TC

Hi Arizona friends, Making a very quick trip to AZ this week. Will be staying at the Carefree Resort. Would love to have your recommendations for casual, local restaurants nearby. None of those high end resort dining rooms for this trip please -- no matter how great they are. Would even be happy with some good take-out to eat from the deck of our resort and watch the sunset. Its a working trip, so food isn't the main focus. Will just want rest, relaxation and something tasty in the evenings. Thanks.

ksucat

We enjoy Cafe Bink in Carefree..love the fancier restaurant called Binkley's in Cave Creek too but this is the cafe version and excellent.
Also, love Harold's Corral in Cave Creek.

www.cafebink.com

www.haroldscorral.com

Birdie

We liked the BBQ and strawberry shortcake at the Horny Toad. It has been a few years, though.

www.thehornytoad.com

kim711

Just ate at the Horny Toad last week. Still there and still excellent. Enormous portions!

Also enjoyed El Encanto in Cave Creek, if you like authentic Southwestern cuisine. Sit by the duck pond and enjoy the house margarita, a REAL margarita, not one of those sweetened blender versions.

TC

Thanks,Kim. We are currently in Carefree and just had dinner last night at the Tonto Bar and Grill. Amazing! The portions were HUGE and the view from the patio (warmed to perfection with overhead heaters)was spectacular. We had the Ahi tuna roll starter and I swear it is enough for a large dinner entre. The "small" calamari salad was delicious and more than enough to share. Sadly, we had no room left for desert although they looked amazing at the next table. Prices are very reasonable. I would go again in a heartbeat -- in fact, we may.

TC

On our second night we ate at the Carefree Station -- just behind the Shell Gas Station in the "Village". It was great, although one needs to make a reservation. Beautiful rooftop location -- try to get there before sunset, with good food. Happy Hour menu is a very good value. One could easily make a meal. The food and ambiance are equal to that of the Tonto Bar and Grill -- midrange, local ingredients with a Mexican flavor to continental dishes. Would recommend.

TC

By the way, Kim....we did have a drink at El Encanto and while the atmosphere is cute, I wouldn't give it a rave. We had the house margarita while sitting at the bar and it did come straight out of a big machine (kind of like a Dairy Queen machine). I asked if that was their special house margarita and the bartender said "yes". The food was of the standard huge portions of Americanized mexican food with lots of cheese and sour creme. We asked several locals for recommendations and when mentioning El Encanto they all gave it a shrug of the shoulders.

Robespierre

This is a little further afield, but worth the drive:

http://paintedhorserestaurant.com

They have a Kobeburger that is to die for!

kim711

Yeah, TC, the bar itself was not that great at El Encanto. We enjoyed the hacienda atmosphere out by the pond, though. Sorry you didn't get the same margarita I did. Maybe it's different depending on the bartender.

Being cheeseheads, we wanted to try the Mexican cheeses and sour cream from California cows, so for us, it was completely different from what we are used to. Not for everyone, though, I guess. Glad you were pleased with where you ended up, and thanks for the hot tips for next time.