Tarbell's — Restaurant in Phoenix

An illusion that somehow falls under the radar posing as quality but in reality falling short of even mediocrity.

I was looking for the perfect spot for us to check out while we were in Phoenix and figured yelp can’t be wrong! Almost 5 stars - I was sure this would not disappoint! After all how can 300 reviews be off.

--The AMBIENCE Really nice and appreciated the lighting. Unfortunately there was a table of 4 men near us who were so loud that I could barely hear the person across from my very own table! The crowd skews a lot older - 60+

—The FOOD

Hamachi crudo I saw beautiful pictures of this and instead got mediocrity at best - soggy and sad looking. I would never ever order this again. Least the presentation was semi pleasant to look at.

Warm "Bacon Candy" with Frisée, Radicchio, Soft Poached Egg I’m not really sure why you need to sous vide an egg... the dish didn’t make much sense to me because you have a lot of salad and just one eggs... it should have been a smaller portion salad, the bacon should have been chopped up and mixed with the salad. Instead you get one bite of egg, spending 5 minutes trying to grapple with cutting the bacon. The flavors make sense just not the final dish! Least there was an attempt here sort of...

Housemade Burrata with McClendon's Farm Tomatoes This is the saddest excuse for a buratta I have ever tried anywhere!! The inside of a buratta is supposed to be creamy and open to up as you cut it! This... was cold and as you open it you get farmers cheese! What the heck is this... we didn’t send this back but I stopped eating after one bite - this was a sad excuse for trying to cook!

Octopus ravioli So this came out cold. The dough of the ravioli was disgusting - too thick and cold! I have never sent a dish back in all my years of dining but I was not going to pay almost $40 for cold ravioli!! What a disgrace! It’s almost as if someone left them out sitting and the waiter was too busy to get them and like 10 min went by before they were served. They gave us 2 apps to apologize but even the apps were terrible.

—ChaChing I cannot believe how pricy this place is and that people actually pay this!! Like why? Is it location? This place is a complete rip off!!

—The LETdown I wouldn’t send my worst enemy here! The food was pitiful, the price a joke and it just made no sense. I will never go here again and hope the food gets better. I should have known it was a red flag when they have so many types of cuisine on the menu! Why the heck do you have hummus as a starter? What does that have to do with anything? Get your stuff together!

—The SERVICE Our waiter was pretty attentive even though it seemed like he had a lot of people to cover tonight. He was considerate when we had to send a dish back and very flexible. I was a little annoyed that the waiter kept pushing the most expensive dishes repeatedly - don’t...

Tarbells is one of my favorite restaurants in the Phoenix area. The menu is short and many of the offerings don't even rotate. Somehow there is always something for everyone and it is always wonderful. The waitstaff is top notch in that: knowledgeable, here when you need me, but never intrusive. Conversational and polite, but never chatty way. My mother is a very picky vegetarian who I typically cringe at as she deconstructs a series of sides to Frankenstein a meal together so that the rest of us can enjoy the meat and fish selections of most restaurants. Tarbell's simple menu and extraordinary cook staff is there for your special request - to the extent it's printed across the top of the menu! The atmosphere is dimly lit but the setting feels like a downtown setting. This means you can have an intimate and romantic dinner with a partner here or come out for a business meeting with colleagues and both would feel upscale and perfectly at home. The cocktails are great, the wine list is extensive with price points for all tastes, and there are just enough specials to keep you curious when coming back every 6 months what might be new. If nothing sounds good there are always the staples you know and love.

The one thing to look out for is that you can do Tarbells on a budget or you can drop premium steakhouse dollars here and the price per person will vary by $40+ depending on which direction you go. That means if you let your stomach do the deciding like I do you can have very different bills time to time.

To give you an idea, the time before last I went with a party of 4 and paid about $420 or $105 per person, including tip for a table of 4 including a bottle of wine, this last time there were only 3 of us and it cost $580, including tip and a bottle if wine, or about $195 per person. The difference was due to 2 of us getting the steak special which came at a $40 premium, each of us doing a salad course rather than splitting a starter, and a bottle of wine that was about $50 more on the second visit.

You very much get what you pay for and provided you are prepared for that variance of cost each time, I've never had a bad experience across the 5+ times...

Tarbell's is truly a fine dining experience with stellar service and impeccable food. We were there for an anniversary, and arrived to find our reserved table strewn with rose petals. The lights were low and moody, the background music pleasant.

The food was perfection. For our start we ordered the house-made burrata, which at this time included a mixed berry and chia seed jam with a bold balsamic reduction. The cheese was firm on the outside and beautifully gushy in the middle. We also received a rock shrimp tempura that had a delicate crispiness from rice flour; honestly, one of the best shrimp dishes I've had in my life.

For a start drink, I ordered the Elixir 6, which was a unique, complex cocktail that included beautiful adornments. My husband had a local beer that he greatly enjoyed. I asked our server for a recommendation for a white wine to go with the salmon and he pointed me toward Cliff Lede, a Sauvignon Blanc, which turned out to be an excellent choice.

The current Scottish salmon offering is served on mustard mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts. The fish was perfectly cooked and flaky. My husband truly indulged and went with a current special, the Moon River Ribeye, which came with root vegetables, crisped fingerling potatoes, and three sauces to accompany the meat. This was among the best steaks he's ever had in a restaurant.

We were delighted when our server brought out a caramel custard and a cup of chocolate mousse for our anniversary. They weren't things I ever would have ordered off a menu, but they were stunningly delicious. We were both wowed. They made for a perfect end for the meal.

I would come again to Tarbell's for a special occasion. It was fantastic...