Cafe Forte
We tried a new (to us) place for dinner on Friday night before heading to Ignite Phoenix (more on that later). Cafe Forte is on Main Street in downtown Scottsdale very near the Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts where our event was being held.
The restaurant is lovely with a nice patio area and the service was attentive without overdoing it which was probably an effort since we were nearly the only ones there (it was still quite early).
Our group tried four entrees:
HORSERADISH CRUSTED WILD SALMON baked wild salmon filet with horseradish, finished in a lemon dill sauce, served over smashed potatoes with fresh vegetable. 19
PECAN CRUSTED Free Range CHICKEN BREAST finished in a maple bourbon sauce, served with smashed potatoes & fresh vegetable. 19
SPINACH RAVIOLI spinach & cheese stuffed ravioli topped with fresh spinach & parmesan, served in a light herbed olive oil. 13
BLOODY MARY PENNE PASTA our version of penne ala vodka, a sauce of tomato and red pepper puree with a touch of creamed horseradish and peppered vodka. 13
I had the latter and it was good though I expected it to be spicier. It had a little late kick but not an upfront wallop of flavor. The others reported that their meals were very good.
The other three had dessert (I chose to have another glass of wine as my dessert):
HOT FUDGE BROWNIE SUNDAE
CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TART
BOURBON STREET BREAD PUDDING
They scarfed them down pretty fast. Not only because they were good but because I was rushing them out the door for Ignite.
My only complaint was that our server said they were “featuring Sangria” that night. To us, that implied it was a Happy Hour or Daily Special. That led to some surprise when our bill came and they were $8.50 a pop. No way would I knowingly pay that for Sangria unless it was in a huge glass and this wasn’t.
I’d go back, though. The setting was nice and I’d really like to try that Pecan Crusted Chicken Breast. It looked yummy.
The restaurant is lovely with a nice patio area and the service was attentive without overdoing it which was probably an effort since we were nearly the only ones there (it was still quite early).
Our group tried four entrees:
HORSERADISH CRUSTED WILD SALMON baked wild salmon filet with horseradish, finished in a lemon dill sauce, served over smashed potatoes with fresh vegetable. 19
PECAN CRUSTED Free Range CHICKEN BREAST finished in a maple bourbon sauce, served with smashed potatoes & fresh vegetable. 19
SPINACH RAVIOLI spinach & cheese stuffed ravioli topped with fresh spinach & parmesan, served in a light herbed olive oil. 13
BLOODY MARY PENNE PASTA our version of penne ala vodka, a sauce of tomato and red pepper puree with a touch of creamed horseradish and peppered vodka. 13
I had the latter and it was good though I expected it to be spicier. It had a little late kick but not an upfront wallop of flavor. The others reported that their meals were very good.
The other three had dessert (I chose to have another glass of wine as my dessert):
HOT FUDGE BROWNIE SUNDAE
CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TART
BOURBON STREET BREAD PUDDING
They scarfed them down pretty fast. Not only because they were good but because I was rushing them out the door for Ignite.
My only complaint was that our server said they were “featuring Sangria” that night. To us, that implied it was a Happy Hour or Daily Special. That led to some surprise when our bill came and they were $8.50 a pop. No way would I knowingly pay that for Sangria unless it was in a huge glass and this wasn’t.
I’d go back, though. The setting was nice and I’d really like to try that Pecan Crusted Chicken Breast. It looked yummy.
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