Tia Carmen is a high quality contemporary southwestern style restaurant. They use Arizona purveyors and cook with a wood fired grill. The restaurant is led by Michelin star chef, restauranteur, Bravo Top Chef, and cookbook author Angelo Sosa (pictured below in the white chef shirt).
The restaurant is airy and modern.
They also offer a very large patio and for V.I.P.S. semi private cabanas.
Tonight’s menu started with appetizers in a section called Light Bright + Fresh . They offered things like a seafood platter, avocado aguachile, lamb ragu with mesquite noodles,(a really FANTABULOUS) tuna crudo, –
and (really great) wagu kebabs (that might be twist on a Thai snack food called Miang Kham (stuffed perilla leaves).
They had three tostadas on the menu tonight. They were tuna, beef and beef bone marrow, and corn.
The entree section is called Charcoal + Wood + Fire. Some of the entrees that they offered tonight were mushroom menudo, whole mesquite smoked chicken, whole trout, third day dry aged tribal land Arizona grass fed New York Steak, Wagyu Tomahawk rib eye, (interesting and really good) Baja striped bass,-
and Tia Carmen’s (the chef’s aunt’s famous chicken dish) Chicken Guisado with high quality olives, hard to find chimayo Chile, garlic, and turmeric rice.
They offered a selection of side dishes called Grains Greens + Roots. Some of those offerings were street corn, yucca brûlée, and tepary bean chorizo ragu.
The appetizers were delicious but very light. The striped bass also was very light so I did have room to try a dessert and tried the coriander torte.
Here is a better look.
It’s described as dulce de leche and orange cream. The tart is very well made with a perfect thin crust. It creamy but not very sweet or overly rich. I sort of want more orange but it still is very good and was a nice sweet ending.
That was a taste of Tia Carmen – Newly Opened and Worth a Fork!
Tia Carmen at JW Marriott Phoenix Desert Ridge Phoenix AZ
5350 E Marriott Drive Phoenix AZ
480-293-3636
www.JWDesertRidge.com
Everything is subject to change.
