We could have easily just headed home upon leaving Sedona, but I had one more overnight stop in mind. On this road trip, I had decided to bookend our travels with some more upscale meals. On the way to Zion we stopped in Las Vegas for dinner at Partage. On the way back home, I decided we should spend a night at the Sheraton at Wild Horse Pass and have dinner at Kai Restaurant, the only AAA Five Diamond and Forbes Five Star restaurant in Arizona. Beyond those accolades, I was fascinated by the menu which is described as having "distinct interpretations of Native American cuisine using fresh local ingredients for elevated dining." I thought it would be a nice end to our road trip.
Upon checking in to this rather posh resort, we relaxed in our room.
We had a nice view.
We got ready for dinner and left our room a bit early to do some shopping in the gift shop before heading off to the restaurant. With Covid measures in place, it seemed like reservations were staggered and until one third way through our meal, we were the only folks dining. The service, while discreet is definitely professional and polished; the Servers all knew our names, crumbs cleared off the table between every course, silverware changed, and still, the service wasn't hovering and did not feel stuffy in the least.
The decor is low-keyed, the walls festooned with the craft and artwork of the Pima and Maricopa Tribes and each menu has distinct artwork featured on it as well. I was told that the watercolor on my menu was of the Maricopa Butterfly Dance.
The meal is tasting menu only, with several choices for the "Birth", "Beginning", "The Journey", and the "Afterlife". We decided to share a wine pairing with dinner.
The Amuse was a very nice Sablefish wrapped in Basil Flower. The Olive Oil served with the bread was outstanding and we were told it was from Queen Creek Olive Mill.
As always, the Missus and I shared our course which would give us tastes of a good range of items.
The Escargot with Wild Mushroom was an interesting mix of textures, the truffle crema added some decadent touches to the dish. There was a bit more sweetness then I expected in this dish from the black garlic, bread, and the caramel goat cheese.
We both loved the "Pee-Posh Garden".
While it might have seemed to be a bit much when reading the ingredients on the menu, it was a symphony of textures and flavors, from the fermented white asparagus, to the crunchy and mildly sweet pecan "soil", to the pickled beets, nutty-sweet sunchoke puree, and buttery confit potatoes.
I'm sure you know if foie gras is on the menu, we'd be ordering it, even with a $20 supplement. The fois gras was nicely seared, the interior nice and smooth, rich, earthy, though the roasted and compressed apple was perhaps a bit on the sweeter end of the spectrum for us.
The Pork Cheek and Crisp Belly was nice and "swiney". Perfectly done; the Anasazi Bean adding a nice, sweet-earthiness to the dish.
The mains...ummm "Journey" were prepared well, if a bit on the "standard" side.
The "Kachk", black cod with fennel puree was cooked well, nice and creamy. We appreciated the fact that the fennel puree did not overwhelm the dish.
This could have used a bit more aggressive seasoning in our opinion.
Kai's signature dish is the Grilled Tenderloin of Tribal Buffalo was cooked to a perfect medium rare.
It is of course buffalo....thus a bit on the "toothsome" side. A bit milder in flavor than what I expected, the corn puree and saguaro syrup made this a bit sweeter than I like as well.
The cheese plate was quite routine.
Dessert was served with some fanfare.....
Both desserts were outstanding and not overly sweet.
The Chocolate and Queen Creek Olives.
The Mousse "stones" where wonderful, so decadent and creamy inside, with the "hidden" olive cake adding a touch of savoriness, and the lemon foam had just enough cirtus-acidity for the dish.
The Cactus Melange was also stellar.
That Nopales and Lime sabayon was outstanding and it's really hard to describe the taste of the nopales sherbet.
We loved the parting gift.
Definitely not a inexpensive dinner at almost $600 with tip.
Kai
5594 W Wild Horse Pass Blvd. (At the Sheraton Grand At Wild Horse Pass)
Phoenix, AZ 85226
After dinner we took a stroll around the property.
The next morning we headed home; stopping for coffee and a light breakfast at WhereUBean Coffee.
Nice, relaxed coffee stop; really friendly staff. When I grabbed a Earl Grey cake for the Missus, the guy working pointed me to the "Happy Little Accident" discounted slice....he must've known how much I paid for dinner the previous night!
The Missus got a pour over and I an Americano....
And soon enough we were on our way.
WhereUBean Coffee
4804 E Chandler Blvd.
Phoenix, AZ 85048
It had been a fun road trip:
Starting with our first visit to Las Vegas in over 8 years.
And then to Zion, Angels Landing, and a Ghost Town.
Moving on to Mystery and Monument Valleys.
And I even got to do my best Forrest Gump impression and "Stand on a Corner".
We even got our "selfie" moment at a sandstone arch.
Thanks for coming along!
wow pricey
Posted by: kat | Friday, 24 June 2022 at 12:09 AM
Yes, it was pretty pricy, but we thought it was worth it Kat!
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 24 June 2022 at 09:01 AM
I would have never thought of staying in that Sheraton.. That might be a good spot to post up next time I am in town for a soccer tournament.
Posted by: Dereck | Friday, 24 June 2022 at 03:53 PM
It's fairly pricy; but we enjoyed ourselves Dereck.
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 24 June 2022 at 04:52 PM
I used to live in Tempe, and there was nothing in that area when I was there, so even pricey it would worth a shot!
Posted by: Dereck | Monday, 27 June 2022 at 08:25 PM
If you do check them out, let me know what you think Dereck!
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 28 June 2022 at 06:49 AM