Back in September of last year the Missus and I took a wonderful road trip. For our first stop, it was between Phoenix, Sedona, or Flagstaff. While the Missus enjoyed the hiking in Sedona, we didn't care for the restaurant scene that much. And we'd do a bunch of hiking during this road trip and there was one stop I was interested in close to Flagstaff; so FLG it was. The drive was pretty long, it took us over 8 hours. We did stop for a quick lunch in Phoenix at Flower Child and headed back on the road. We got in just after 430pm and checked into the Residence Inn. We liked this location when we were last in Flagstaff and our dining destination for the two evenings here were in walking distance.
We had dinner reservations for 6pm and headed out a bit early just to stroll around the historic downtown area.
Just a couple of blocks from downtown, in a former carriage house that was built in 1909 was our dinner destination; Brix Restaurant and Wine Bar.
While the service was a bit slow, the staff was very friendly and this was far from being a stuffy fine dining destination. The Missus enjoyed the wine list and I started with a nice cocktail.
We started with the Elk Tartare and the Wood Roasted Mushrooms.
The Elk Tartare was nicely chilled, though it was on the mushy side in terms of texture.
Those yellow dots were an egg yolk emulsion...I would have preferred a drippy egg yolk as the emulsion really didn't add much to the dish, the horseradish was also strangely mild in flavor. The celery leaves did add a nice boost of palate restoring flavor. Perhaps if they chopped it a bit smaller you could get more than three bites.
The Wood Roasted Mushrooms was another dish that suffered from having a bit too much going on.
The local mushrooms were so earthy, with a mild sweetness and had been nicely roasted which created a layer of smokiness. The miso black garlic puree was so salty and just overwhelmed the wonderful mushrooms.
The bread soon arrived. Like many other places, Brix is now charging for bread and butter. It was $5 at the time of our visit.
I had ordered the Cavatelli.
The pasta, which is similar to shells was pretty thick and overcooked, making it quite mushy. I could have used more basil in the pesto and more pine nut flavor. The preserved lemon was quite strong in flavor and as with the mushrooms, it over powered the dish. The fava beans were wonderful, adding a nice nutty flavor to the dish.
The Market Fish was cooked to perfection.
Crisp skin, moist flesh, and that watercress added a wonderful crisp bitterness. The cannellini beans were undercooked and hard...and you know how the Missus us about Her beans, right? The tomato consomme was salty, but added nothing else to the dish. It was kind of sad since the fish was done so nicely.
In the end, the friendly folks working outshone the food. Yes, service was a bit slow, but the staff were so nice. I just wish the dishes were more to our taste.
Brix Restaurant & Wine Bar
413 N San Francisco St.
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
On the way back to our room I wanted to take a look at the Hotel Monte Vista.
Why you might ask? Well, the Hotel Monte Vista has been named the most haunted spot in Arizona (check out the stories on that website)! There are supposedly several, ahem, "guests" who have never checked out. There's a "phantom bellboy" that knocks on the door to room 210...in fact, John Wayne is said to have reported this ghost to the staff several times. You can even read about some of those "ghosts" on the hotel's website. And also on this website as well. You know me and stuff like this, right?
Why didn't we stay here? Well, having already having spent a couple of nights at one of the most haunted hotels in the US, without any disturbances, I really didn't feel like pushing my luck. Plus, I was pretty tired after all that driving and wanted a good night's sleep, which is what I got.
In the morning we woke and I went downstairs to the breakfast buffet and took some stuffs back to the room. I then headed out to grab us some coffee. I had a place located just two blocks away named Firecreek Coffee Company on my list so I headed on over.
The gentleman working was quite nice and friendly. I got the Missus and Ethiopian Pour Over which She said was ok and I enjoyed my Cold Brew.
I'd gladly return here.
Firecreek Coffee Company
22 Historic Route 66
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
Having had a light breakfast and bolstered by caffeine we were ready to head on out.
bummer the food wasn’t too good, at least the service was decent.
Posted by: kat | Saturday, 04 February 2023 at 02:18 AM
Nice looking hotel!
Posted by: Soo | Saturday, 04 February 2023 at 08:31 AM
Yes, service in FLG is usually really good Kat!
Flagstaff's Historic Old Town is fun to explore Soo.
Posted by: Kirk | Saturday, 04 February 2023 at 10:28 AM