El Chorro

Beautiful place. It’s like the neighborhood joint for PV. Service was very good and wines priced decently. The sticky buns are just small cinnamon rolls. Organic Caesar salad was great, the rest of the food was wedding food like and that’s about it. Mandatory 20% gratuity for a party of two though, pretty ridiculous.
Prob one and done.

I’ve been here before but never got around to posting a review. Figured I’d post something right now since I’m laying in bed like a slob. Really had the intentions to go to the gym this morning but decided to eat leftover sticky buns in bed instead.
My boyfriend and I went for AZ restaurant week and both ordered from the ARW menu. For the first course, we split the Caesar salad and the cheese course. We both wished the lettuce was chopped up but I understand it’s for appearance. Instead of normal croutons, they used polenta croutons which I enjoyed but my boyfriend didn’t.
For our main entrees, I went with the halibut dish that came with jasmine rice and bok choy. It was a very simple dish. I liked it but nothing about it stood out. My boyfriend ordered the center cut filet. He really liked the peppercorn sauce and it was nicely put together. I remember him saying it was a great cut of steak.
For our final courses, we decided to take them to go because we were so stuffed. We took home the strawberry shortcake and the Chocolate cake. I wish we actually looked at the description or had our server tell us about the desserts. He listed our options but never mentioned anything about them. I was expecting a fluffy light strawberry shortcake with Angel food cake. Or maybe cake-​like with pound cake, but when we got home, we found out it was just a biscuit cut in half horizontally with whipped cream and strawberry purée. Not really all that great to he honest. The chocolate cake is still in our fridge but I’ll dig into it later tonight. No way anyone can screw it up right? It’s chocolate cake!
Service was just average, nothing really to complain about. The drinks did take quite awhile but the server apologized each time. I enjoyed it the first few times we came so it will still be on our list of places to grab dinner or brunch.

We came here during Restaurant Week for a special family dinner out. The location and facility are beautiful, the food is excellent, and the service was fantastic.
First off, it is brilliant that they include the brunch menu along with the dinner menu. Everyone got excited about the brunch offerings, so I guess we’ll have to go back to try that.
Our waiter, Colin, and the other waitstaff were always on it: refilling drinks, clearing plates, and ensuring that everything about our meal was to our liking. We browsed the regular menu, but both my wife and I decided to order off the Restaurant Week menu so that we could try a wide variety of things. The kids both ordered off the kids menu (one had chicken fingers+fries and the other had macaroni and cheese — nobody said they’re adventurous eaters!)
My wife had a beef filet with mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach. She said the steak was cooked well and the potatoes were good, but she did not enjoy the spinach as much. She had a salad to start. I think it was a Caesar. The polenta «croutons» were something different.
To start, I had the soup of the day, which was a green chile stew with pork. It had a bit of spice to it and was FANTASTIC. If that is on the day’s menu and you enjoy green chiles, I highly recommend it.
For my main, I ordered the pork tenderloin with bacon risotto and asparagus (see the picture!). Why have more pork right after the pork stew when I could have had beef? Honestly, the bacon risotto hooked me, and it was SO worth it. Creamy, bacon-​y and delicious, it was a perfect accompaniment to the asparagus and tenderloin. The tenderloin had a nice crust on it and was cooked nicely in the middle, if just a slight bit more done than I make mine. People tend to like their pork more well done than I do, so that’s to be expected and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
For dessert, one of us got the chocolate cake and the other the strawberry shortcake. Both were presented nicely… but I did not get pictures. People dug into them too quickly and my phone is old. The chocolate cake was moist and just the right amount of chocolatey. I liked the accompanying berries and whipped cream. The shortcake was a little dry, but the abundance of strawberry compote and whipped cream more than made up for it. In fact, the cake being a little dry allowed it to soak up more of the strawberry goodness, which was OK by me.
I was called the next day by a member of the management, Lorenzo, I believe, to ask if everything was to my liking and if I wanted to provide any feedback. I thought that was nice and told him that we had a great experience and we would definitely be coming back.

What a great place for happy hour! Still not cheap but very reasonable. For 3 of us the bill was $ 61 + tax/​tip. That included a craft drink and a draft beer not on the happy hour menu. And we didn’t go away hungry by any means. We had poutine, fried shrimp, crispy chicken livers (2), vegetables w/​hummus, crispy cheese curds, beef sliders, and 3 glasses of wine. Happy hour seating is limited and was pretty much packed while we were there. The facility is beautiful. The service was very good. I would like to go back for brunch, while not inexpensive it would be a good chance to experience a different part of the restaurant. As a majority of the seating seems to be outside, spring and fall would seem to be the best time to visit.

One of the best happy hours I’ve ever had! The outdoor area is beautiful, surrounded by desert landscaping and views of Camelback and Mummy Mountains. The service is friendly and very efficient, with bar and high table set for easy and pleasant socializing. We ordered several items from the happy hour menu: crispy chicken livers, crispy shrimp, southwestern poutine, and crudite with hummus — all excellent and well-​paired with the red and white wines I ordered. With such good food and wine (for happy hour, the bites were $ 5 per dish; wine was $ 3 a glass) and beautiful surroundings, this place is now my favorite happy hour destination.

Dant, Dant, Dant, Daaaaaaa! Tada, my 500^th review! Yeah and what a fabulous review it will be. This place has been around for years and has a fascinating history. El Chorro is historic staple in Paradise Valley set around gorgeous views of Camelback and Mummy mountain. I have been wanting to go here for 30 pus years but never seem to have gotten around to it for whatever varied reasons. Once upon a time they used to close during the summer. However, now I hear it is under new management and was recently remodeled. Well, for my 500 review I picked their Happy Hour. We all had a great time at my UYE. Sorry peeps for being so early but it goes until 6pm so let’s do it again sometime.
it was a small gathering but thanks friends for coming out. The Happy Hour here we have decided is the best Happy Hour in town. The food was delicious and the drinks were a great deal. 3 dollar wine and 5 dollar beers. 5 dollar food plates. We could not believe it! The final bill was very reasonable and we left totally stuffed. Okay well, I did stop at Sweet Republic on the way home but only because I was mad that I forgot to order Chorro’s famous sticky buns. Sigh! Oh well, just another reason a return trip is mandated.
We sat on the patio at the community table and met some cool folks from Connecticut with Long Island roots. The weather was great and the company was superb! Although a bit windy and hot it was cool on the patio with the misters. And seriously, that view! It can’t be beat.
For food we ordered a variety of plates off their Happy Hour menu, Chicken Livers (Not me), vegetable Crudite with Hummus, shrimp (My favorite), SW Poutine (I finally tried Poutine), Sliders with fries, and more chicken livers. (Again not for me-​YUK!- lol) My friends claim the chicken livers were great if you like that sort of thing. (Again not for me)
The wine and beer selection is pretty good and great price! We liked the white.
The view is spectacular.
Many return trips seen in my future.

Although being sat without being greeted by our server for the first 15 minutes was rather agitating, it was quickly camouflaged by the free mimosas we were offered by a manager for the inconvenience. The food is great and is surprisingly inexpensive (I’ve only tried the brunch menu). The location is just beautiful and the service aside from the mishap in the beginning, is acceptable. I will be back and I would recommend to anyone looking for brunch in a beautiful setting at an affordable cost.

I love their lavender lemon drops! The sticky buns make you feel at home. It’s a gorgeous view! Love it! Make a reservation just in case because it’s popular with locals and vacationers.

This will be my first Unilocal review ever! That’s how awful this food was! I have never been to a place where all 6 people hated their meal! If I could give this place ZERO stars… I would! I entertain people all over the valley. The worst food I have ever had in my life at a «nice restaurant». Unequivocally, I have had better steak at chain restaurants. I’m pretty sure they serve instant potatoes… Seriously! DO NOT GO HERE! I was EMBARRASSED to take my wife here on our anniversary dinner with close friends.
On a positive note the sticky buns were great! The patio is amazing. However, I do not go to restaurants for cinnamon rolls. You will be better off going to Outback Steakhouse, or eat a strangers Applebee’s leftovers. It’s not like the food was cooked incorrectly. The food was just so bland and repulsive!
Go to Rockerji or Mastros!
I’m legitimately sad to have wasted money and calories on their food!

Fantastic views of camelback. Absolutely gorgeous location. Beautiful all around. Drinks are great. The lavender lemon martinis was good. The charcuterie board is fantastic! Fried lobster tail is great. The lamb chops are alright. Not the best. I should have gone with the short ribs as the waitress suggested. The sticky buns are FANTASTIC! And the apple pie was also amazing. Couldn’t really go wrong and I had a great night.

Came here on a Valentines Day date to check out their 3 course meal.
El Chorro has been since the early 1900’s, but became a restaurant fairly recent. The place is charming and has a historical past with some nostalgic story behind the scene. It definitely has some history and an Arizonian feel giving you a homey feel.
For our food were treated with their famous sticky buns while we ordered a bottle of wine along with it. The sticky buns was to me just warm cinnamon roll. I wasn’t too particularly too sure what the rave was but okay. For starters my date went for the Dungeness Crab salad and I ordered their Potato Leek Veloute. The crab salad was nothing all too inspiring, it was difficult to find some crab or avocado among the other ingredients of mango, arugula, fennel, and edible flowers; I think if it was larger in size the ingredients would shine, but would have been more of an entrée salad by then. My potato leek soup was probably my favorite of the night. Nice creamy texture of the potato soup and whipped beets and mild hint of sweetness. For our entrée my date ordered the filet steak and I shot for the sea bass. The filet was cooked to perfection and came with a peppercorn demi-​glacé; overall nothing too spectacular, but good. My sea bass was well seasoned and came with a fun olive citrus sauce, and whole olives that gave it some texture. Again, well cooked and the olive citrus was cool. To finish I ordered the Strawberry Scone Shortcake and my partner went for the Oreo Chocolate Cream Tart.
To end, service was on top of things and attentive. The place is lovely and I can see why it would make a great wedding venue, which it is. Overall, the food was well seasoned and well cooked, but I guess I wanted more whimsical and fun especially during Valentines Day — Enjoy!

This review is only for happy hour. Monday-​Saturday 4pm-​6pm
Tips:
Absolutely go for happy hour if you can. All of the happy hour appetizers are only $ 5.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — –
Fried Chicken Liver $ 5 — I personally love chicken liver and so I liked this dish! I personally prefer the larger pieces so that you get more of the liver taste rather than the breading taste. The bacon marmalade with it is delicious!
Southwestern Poutine $ 5 — This appetizer is just some thin fries with cheese and sauce on top. I made the mistake of thinking it would be like Canadian poutine with gravy.
Famous Sticky Buns $ 5 — You get 4 sticky buns, one sticky bun is about the palm of your hand size. These sticky buns are DELICIOUS, I can see why everyone raves about them so much. They are made with a nice caramel sauce/​taste with a good amount of cinnamon spread on the inside of the bun swirls. You cannot come to El Chorro without trying their sticky buns.
Margarita $ 5
wine $ 3
I absolutely love the décor and atmosphere here. It is like a country club with amazing outdoor seating which is perfect for Arizona weather. The service is great as well, I had a great time at El Chorro. I would definitely recommend coming for happy hour if you don’t want to splurge on the high prices of the dinner size entrees.

5 stars based on happy hour alone.
I met up with some friends here the other day so we could all Über to an event nearby and couldn’t pass up the $ 3 HH wine. The patio bar was beautiful, the HH prices literally can’t be beat, and the place seemed to have a great atmosphere. I’m looking forward to coming back when I have a little more time to get a better feel for the place.

Went there for the first time last night and it was great! The happy hour prices can’t be beat and the crispy shrimp was crazy delicious. So good, we ordered a second helping. This may become one of my new go-​to happy hour spots — just wish it extended past 6 p.m.
I would love to go back for dinner on the patio.

The best brunch we have had in AZ. Even their scrambled eggs are better than any I’ve ever had. Adorable patio too.

Went to El Chorro tonight and while the the food was really good, the service was lackluster. Our waitress was not very attentive and disappeared for long stretches. Our initial drink order took forever and she didn’t seem too interested in our dining experience. One of the runners brought our charcuterie board appetizer and when I asked what was in it he had no idea, seriously? Honestly I doubt we will be back with so many choices in the valley.

Beautiful location, very good service, food is just average besides the sticky buns served prior to your meal. Very pricey for meals. Great view of Camelback Mountain.

We go to El Chorro every time we visit AZ. Never a disappointment. Food is outstanding and service is the best. Our most recent visit included three times to El Chorro. The outside patio must be the best one in all of Phoenix. In the shadow of Camelback mountain, we enjoyed wonderful dishes like the ever fabulous trout almondine, lamb chops, seafoods of all kinds and prime steaks. The NY strip I had with a peppercorn sauce on the side was just one of the best steaks I’ve ever had. The pork tenderloin is like no other pork dish anywhere.
Can’t wait to travel back to AZ and enjoy the best restaurant in the entire valley!

Stop It… Just STOP!!! The first thing they bring to the table is a basket of Sweet Cinnamon Rolls and they were moist and DELICIOUS!!! Had the pleasure of going here for dinner last night with our Awesome neighbor and a new friend. I had the Salmon, my husband had the Opa fish and they were both really good!!! We had lobster macaroni, scallop potatoes, and spinach for sides. Everything was soooo Yummy!!!

I had an amazing birthday dinner here. I am still craving the sticky buns which they bring you before you mr meal. The food was amazing the service was also excellent. I will definitely be back for another special occasion! The food took a while to come out but our server was apologetic.

I took my husband to El Chorro this past weekend for date night. This was our first time eating here. A co-​worker of mine recommended it and I’m so thankful we tried it. The sticky buns were to die for. Thankfully we got an appetizer (sausage and pretzels) because the main course (pork tenderloin) was pretty small. I’ll definitely be back though. We got some sticky buns to go too :)

For my husband’s birthday we decided to go to El Chorro on Lincoln last weekend. The ambiance was wonderful, with sparkling lights and plenty of room on the patio. The heaters were quite pretty too, and gave plenty of warmth.
Though we’d made a reservation 2 weeks in advance, the hostesses (3 of them) were a bit snobby and disorganized — at least two of them were, the other never even looked up from the computer.
After being seated we were served water quickly and efficiently. The waitress gave us the perfect amount of time to review and discuss the menu before coming over. She explained the specials and then gave us more time to review, coming back as soon as menus were closed.
We ordered the tomato & burrata salad to start, and were served the sticky bun, that really was quite delicious. I appreciated that the waitress noticed and quickly and discretely replaced the fork with a new one. The salads arrived, were well plated and looked interesting. I wasn’t expecting green tomatoes. Things didn’t go well with the salad. two of the tomato quarters were as hard as apples. The one that was fairly ripe was tasty. The burrata was far too cold, a little slimy and tasteless.
I ordered the lamb chops with cranberry chestnut glaze sauce and white bean purée. The purée was also pretty tasteless. However, the asparagus was quite good and cooked perfectly. The lamb chops, at medium rare, were done quite well, and perfectly paired with the cranberry chestnut glaze.
My husband ordered the NY Prime at medium rare, and substituted the parmesan scalloped potatoes instead of mashed. His meal was far too overdone, and the potatoes looked like a slab on the plate, and were bland and boring.
The tiny cake came with a scripted Happy Birthday, in chocolate script. (I don’t know who writes these on the plates, but it was beautifully done!!!) The white chocolate birthday dessert. While it looked fabulous, it was really awful. It actually tasted stale.
All in all, we probably won’t be going back any time soon, as the food was sub-​par, on the whole. I wish we could take the entire wait staff with us to somewhere where the food was much better. They get 5 stars!

Cannot go wrong here. Outstanding steaks, wine and wait staff. The lobster mashed potatoes and mac n cheese are a must have. Portio. n size makes it great for sharing for those like me who cannot decide.
Beautiful view of north side of Camelback. Mtn from outside dining. Cool bar.
Only regrets are we have not made it for Sunday brunch yet but will and they are not 30 minutes closer.

The setting, décor, and ambience of this restaurant is southwest picture perfect, but that’s only a small part of what makes El Chorro rate 5 stars. Our reservation for 4 was honored promptly and we were seated in a lovely corner table near a glowing fireplace. Once we settled in, our waiter Phil let us know specials of the day and took drink orders. He then brought us fresh cinnamon rolls hot from the oven –which were so good they easily could have been dessert.
Upon looking at the menu we admit to thinking it was pretty boring. Wrong. The choices may have been somewhat traditional, but the presentation and taste were extraordinary.
Shared salads — wedge and Caesar — were ample and had their own twists to preparation. Each couple coincidentally ordered the same entrees, trout and salmon. It was so beautiful that I wish I had taken a photo of my salmon dish. The fish was perfectly cooked and served with a ginger soy sauce on a bed of black quinoa and braised baby bok choy. The trout was served with green beans almandine and roasted potatoes. We also ordered a side of lobster mac and cheese for the table. All dishes were phenomenal.
Then came dessert. We shared freshly baked apple pie a la mode and key lime pie, both fabulous. However, as good as the meal was it was our waiter Phil who helped to take it over the top. Beyond his excellent and attentive service, he had the ability to let us leisurely enjoy our conversations, and know when to step in if we needed anything — and even absconding with the very last piece of key lime pie for us after being told it was sold out!
It’s no wonder this place has a deserved stellar reputation.

Where do you start? Great setting. Beautiful view. Wood fires, heaters for cool nights. Great bar and outdoor seating. Crowd is a great mix of older and younger. Awesome place to watch a game, but sound is off. Mix of snow birds, locals, and hotel/​convention guests from the local Mega /​Resorts all around this area. Wonderful service.

Came here last weekend for my boyfriends & his dad’s birthdays & it was great! The ambience of the whole place was really nice, its tucked away in paradise valley, north of Camelback. I wish it was warmer outside so that we could have sat on the patio. We started with the raved about sticky buns, SO. GOOD. We got them as an app but I would recommend them for dessert :) but then again, I would eat them whenever, they were that good. Then for my main course, I got the salmon, my boyfriend and his dad split the Chateaubriand for two & his mom got the pork. Everyone was very satisfied with everything. I would definitely come back here. It is a little pricey so I would save it for a special occasion :)

Set in the heart of Paradise Valley, El Chorro is a beautiful place that aims to impress their guests.
Classic Arizona setting with a beautiful view of Camelback mountain.
El Chorro has been our Christmas Dinner destination for the past two years. I was surprised this year when they offered the exact same menu as last. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it?
The chef offers beef tenderloin, turkey dinner, or Salmon accompanied by a generous portion of sides. The beef and turkey were good. The sides were good too. Not amazing, but good. The starter salad was my favorite. Arugula, poached pear, candied walnuts and a thick slice of maytag blue cheese. They had me at blue cheese. However, the theme of the food is good. Not amazing.
Dessert however, wasn’t good. I chose the Apple cobbler. The apples weren’t as tender as they should have been, lack of flavor, and overall not a highlight of the meal. Service was leisurely and I didn’t mind, but I could tell my company was getting antsy. Maybe I didn’t mind because my excellent dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives kept me calm. Lol!
For the six of us, Christmas dinner and drinks ran about $ 700.00 including gratuity, which is reasonable for a place like El Chorro where I’m quite certain you pay for the ambiance.
I would like to go back for happy hour and try the famous deep fried lobster to go with the top notch martini.
I would recommend this beautiful location to take your out of state visitors!

So beautiful and so thankful for a wonderful experience. Chef Charlie made an amazing dinner of fresh heirloom tomatoes and burrata cheese, a fresh sea bass with roasted red pepper purée. Truly delightful and served with absolute care by John who loves his job! Can’t ask for a better experience and a son who loves to make his mom happy!

In terms of costumer service, this place definitely gets 5 stars. Some of the friendliest wait staff we have ever had! They brought us blankets and an extra heat lamp so we could sit outside!
The food was probably worth a ranking of 3.5−4 stars in my opinion. We went on Christmas so there was a special menu. The lobster bisque was not great, as here was no real lobster in it and they put too much sour cream, giving it a sour taste all together. The other option on the christmas menu for a starter was a pear salad which was also just so-​so.
The salmon was great and it came with root vegetables hat were all cooked well and complimented the salmon nicely.
The desserts we tried were the apple cobbler, cheesecake and chocolate orange cake. The cobbler was the favorite and the other two were just okay.

Amazing patios and service… Meh food
Visited for the holiday and was stoked about eating at El Chorro. After hearing of its long history, quality food, and sticky buns, my expectations were very high.
First, the restaurant has an amazing design– tons of patio spaces with fireplaces, a semi-​private grass yard, old-​style rooms with all modern amenities, and all while preserving the historic nature and charm. The western theme prevails through the renovated touches.
Second, the service was top-​notch at every turn. We arrived early and they were able to seat us nonetheless. Vicki quickly visited us, took orders, and started to check on us frequently and with an earnest joy. Supporting cast and the waiter from the next table were just as gracious.
Ah, but the food… Our party covered the menu: Lobster Bisque, Arugula Salad, Shrimp Cocktail, Scottish Salmon, Beef Tenderloin, Organic Turkey, Peach Cobbler, and Cheesecake. To the person, all said things were flat on taste. Aside from the sticky buns, nothing stood out. The Bisque was bitter from the sherry used. Salad was par. Shrimp cocktail were well-​sized, but standard fare and sauce. The salmon had quality and a great cook’s touch on its side, yet left two in our party perplexed by the off pairing with a corn succotash. Two others thought the tenderloin was a great cut undermined by being too raw and being paired with a forgettable gratin potato and completely bland creamed spinach that tasted little like their ingredients. Last, the cheesecake and cobbler were so dull that not a single person of six finished their dessert. And our family craves desserts like Frosty the Snowman likes magic hats!
I’d love to score El Chorro higher. All the pieces are there, except the food. And since it’s a restaurant, that’s too important to disregard.

We have been going to El Chorro for Christmas for the last few years. It has been a wonderful experience that we look forward to each year. The Christmas experience is a fixed menu with three options, beef, salmon and turkey. The food is «old school «good, the service is great and the setting is fabulous.
Although Christmas there is fairly new to us, this restaurant has been a Paradise Valley tradition for generations of my family. It has been getting better, too. There are lots of outside patios and hidden nooks to enjoy a drink with your friends and family.

El Chorro is a beautiful upscale restaurant in the heart of Paradise Valley. Generations have been coming there for anything from Sunday brunch to a drink at happy hour.
My family usually only goes there for Thanksgiving and Christmas. This Thanksgiving was another wonderful experience. Great food, great service and a beautiful setting.
Holiday lunch/​dinner is a set menu with your choice of a beef, turkey or fish.
Since it was Thanksgiving I opted for the turkey dinner served with all the traditional accompaniments; mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, green beans and of course cranberry sauce. Also included to start out is a relish tray of mixed fresh veggies, a bowl of candied fruit and nuts, El Chorro’s famous sticky buns and your choice of soup or salad. I chose the Waldorf salad to start.
Everything was fantastic! There was also a choice of three desserts at the end but I just didn’t have room so I took my pumpkin pie to go.
Ron was our server. What a nice guy! He made us feel so welcome, we didn’t feel rushed (El Chorro is very busy) and he had a great sense of humor. We hope to get Ron again for our Christmas dinner.
Reservations are always a good idea at El Chorro and an absolute must for a holiday. I recommend making reservations at least two months in advance for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.
Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Day. Party of two. Turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes all served cold. Service slow. $ 65 per person was way too much for what it turned out to be. And they automatically added a 20% tip and then asked for more.

Another one of my regular hang outs. Great location, beautiful setting, friendly and attentive staff. The sticky buns are excellent. Feels more like a house than a business, very unique location and set up.
Five stars.

I have been a LIFE LONG Paradise Valley resident, and have been going to El Chorro the whole time. I can’t tell you how disappointed I am. El Chorro used to be the place we went when we wanted the El Chorro experience, and when we wanted a good meal. It looks like it is no longer going to be that place. Ever since they renovated, things have been slipping, now they have slipped so far I’m crossing it off my list. It’s sad but it was because of their decisions.
Earlier this week we went in to El Chorro for for my father’s 60^th birthday. We had left an event and we going there for a drink and birthday dessert. We showed up and sat at the bar, the portion that is outside. First, we were greeted with a dirty bar. There was a bus tub sitting on the bar in front of us (which the bartender moved to the other side of the bar 20 min after we sat down), the back bar was a mess with employee’s personal items, bar towels, and god knows what else, there were dirty linens falling out of a cabinet, etc… The bar was dirty!
Second, we wait for the bartender for about 2 min. to even acknowledge we were sitting there. He was too busy talking to one of the servers at the service well. When he gave us our menus we opened them up to see what we wanted. But we opened the menus and they fell apart. Instead of getting us new ones, the bartender watched us put the back together for him. We then ordered our drinks and a dessert. The drinks are the only reason there’s one star (and maybe the view), they weren’t half bad. At least he didn’t shake my Manhattan.
Third, we got our desserts and they were horrible. The brownie sunday. The brownies were either old or a very bad food service product. The ice cream tasted like it was out of a carton, and it had tons of whipped cream. I think they were trying to hide how bad the dish was with all the whipped cream. You’re telling me that a place like El Chorro can’t take the time to make their own ice cream and brownies. I could have done better in my kitchen if you gave me an hour. It was embarrassing.
Fourth, my mother was very unhappy about this. I told her to call and tell a manager. I’m in the industry and I know if a life long guest had an experience like this, the manager would want to know about it — so they could try to fix the problem. But, instead of trying to fix the problem, when my mother called, they blew her off. She hasn’t heard a word.
I went to work the next day and talked to a few of my friends/​neighbors/​regulars and they all said the same exact thing. They said El Chorro has been slipping for a long time and they aren’t going back any time soon. We are the people that keep El Chorro open, especially in the summer. We are the people that bring our out-​of-​town guests for a good brunch or good dinner. That’s not going to happen anymore. Let’s face it, El Chorro is an institution, they are going to be there for a long time, and I hope they are. The views alone are worth going, even if it’s a mediocre meal. But, They will no longer be getting my hard earned money. I hope this changes, and I hope they reach out. I would love for things to turn around, but my guess is, with this management, nothing is going to happen. We went for my father’s 60^th birthday, a big family celebration, and we we’re very, very disappointed.

This is one of my favorite locations in PV. Located north of Camelback Mountain the bar and outdoor seating area has incredible views of the mountain. I like to sit at the bar or a high top table in the bar area as there is a nice vibe. The Happy Hour is a great way to be introduced to this place, if you have not tried it!

Great restaurant and bar that has been in Paradise Valley for many years. I have gone there ever since it was a kid. Great happy hour incredible views attentive staff and good food

I had my birthday dinner here a few months ago. Oddly, the weather in March was warmer than it is now. I digress. Anyhow, beautiful patio! Although I would have preferred to sit on the patio furthest from Lincoln, it was closed for a wedding. Not sure if it’s normally open for general seating, but I’m hoping so.
Because we can’t help ourselves, we started with both the shrimp pepper pot and the cheese and charcuterie plate. The shrimp was in a rich, spicy broth, and served with crusty bread. Delicious and perfectly cooked. The small-​sized cheese and charcuterie was to serve 1 – 2. We either got the large size in error or there are some big ass eaters out there. And I’m one of them, so I can’t imagine that this was the small. But regardless, there was a nice variety of cheeses and meats with all the accoutrements one could need.
Then came the sticky buns. Dang. I forgot about those when we ordered two apps. Ooey, gooey sticky goodness. But eat them while they’re hot. Once they cool off, it’s over. I do wish these were served at the end of the meal though. I felt like it was a dessert. Not enough so that I wouldn’t order dessert… that would be unthinkable.
By now, we could have skipped dinner, but I insisted and we opted to split an entrée, the seafood pasta. This is where the star comes off. We opted to pay the up-​charge to have them portion it for us. You actually get more seafood that way. But I would have preferred less in the end. While the pasta and sauce were very good, every piece of seafood in the dish was overcooked… shrimp, scallops, lobster, etc. For the price point, there’s no excuse for that. I almost took 2 stars off, but I’m giving them the benefit of the doubt that this was the exception. But it was disappointing enough that while I will gladly return for drinks and appetizers, I’m in no hurry to actually have dinner.

For my birthday, I found myself struggling between a favorite standby-​restaurant or somewhere new… I’m so glad I gave my boyfriend the go-​ahead to surprise me with a new place because I was blown away by El Chorro!
We had a rather late meal with some of our best friends visiting us from out of town, making our reservations for around 8PM. When we arrived, the ambiance was already set with twinkling lights, roaring outdoor fires and a beautiful patio. It was brisk and I’d forgotten my coat, but upon being seated, I realized that heaters were keeping the patio quite warm. (Hooray!)
To start, we shared the sausage platter (which was AWESOME) and a shrimp pepper pot. They were each wonderful, and we finished them both! The sausages were my favorite, particularly with the great artisanal mustards they include. We caught up over a bottle of wine, ordered our meals and were surprised when we suddenly got a big basket of sticky buns! (We had no idea that the place was famous for these — we sort of thought someone else’s dessert had been dropped off at our table!)
When we were sure they were ours, we dug in and they were phenomenal! A little strange to have between the appetizer and meal because they seem so dessert’y, but who am I to turn down sweet pastries? (Umm, bring it on!) We asked our waiter about the sticky buns, and he gave us the most interesting back story about the restaurant, the Marlboro man and some elephants that he trained using the sticky buns! I have no idea how much of it was true, but it was entertaining and made the restaurant’s staple even more enjoyable!
For my main course, I had a seafood pasta that was out of this WORLD. Seriously, if you’re a shellfish lover, this is the way to go. It was –awesome-​. Our server was kind enough to even bring out a small birthday dessert, which we all shared (and still couldn’t finish, as we were so full!) All in all, the food was 5-​star, the ambiance 5-​star, and the night couldn’t have been better! It was the perfect evening with some great friends — thanks, El Chorro!

I was at El Chorro for a wedding rehearsal dinner so my review is based on their private dining services and not the normal dining experience.
Upon driving up to the restaurant there is a professional valet that quickly and efficiently gets you out of your car and on your way to a culinary adventure.
Our wedding party had a large private room off to the left of the main restaurant. While walking over (on a hot and humid day) I noticed several huge mobile air conditioning units to cool the customers on the patio. I was impressed by them because it’s a thoughtful gesture that I haven’t seen in many places. These weren’t the cheap (worthless) models. They were some serious industrial A.C. units and they felt great.
The area we had was pretty secluded and private (away from the regular restaurant). It had a great patio for cocktail hour. The service was friendly and professional. They were quick with drinks and quick to clean up empty glasses.
The dinner itself was magnificent. We had a party of ~ 40 people but the service and the food was that of a quaint 5 star dining experience. The deserts were so good I feared a massive sugar buzz so I had to contain myself (see my uploaded photos).
Overall, it was a 5 star experience. If anyone is considering having a private dinner here (wedding or otherwise) I’d highly recommend it.
Fantastic!