PHOENIX – On the last day of our visit to Phoenix to soak up some Brewers Spring Training baseball, Andy Tarnoff and I spotted a Taco Bell across the street from a beloved local Mexican food chain. We wondered who chooses Taco Bell over Filiberto's.
It's no surprise that Phoenix does Mexican food well. In reality, it should come as no surprise that Phoenix does lots of cuisines well. It's a big tourism destination, a cosmopolitan metro area and one that has a lot of money fueling its local nightlife and dining economy.
For our desert swan song, we rolled from our hotel a long way East along Camelback Road to hit The Phoenician, a swanky golf resort at the foot of a big hill out in Scottsdale, where folks know how to enjoy themselves.
The burgers were as large and as satisfying as promised, but the dining experience wasn't exactly what I expected. I'd heard there were breathtaking views of the golf course here and expected something a bit high-minded.
It was with great relief, then that I found that the Relish Burger Bistro at The Phoenician is a family place, with kids of all ages at darn near every table. Casual, but, make no mistake, this is not Red Robin.
There are no balloons. There is, however, a roaring fire in the fireplace and there's sports on the half-dozen TV screens in the dimly lit dining room.
Relish is a place for adults that also welcomes kids. So, if the whole family has hit Phoenix with Brewers fever, Relish is a great option. Because not only are kids welcome, parents and tots will love the straight-up American burger joint approach.
The menu has a few entrees, but focuses mainly on the burger. There are some suggested combinations on the menu, but the create your own burger for $16 is unbeatable. Choose your cheese, bacon or not, onions or not, etc. and your kobe burger will really satisfy. It comes with a side of devilishly crunchy tater tots.
I also tried the beer and cheese soup, which is hearty and packs a bit of spice on the finish. Despite the Arizona heat, I recommend it.
If you're not driving, there are more than 70 beers from which to choose and one of the area's largest assortments of tequila.
Lunch is served daily from 11 a.m. until 5 p.m. and dinner is Sunday-Wednesday 5-8:30 p.m., Thursday-Saturday, 5 p.m. until 9:30. There's a daily happy hour from 3:30 until 6 with noshes like kobe beef sliders, fried pickles, queso fundido and more.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
