Best Restaurants for Outdoor Dining in Phoenix

We had a fantastic Christmas dinner with family on Saturday night 12/21/24. Our food was fantastic, our waiter Mark/Marc was witty and good at this job. My Mom gushed about how good her espresso martini was. There were only 2 negatives. For some reason my parents didn't get their soups (the only appetizers for the table), when the entrees came out, we mentioned it to the waiter and they were taken off the bill no issues. Then my son was served an adult burger instead of the kids sliders. It was fine, it was delish, he said it was the #2 burger he ever had. I ate some, and I have to say it's a darn good burger. It was negative because it inflated the bill cost. We will be back, everything was wonderful.

This was a tremendous meal, and a can't-miss restaurant when visiting Washington D.C. It was my wife and I, and we shared six plates: hummus, falafel, rice pilaf/barley, fried eggplant, brussels sprouts and (essentially) french fries. We were uncomfortably full when leaving, and this ran us a whopping $72 dollars before tip. Obviously if we had gotten drinks or wine, the price would have gone up considerably, but I can't imagine this kind of quality food in a metro area for $36/person in 2024. Plus endless homemade pita that was a cross between pita and naan was provided -- crazy delicious. The french fries had a house-made mushroom salt with a yogurt dipping sauce. The serving size on those were substantial, but basically they were just outstanding french fries. In terms of going for authentic Mediterranean food, we could have swapped this out for something else, but that was probably more our fault than theirs just having something a little more neutral on the menu for less-adventurous eaters. The other five items were all significantly above average, with my favorite being the sprouts and my wife favoring the barley/pilaf. Also, the speed with which we got through our meal was noteworthy -- one hour as they rotated through plates one at a time. It was a well-oiled machine.

Great luncheon today. Lots of menu choices for winter warmers. I had the beef stew. Tender and tasted great, with a small salad and some bread. Just the right size portions, not to big and not to small. My wife had the chicken stew, and equally as satisfying. Our server was very attentive. We've been here before-sometimes good, sometimes not so much- and this is the best experience we've ever had.

Lots of extra little touches that made the dishes special: the foamy mignonette on the oysters, the crunchy bites and pickled mushrooms on the beef tartare. Pre-pandemic, table side dishes such as classic Caesar salad and duck a la presse were on the menu- we can understand not having them all the time, but hopefully they’re not gone for good.

The food was delicious. We bad the pear and ricotta bruschetta, bolognese and the pasta alla vodka. The atmosphere was lovely and the staff was attentive.