Bacanora PHX
Mexican restaurant · Roosevelt
1301 Grand Ave #1, Phoenix, AZ 85007
Highlights
Open-fire Sonoran cooking with award-winning flavors & cocktails
Open-fire Sonoran cooking with award-winning flavors & cocktails
"Three years in, Chef Rene Andrade’s tiny, bright pink restaurant, an ode to his native Sonora, remains one of Phoenix’s hottest restaurants. Getting a reservation is damned near impossible for a slew of reasons. To name a few, there’s the blackened elote; juicy, spatchcocked chicken; and flame-licked steaks, all cooked over mesquite on a custom-made Santa Maria grill. Small-plate specials might include a radish and cucumber salad (made with local ingredients), aguachile (containing Sonora’s fiery chiltepin pepper), or grilled octopus, which is among the best in town. Taken first or last, a shot of bacanora (Sonora’s agave-based spirit), presented with cinnamon, piloncillo, and smoke, is a showstopper." - McConnell Quinn
"Because Arizona borders the Mexican state of Sonora, Phoenicians have long assumed they know what’s what when it comes to Sonoran food. Then René Andrade opened his tiny, hot pink Grand Avenue restaurant and devoted it to all things Sonoran. He chars steak, local chicken, elote, and just about everything else on a Santa Maria grill; sources local vegetables for light, beautiful salads; hauls up fiery chiltepins from his family’s ranch; and pours Sonora’s signature spirit — bacanora — in a dramatic, cinnamon-scented presentation of fire and smoke. Andrade demonstrates that Sonoran cooking can be simple yet complex, codifying this regional cuisine as a staple the city is only beginning to fully appreciate. Hot tip: Reservations drop on the first of the month and disappear fast — but the bar is your best bet for a walk-in." - McConnell Quinn
"Bacanora is a master class in Sonoran cooking, which explains why it’s still Phoenix’s most elusive reservation, even four years after it opened. This place serves a near-daily changing menu of dishes like 40-ounce bone-in ribeyes, yellowtail amberjack ceviches, and cabbage, pineapples, and elotes charred over the open wood-fired grill. Reservations become available 30 days in advance but sell out in minutes. The hack is to arrive early and try your luck at the bar—you might even find an empty seat next to an Arizona Cardinals starter—or head downtown to their newer, no-reservation sibling restaurant, Huarachis Taqueria." - team infatuation
"You’ll find this Grand Avenue spot inside the restored Bragg’s Pie Factory building, but with the exception of the dessert menu, you won’t find many sugary treats. Instead, you’ll get a solid introduction to the different cuisines of the Mexican state of Sonora, which on any given day, might include a list of specials like the lime-cured halibut aguachile or bone-in ribeyes. Reservations open at the start of each month, but you can try your luck at the bar—you might even find an empty seat next to an Arizona Cardinals starter." - lauren topor
"Because Arizona borders the Mexican state of Sonora, Phoenicians have long assumed they know what’s what when it comes to Sonoran food. Then René Andrade opened his tiny, hot pink Grand Avenue restaurant and devoted it to all things Sonoran. He chars steak, local chicken, elote and just about everything else on a Santa Maria grill; sources local vegetables for light, beautiful salads; hauls up fiery chiltepins from his family’s ranch; and pours Sonora’s signature spirit — bacanora — in a dramatic, cinnamon-scented presentation of fire and smoke. He demonstrates that Sonoran cooking can be simple yet complex, rustic yet sophisticated, a regional cuisine this city is only beginning to fully appreciate." - Mcconnell Quinn, Chris Malloy, Nikki Buchanan
