The new True Food Kitchen in Scottsdale Quarter opens to the public on Monday, Nov. 15. But yesterday, Nov. 11, we had the pleasure of previewing the globally inspired cuisine from the kitchen of the restaurant’s third location. The verdict: We like it. And here’s why we think you’ll like it, too.
This is the third location for the restaurant; the other two are in Biltmore Fashion Park, Phoenix, and at Fashion Island, Orange County, Calif. And while the Scottsdale Quarter incarnation definitely resembles the other Arizona venue, this one delivers an experience unique to its location.
Situated in the center of SQ, opposite the Apple Store and H&M, True Food Kitchen features an open layout, high ceilings, large windows, sliding glass doors and a patio that wraps around three sides. (That’s 3,500 square feet of patio space alone.) Exciting side note: This is the first Fox Restaurant Concepts location to be partially powered by solar panels.
The decor (both inside and outside) is punctuated with potted plants and flowers, and lemon and lime shades that make us feel as though we skipped fall and winter and went straight to spring. Seated on the patio, we had a lovely view of the adjacent herb garden and open grassy area with pathways and benches for passersby.
Compared to the Biltmore locations, this True Food Kitchen offers a wider variety of specialty cocktails, and is it just us, or does the menu of entrees seem longer, too? The restaurant places an emphasis on healthy dishes that don’t sacrifice flavor, so many of the tasty entrees use minimal dairy, are gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan and organic. Even the wines are biodynamic, organic and sustainable, and the restaurant purifies its own bottled water, which eliminates bottle waste. All meats and fowl are natural and free of hormones and antibiotics.
We tried the Herb Hummus served with pita bread to start — elegant in presentation and huge on flavor — and washed it down with The Natural, one of True Food Kitchen’s “Natural Refreshments.” A lively blend of fresh ginger, agave and soda, the beverage was a better pick-me-up than an afternoon cup of coffee.
At the server’s recommendation, we chose the Spaghetti Squash Casserole for our entree, and it arrived just a few moments later, a flavorful blend of organic tomato, zucchini and squash topped with bubbling, fresh mozzarella. (Would you believe us if we told you the whole dish is less than 400 calories? Believe it.)
And because we’re always intrigued by any delicious dessert that can be pulled off in a “flourless” form, we sampled the gluten-free, flourless, cupcake-sized chocolate cake for a last bite. Made with organic bitter chocolate, almond butter, raw cane sugar and a pinch of salt, and served with a dainty scoop of vanilla ice cream, it most definitely left us wanting more.
Good thing we only have to wait until Monday.
For the full lunch and dinner menus, visit Truefoodkitchen.com.
True Food Kitchen at Scottsdale Quarter is located at 15191 N. Scottsdale Road, Suite 100, in Scottsdale 480.265.4500
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