UPDATE*********Now CLOSED for Business

Drexyl Modern American Restaurant is a newly opened restaurant in Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale AZ. The cuisine is American with international accents.You might find intriguing things on the menu like Crispy Chicken Arancini, Korean Crispy Chicken Sandwich and Lemon Grass Caesar Salad.

The rich decor is a mix of classic with sort of retro modern with a stunning shiny large bar.

They offer seating in a variety of low top tables and high top tables and an outdoor patio that faces Gainey Ranch Shopping Center.

The background music was a bit of a surprise because it was unlike the name o the restaurant. (Drexyl Modern American)  In the background plays old fashioned tunes (but American) from decades back like the 30s-40’s  that’s kind of fun to listen to.

Most of the items I saw on the menu seemed interesting to me so it was hard to decide on what to order.

We started with the Ahi Tuna Trio.

It was three tacos that were made with thin raw jicama as the shell and were stuffed with fresh sweet ahi tuna, charred slaw pickled onion, jalapeño syrup and fresh cilantro. The tacos were light and had just the right flavors that hit your mouth in all directions that make your mouth happy. The tacos were delicious and didn’t weigh you down at all.

For dinner I had the Jade Pesto Halibut.

My halibut was generous in size. The fish wasn’t seared but was moist, sweet and flaky. Fresh grassy cilantro pesto and tasty curry sauce embellished the fish. Chewy Forbidden Black Rice, Shiitakes Mushrooms and Baby Bok Choy  completed the plate. Everything on my plate was seasoned just so and was delicious. I might have to try this plate again and I also would recommend it.

My husband had the Cola Braised Pork.

The Pork was tender and seasoned just so. The plate came with Lyonnaise Potatoes, Parsnip Puree, Cipollini Onions and Chile Lime Chicharron. Potatoes might have been slightly salty but other than that a nicely detailed plate.

Our server was friendly cheerful and efficient.

Unfortunately I didn’t have room for dessert so maybe next time.

The only odd thing was that all the tables had bread but us so we asked about it and were told they don’t serve bread unless you ask for it. The bread that the Drexyl serves is from the Wildflower Bakery so if your a fan of Wildflower’s baked goods you might want to be aware of this.

Overall a very nice dinner out.

This restaurant is a very nice addition to Scottsdale that I expect to visit again.

For more information on Drexyl Modern American Restaurant please visit www.DrexylUSA.com

*****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS

Down Under in Old Town Scottsdale AZ is the newly opened Great Australian Bakery serving up the savory and the sweet bringing a small piece of the Wonderful World of Oz to you. You won’t need an airline ticket. All you need is to  drive down to Old Town Scottsdale.

The specialty of the house are hand pies of flaky pastry in different sizes and shapes. The very large hand pies are called Pasty and are crescent shape and on my visit came in beef or vegetable filled. The medium size hand pie are called Sausage Rolls and came in house made sausage balls or a spinach and cheese filled. They offer around a dozen different variety of smaller various round hand pies. Some of these pies come filled with breakfast type foods, some are assorted vegetables, others are beef varieties and chicken as well.

I imagine your choices will differ some on your visit because the online menu differed slightly on my visit.

This is a casual bake shop where you order at the counter, pay, pick up and seat yourself.

The place is very open and airy but not fancy at all but seems fresh and clean.

We ordered a shared TWO pies and one Sausage Roll.

Steak and Mushroom Pie, Curry Steak Pie and a Sausage Roll filled with House Made Sausage Balls.

All the hand pies were tasty. My favorite was the Curry Steak. The flavor was exotic and perfume-ee and was delicious. Steak and Mushroom was good too with a rich beefy gravy steak and mushrooms. This is The Forking Truth so I have to let you know the steak in both pies was not bad but on the chewy side and might be due to being a newly opened business.

*****(Ninety percent of all newly opened businesses do open with hiccups.)

The Sausage Roll with House made sausage balls was tasty too and also but also was stuffed with sausage that seemed a tad dry.

My husband did a GREAT Job in finishing up the hand pies so I could save some room to try a dessert.

Up on the menu board listed several desserts but they were serving three on my visit that all looked very good.

Vanila Slices…..that look very similar to Napoleons.

Apple Turnovers…and…

Lamingtons  filled and unfilled.

I went with the unfilled Lamington for my first Australian Dessert.

I have to say this was an excellent dessert. This dessert was mainly a spongy light cake like a pound cake and an angel food cake had a baby and this is what the cake part was like. Then the cake was frosted in a good tasting chocolate and hit with a good dusting of coconut to make it special. When you ate it you got soft not too sweet but sweet enough melty delicate cake in your mouth that tasted like you dipped the cake in chocolate with that coconut adding a little texture and an interesting pop of another flavor.

The pricing is very low for Old Town Scottsdale and you probably won’t do won’t pay less unless you purchase low quality fast food. So if your hungry and want some quick casual eats and or tasty dessert The Great Australian Bakery is Worth a Fork.

The Great Australian Bakery brings a little piece of the Wonderful World of Oz to You!

******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS

For more information please visit www.TheGreatAustralianBakery.com