Arrowhead Oasis

When I first moved to the west side of the Valley of the Sun from New York, I was dismayed to find very few fine dining establishments there.  Local lore blames this on two factors: the abundance of presumably penny-pinching senior citizens, and the failure of the utility companies to run natural gas lines into many of the subdivisions there.  Fortunately the last few years have seen several excellent restaurants open in this area, and last Sunday Sue and I took our parents to one of them to celebrate Mom's birthday.

Arrowhead Grill is unfortunately located in a strip mall across the street from a giant Wal-Mart/Sam's Club complex, but the interior is sleek and attractive with an in-wall water feature, fresh flowers, and leather and earth-toned decor.  The kitchen is partially open to the main dining room but the noise level is quite low and the servers attentive.  The bread served before each meal is a delicious warm focaccia, and the rest of the food is also wonderful.

On this particular occasion we went for Sunday brunch, but only Dad had Eggs Benedict.  My sister and I had the excellent Shepards [sic] pie, made with ground lamb, and Mom had a cup of French Onion soup and half a Reuben sandwich, which she said were the best she had ever eaten.  On previous trips there I've had a duck sandwich with caramelized onions (a special that day), the Focaccia Chicken Sandwich, and the Lamb Chop Fondue, all of them to die for.  Their wine list ranges from affordable to "splurge."

The Grill opened in 2008 and has apparently had some hard years during the economic downturn.  Sadly (for the owners), every time I've eaten there the dining room is half empty.  I am trying to support them by telling everyone I know about the restaurant and eating there myself whenever I can afford to.  Sue and I are also thinking of joining their wine-tasting club when it starts up again in May.  We don't want to have to go back to driving to Scottsdale for food of this caliber.

"From the Coconut Battered Shrimp to the AG Butter Cake, each mouth-watering menu item has the personal touch of Chef Charles Wade Schwerd, a Valley culinary hot ticket for almost two decades." ~Arrowhead Grill website