The Upton Review - Best New Restaurant In Scottsdale

The Upton – Best New Restaurant In Scottsdale

A Secret Local hideaway

Among the many hotels, Pizza joints and college bars that case the streets of Old Town Scottsdale, there lies a fresh breathe of air; The Upton. The Upton could possibly be the best new restaurant in Scottsdale and is quite the homey hidden gem. Upon arrival the Upton looks as if you need a secret knock to enter the medieval style door. When entering, you truly feel as if you arrived at someones warm and cozy home.

That feeling is only further exemplified as you pass through their restaurant doors and onto their award winning patio. The backyard style patio is enclosed by a beautiful garden of vines and trees and boasts an eclectic array of urban street art, wooden barrels and twinkling lights.

we chose a seat in the backyard, er, I mean patio. As we scouted our first cocktail of the night, I couldn’t help but giggle at the clever and pun-ny names of food and drink items such as “Lettuce Turnip the beets” & “the really copied mason jar chopped salad, 007 style” (shaken not stirred).

We had a hard time deciding on just what our weapon of choice would be, as their drinks were clearly hand crafted delicacies made with only the best ingredients and a lot of love. We eventually decided to wet our whistles with a couple signature cocktails. The Hotel Nacional was a vacation in a glass and the Aviation was the perfect mix of Gin and specialty spirits.

Once we felt the liquid relaxation take hold, we started our Upton adventure with the award winning Chinese char siu ribs and the eclectic meat and cheese board. While I am very ~~picky~~ snobby about my ribs, these were some of the best I have had; smothered in a sweet glaze with a small kick, topped with smoked peanuts and a cilantro pesto. You could smell them coming long before they reached the table, filling the air with sweet and savory Asian spices.

The Meat & Cheese Board was almost too pretty to eat, layered upon a purple hanker-chief and layed out beautifully on a wooden slab. We embarrassingly cleaned every rib bone and fought over every slice of cheese across the board (literally).

We decided despite the battle of “who gets the last bite” in the appetizer round, it was time to move on to the main course. We chose the Smoked Salmon Kale Salad with “bear caught” Alaskan salmon (of course) and the Farmers Cut Angus Bistro Steak. The salmon salad was light and refreshing with just the right amount of heartiness added from the smoked salmon. The balance of acid and smoke ping-ed off of each other beckoning a new bite after the last.

The Bistro steak was perfectly cooked to a delicious medium rare and sliced masterfully. The savory aspect of the steak shined through but was quickly balanced by the pop of flavor brought out by the caramelized onions and blue cheese butter, as it melted and drizzled between the steak slices. There was not a bite left when we were done with it. In fact I don’t recall there even being a lick of sauce left on the plate.

we sat for a minute sipping on a delicious Nimbus Blonde Ale and enjoying the breeze of the fans in the secret garden like atmosphere. As we observed the other diners, we saw business groups, first dates, friends meeting over coffee and dessert… The Upton is truly a hidden local hot spot.

As if we hadn’t had enough deliciousness for the evening, the server Rachel was kind enough to let us know about the dessert of the day, as they change nightly and… poof! onto another delicious creation. We were lucky enough, as the dessert that evening happened to be a bananas foster crepe.

Someone pinch me. The Crepe was thin and the edges were crisp and sweet. The bananas foster was perfectly cooked and stuffed into the crepey blanket, drizzled with a sweet caramel glaze. It was gone in the blink of an eye but every bite was a delicacy.

The Upton is the best new restaurant in Scottsdale and is up for the award for that exact title (rightfully so!). It truly is a Scottsdale hot spot that you just don’t want to leave… And now, you don’t have to. Not only is The Upton adding late night bites to their menu with extended hours, They also feature a specialty Sunday brunch and an amazing “power lunch” featuring quick, delicious and cheap bites on the go.

I can’t think of a better Sunday ~~morning~~ afternoon, especially when previewing the menu, boasting items such as; Captain Crunch griddle cakes with sweet condensed milk syrup, or the Angus beef hash, with breakfast potatoes and an “easy egg“. Oh don’t mind me…I’m just over here drooling.

If this isn’t the best new restaurant in Scottsdale I don’t know what is. I can only imagine the Upton’s beauty on a fall afternoon, cocktail in hand, surrounded by the beautiful patio vines and colorful atmosphere. After this unique and mouth watering dinner experience I cannot wait to make their other offerings a part of my regular dining experience.