels. Instead, he’s on a constant mission to introduce diners to new tastes and textures at this modern osteria, named after his grandmother. Conant’s take on burrata, filled with cream and curds, is served with an unexpected accompaniment—pickled eggplant. The frutti di mare pizza is an explosion of seafood flavors, topped with marinated shrimp, clams, and calamari. While bread baskets are usual suspects at most Italian restaurants, Mora keeps the crowds coming by serving its version with a sumptuous cheese dipping sauce—and a thoughtful wine suggestion from a server.
Base Pizzeria (Central Phoenix)
Phoenix’s pizza aficionados come to this inviting spot for exquisite, wood-fired pies and ever-changing chef’s specials. The three siblings who run the place source ingredients as hyper locally as possible. Unconventional toppings and cheekily named pizzas (case in point: the “Smelly Date,” topped with gorgonzola, crispy prosciutto, arugula, and dates) keep the regulars coming. As do top-notch small bites such as garlic prawns and pan-seared Brussels sprouts and bacon. True Base buffs know to ask for extra toppings, including charred onion, fior di latte, and soppressata.
Charm Thai Cuisine (Chandler)
Any Thai spot that gives diners the option of both “hot” and “Thai hot” isn’t messing around. Charm’s, well, charm, lies in its ultra traditional recipes. Fans return for the cilantro-flecked tom yum noodle soup, spicy gra pow fried rice, brightened with basil and bell peppers, and roasted red duck curry. To those flavorful plates, add a long list of spirits and on-tap beers, and it’s no surprise this intimate retreat has become a Chandler go-to since opening in 2013.
Zinc Bistro (Kierland Commons)
Being the only Parisian bistro in Kierland wasn’t enough for Zinc’s late owner, Terry Ellisor. His restaurant also scored local favorite status for serving the best croque monsieur in town, topped with braised leeks and gooey Gruyère. When it opened in 2002, Zinc, a 4,000-foot expanse, became the first Scottsdale restaurant to feature a communal table; more intimate spots can be found beside an outdoor fountain or the romantic, candle-lit garden patio. Though the prolific wine list may strike first-timers as overwhelming, returning diners know to enlist the assistance of Zinc’s attentive servers, who are well-versed in their reds and whites.
Barrio Café (Central Phoenix)
Established in 2002 by restaurateur Wendy Gruber and chef Silvana Salcido Esparza, Barrio Café is a Phoenix institution. Visitors are lured here by the promise of Instaworthy tableside guacamole, sprinkled with pomegranate seeds. Locals keep coming for Mexican dishes they won’t find anywhere else in town. Churro rellenos are an Esparza classic, as are her chiles en nogada, or chiles stuffed with ground turkey and drizzled with walnut sauce, meant to represent the Mexican flag. Also worth sampling: Barrio’s drinks menu, filled with an impressive margarita selection and many Mexican white wines.
Bobby Q’s (North Mountain)
In a much earlier incarnation circa 1971, this popular barbecue joint (then known as Bobby McGee’s) was a disco with a restaurant up front, a place where servers made wise cracks while taking your brisket order. These days, the spot still delivers an urban cowboy-esque ambience. But the emphasis is more on slow-cooked meats and tangy sweet sauces. Phoenicians come to Bobby’s for its enclosed patio, which makes a comfortable perch for tucking into a plate of rib tips or a smokehouse burger, piled with crispy fried onions. A full gluten-free menu is also available.
Robrt Pela is an NPR affiliate correspondent whose writing has appeared in Psychology Today, The Advocate, and for 30 years in Phoenix New Times.
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