Recently, I finally had the opportunity to visit and dine at The Mission in Old Town Scottsdale. I am a huge fan of Chef Matt Carter’s food at Zinc Bistro, so I was looking forward to tasting some of the “modern Latin cuisine” served at The Mission and The Mission did not disappoint.
A group of us went early on a weekend night recently and the restaurant was already quite busy. The decor is dark and sleek and there is a large bar area with seating.
There are a couple of ways to approach the menu. You could go the more traditional route and order an entree and some starters or sides. Or, there is such a large selection of smaller plate choices, you could just order an assortment of dishes and dine family-style.
There were so many good things on the menu, we agreed to order several things to share and then each of us would have something that was our own.
To share, we ended up getting the guacamole which is prepared tableside and served with fresh chips and salsa, which are both made onsite. We also tried several sides to nibble on including the Torreados, which was a mixture of hot peppers that had been slightly seared and were served with lime and sale. The peppers range in heat from more mild to very spicy and our server walked us through which ones were which. In addition, we had a huge serving of the Taro Fries, which were quite tasty. We also tried the White Bean Puree which was a mixture of white beans, cotija cheese, arugula and tomato. It was quite good as well.
For the entrees, almost everyone selected the tacos which come served in wonderful, homemade corn tortillas. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed them. Another selection was the Duck Carnitas Empanada. A mixture of duck and mushroom was served inside the empanada which was then topped with an orange habanero sauce. It was delicious and decadent.
Even though we ordered a large number of items to try, there were still several more options that we did not have room for. However, at the end of the meal, we made a plan to return and try some of these other items.
The Mission is located right in the middle of Old Town Scottsdale and there is a large public parking lot across the street which makes parking a breeze. (This parking lot is also the seasonal home to the Old Town Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings.)
If you have an opportunity to try The Mission, I highly recommend it. We really enjoyed our meal and look forward to going back.
More Information:
The Mission in Old Town Scottsdale
3815 North Brown Avenue
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
Phone: 480-636-5005
Web: www.themissionaz.com
Open for lunch and dinner daily
Brunch on Saturdays and Sundays
[…] third item on this list is the Duck Carnitas Empanada at The Mission in Old Town Scottsdale. Playing with the more traditional preparation that is made with pork, The Mission uses duck meat […]