vogue bistro and bar

vogue bistro is a small cafe that offers a variety of foods made withfrenchtaught techniques. the chef has trained in france. due to hitting them on an off day i saw them at the worst but i also tasted how amazing the food is too and food-wise this was more amazing than terrible. after we ordered we waited about a 1/2 hour for our lunches. they ignored my husband's request to leave off the aioli on his panini. so we wait another around a half hour for a new one. however my salad was sitting in the window getting warm and wilted all this time. as warm and wilted as my salad was it would have been rock star amazing if it was fresh made. the creamy shallot dressing was so good i could drink it and the walnuts in my salad were very complex. the added house smoked salmon was possibly the best smoked salmon i ever had. unfortunately my husband's panini suffered something inflicted by the cook that was on and made the pork very dry. it was drier than dog food jerky and it was more like it had rigor mortis set in. my husband didn't say anything about it because he was already upset about the wait. our waiter not knowing about the dry pork offered us a dessert on the house and i picked the house made chocolate collection of assorted chocolates. they were made of very high quality chocolates and were delicious. our lunch took about two hours. i don't know what went wrong in the kitchen as it wasn't terribly busy.  i do know i didn't see chef aurore working in the kitchen.

poor service and poor communication. a sympathy 2 stars on a well-deserved 1 star on my last visit. no problem paying vogue bistro's 5 star prices for a great 4 star meal when it is just around the corner from the house. i live in marley park can walk there in 5 minutes. the trip is a weekly event and occasional lunches. i always request christine for her awesome tableside manner, charm, wit and humor in just the right dosage. she knows our favorite drinks and we always start out with the greatfrenchonion soup and end with above average crème brulee.

so much for the praise of this establishment. as a valentine's day surprise i thought i would surprise my wife with vogue's crème brulee. i stopped in around noon and was told "no problem just call or stop by 1/2 hour ahead, we will have a fresh to-go packaged up". i stop by at 5:00 to place my order and am told they are not accepting "to-go" orders today. i tell the hostess i had been told differently just hours before and my valentine's day plans would be spoiled. i get a "harrumph" and a shrug of the shoulders. not one to press the issue i left upset with the memory of poor service and poor communication overriding several years of pleasurable dining. how can i go there again after the crème brulee "disaster in the desert" and not think of this disaster. very let down.

truly a great restaurant and bar. easily competes with trendy scottsdale joints, except i feel much more welcome and relaxed here, plus i don't have to see every 22 year old dude who wears bedazzled jeans try to pick up girls and get drunk on bud light. the wine list is great and changing all, the time as the owner (who is also the sommelier) finds more delicious wines to offer. the drinks from the bar are always top notch; they only have one bartender and she is great, so you know the drinks will be consistently good. i go there quite often just for drinks because of the nice atmosphere and quality liquor. as far as the food, i have never had a single bad dish there. everything from the appetizers through the salads, entrees, and especially the desserts, are wonderful. the chef is a genius who uses her knowledge offrenchcuisine to influence all kinds of dishes, but still serve american-size portions. everything from the steaks and duck to something as simple as thefrenchfries are excellent. a great restaurant for a nice quiet date. i also like that they have a tv behind the bar, but instead of the usual sportscenter crap, they play classicfrenchmovies with english subtitles (no sound from the movie, so it doesn't interfere with the music). a nice touch to keep it classy. i would say the ambience is somewhat of a relaxed classiness; a nice pair of shorts and a nice polo would fit in, but a button down shirt tucked into non-denim pants and a nice cocktail dress for the ladies would look even more appropriate. easily my favorite restaurant in the west valley, and in the top 5 for the phoenix area.

very good restaurant. i wouldn't call it french. perhaps an american bistro withfrenchovertones. the wine list was diverse and had a lot of "by the glass" options. the food was quite good. i had the vogue salad andy wife had the beet salad and both were very tasty. my wife had the duck confit which was well-seasoned and tender as it should be with wonderful potatoes. i had the vogue steak and fries. the steak was prepared perfectly with a wonderful sauce and the hangar steak was quite tender and a very generous portion. we shared a bottle of a beautiful napa cabernet that they decanted for us. it paired nicely with both dishes. for dessert, my wife had the pistachio gelato and i had the creme brûlée which was devine. the service was also very attentive but not obtrusive. all in all, i would definitely recommend vogue bistro.

great restaurant! awesome atmosphere. unique, authenicfrenchcuisine. definitelty worth it!

what a great experience!!!. first of all, likemy2boyz, a reviewer was completely inaccurate in my experience. i completely agree with the email that was written back to him in response to his complaint. i personally spoke with the owner who had written the response himself and totally agree that if this reviewer did not like the restaurant, he did not need to come back. the restaurant that roman and his wife, chef aurore, have created is exceptional in service and excellent in their cooking. we called and made our reservations at the last minute and still was given a table in such short notice without complaint. our waitress, ray, was exceptional. she was very persistent as to see how we were doing and refilled our drinks on a regular basis. the atmosphere in the bistro was very comfortable. they playedfrenchmusic and movies where the sound was at just the right level. when we looked around we saw that the restaurant was family owned and it was a great atmosphere for anyone.
normally, in my experiences, a restaurant in this type of venue, children are looked down upon when entering the restaurant and receive a lot of stares. not this one!!! the chef and owners 7 year old daughter was very charming and welcoming to the customers. we arrived with 3 children 6, 10, and 11 years of age. automatically, she asked her mother to come and greet us to see if they would accept her invitation to play. she was a very sweet little girl and the kids would love to return again just to see her. our 6 year old asked to return for her 7th birthday. i am very pleased to know that kids are welcome in such an upscale venue. the restaurant was very family oriented.
now about the menu and food... the menu gave such a greatfrenchvibe. the food was excellent and was the bestfrenchcuisine that i have ever seen in the greater phoenix area. our family had many different menu items, but the dessert stuck out the most. the berry cobbler and crume brulee was excellent. such a great last taste of this wonderful restaurant. the menu was reasonably priced for the wonderful food. the chef introduced herself to our table along with the owner at the end of our meal. it was an exquisite dining experience and i will return sooner than not. i give them 5 stars without the pretentious 5 star atmosphere which is a plus since it was in comfortable surprise instead of typical scottsdale. don't miss this opportunity!!!

magnifique!. dine @ vogue and experience the many wonderful gastronomical heritages of france. i am going to be bold and state that chef aurore serves the best foie gras on american soil! the duck confit w/ potatoes and greens was tender and flavorful. the service is polite and attentive. "the cake" was enjoyed the next am for breakfast. cocktail list is extensive. the menu is priced so everyone can enjoy a realfrenchmeal.


-----12 mar, 2009-----

one of our favs! new year's eve was wonderful!