This scenic drive is pretty in portions. The constructions continues but I do see movement towards…read morecompletion. Staff are planting trees in the center divide. The northbound area is still full of dirt and cones. You really have to pay attention to go southbound or turn left. There are diversions that can change so be careful.

The original intent of the scenic drive has seriously waned over the years, as the area has become…read morecommercialized. It's okay--but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it.

100% of the Profits from Whiskers & Wine go to the Foothills No Kill Animal Shelter…read more For a $25. Donation you had the opportunity to partake in light food, generous pours of wine,Beer, Live Jazz Music, A silent auction and the opportunity to find a new furry best friend in the beautiful Carefree Sanderson Lincoln Pavilion. Some pet dogs also attended. Unlike other festivals of this nature I've been too this one was really well organized and the people just flowed in actually before opening time and everyone was more than ready to handle the crowd. (that is unusual and is not the norm) They had more wine flowing than food serving. Guess that makes sense after all it's called Whiskers & WINE not Whiskers and Food. I was surprised that Sassi Restaurant was pouring Obscure Italian Wine instead of serving food. I wasn't the only one blind sighted about the food selection. One woman next to me asked Grimaldi's for 5 pizza slices but they came here to pass out Mozzarella, Tomato and Basil Appetizers. The most popular food selection was Hummus Dip. Four kinds were served. The Carefree Bistro set up a mini buffet of many appetizers. Z's Asian Bistro, Venus Cafe and Giordano's also participated in donating their foods and time. The wines they poured were HIGHER quality than another a few other festivals I attended over the past year. (The West Side Festival and the Channel 8 festival) Arizona Stronghold, Brix Wines, Cellar 13, PRP, Sassi & Foothills were the Wine Sponsors. Mudshark Brewery sponsored Beer. The live music was good and they provided water and had nice clean bathrooms nearby. Parking was easy, close and there wasn't a fee.

North of Scottsdale in the Phoenix-area is the town of Carefree, Arizona. When I think of Carefree,…read moreI immediately think of the English Rose Tea Room as I've traveled about an hour to have afternoon tea there (48 miles from my house). I'm sure there are other places to explore, but due to distance I don't often get out that way. I'd recommend visiting as it's a small town and I've heard great things about. Plus, who doesn't love a town with a beautiful tea room?

Unexpected surprise while driving past this morning's frontier town…read more The homes are predominantly constructed in the adobe style and are absolutely gorgeous, surrounded by desert flora. Visit the small botanical garden! It's worth the detour.

I've stopped by Queen Creek Olive Mill many times over the years to pick up their hot sauces and…read moreoils, but this was my first time actually getting food here, and it was absolutely worth it! I ordered my usual Italian sandwich, and it was sooo delicious! The olives that came with the meal were also very good but beware they do have pits in them so don't choke on a pit like I did! One of my favorite touches was the complimentary balsamic vinegars and olive oils you can add to your food, they're located near the bar area in the indoor dining room, it was great to be able to try different flavors and customize your foods flavor profile! The service is counter style ordering, which worked fine for us, and we really enjoyed eating outside alongside the beautiful olive groves; Even though it was really hot, they had a massive swamp cooler and misters set up outside that made the heat much more manageable and allowed us to enjoy the scenery. Whenever I run out of olive oil I look forward to coming back to have another round of the soft bread and tasty sandwiches

What started as a plan to head to Queen Creek Olive Mill for Garlic Fest turned into us deciding to…read moreskip the crowds and simply enjoy a delicious breakfast and that we did! Queen Creek Olive Mill is such a delightful place to spend some time. Of course, seeing the olives are fantastic, but their infused olive oils and the dishes they create with them are equally worth enjoying. There's something so relaxing about sitting outside in the shaded portion of the property, looking out over the grounds, and even taking a little stroll among the numerous olive trees. I ended up ordering the ricotta eggs on focaccia, and gosh darn, they were DELICIOUS. The white truffle-infused olive oil was absolutely the star of the dish. It added just the right amount of rich, savory truffle flavor without overpowering the creamy eggs. The focaccia was flavorful, perfectly suited for soaking up all those delicious flavors, and made the whole dish feel extra indulgent. My partner went with the bacon, potato, and ricotta breakfast sandwich, which he really enjoyed as well. It was hearty, flavorful, and a great choice for breakfast. Even though we originally came for Garlic Fest, we ended up having such a lovely and relaxing morning just enjoying the property and the food.

This was a free festival that promised art and a culinary experience. There was plenty of beautiful…read moreart displayed in the breathtaking Carefree Desert but as far as a culinary experience this event fell flat. I was planning on enjoying lunch at this event and had to come up with new plans. I did enjoy looking at most of the art and imagined some of the very expensive pieces I saw looking mighty pretty in my house but some of them cost what my car is worth so I just had to enjoy looking at them. As far as the food I do have to say the food vendor Safari Samosas that serves up African cuisine is OUTSTANDING. The samosas are hand held pies that have meat or vegetable fillings with many different unique sauces to dress them up. The owner very generously gave out samples and the potato curry samosa was really delicious. My husband enjoyed the beef samosa the best and purchased one as a snack. Other than the Safari Samosas they had a falafel vendor, a tamale vendor and a baked goods vendor. That is all the culinary I saw on Sunday. t was a beautiful stroll through the Carefree Desert. It was free. Lots of Art! Just not enough that I would call it a Culinary Experience. Three stars is positive and means A-Ok. Would have been very good if this truly was a culinary event.

from the start we felt at home, taken care of and dinner was an experience. the pizza is the…read morehighlight, real Neapolitan pizza in Arizona?? rare. the wine selection from Tuscany is perfect (lover le volte). our waiter Julio was fantasti!

I can't believe we haven't visited Pizzicato until now. Service was wonderful and the food was…read morespectacular! We will definitely be back.

Great tour - ask for John. All the spots were delicious and interesting. The best one was the…read moreMexican restaurant.

This was a lot of fun and an insightful tour! Our guide James Beach was a TON of fun and made the…read moretour worth it. He had a lot of stories and history about the area which was interesting to learn about the area. We stopped at about 5 restaurants and the food from each of the restaurants was really good at each stop. If you are looking for a fun tour to learn more about the Scottsdale area, this is a good one. Be ready for a lot of walking though, and wear comfortable walking shoes!

Patrick the bar tender is awesome! Drinks and food were delicious! My husband loved the sausage…read morepizza and I loved my chicken piccata and pear martini!! We will definitely be back!

Although the place was very busy as it was wine Wednesday for half price wine, the hostess put two…read moretables together to be able to see the four of us. Pizza was great as always, drinks came out super quick. All in all a great experience to have dinner with friends there!