For those who haven't been, it's a little tricky to locate. There's almost nothing in the way of signage on the exterior of the Ten-O-One building, and nothing to guide you once you're indoors. The middle elevator, however, is wood-paneled, and it's the only one that goes to the basement where the restaurant is located.
It's a fun space! Dim, loud but not nuts, done up in a late 19th century motif in keeping with the name. An outstanding oversized portrait of Teddy Roosevelt hangs in the entrance. It's got some character, but they don't take themselves too seriously, so it doesn't drift into Disney territory.
There's a raw bar, a fairly long list of smaller share plates and a handful of mains, all of which look pretty hearty.
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I wanted to get a good sense of what the raw bar can do, so we kicked it off with a seafood tower. Top tier was shrimp, smoked salmon dip, and the requisite sauces. Bottom tier was oysters and king crab. It's a good platter — solid sauces, all of the seafood carefully prepped. It isn't something inspired like you're going to get at Nelson's or offbeat like the Maple & Ash hot seafood tower, but they stick the landing. It's listed as MP, which ended up being $125.
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After a cold seafood start, we did a couple of shared vegetables for Round 2. First up was the fried cauliflower, tempura fried with malt vinegar aioli and pickled onions. It's a pretty hefty share plate, and deftly done. Exacly what you expect, nicely seasoned, nicely done.
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We made a starter out of the vegerarian main, and I LOVED this one. Their grilled Cabbage Newberg comes along with fried sea lettuce and garlic breadcrumbs in a vegan cognac cream. This was just wonderful. Great char and flavor on the cabbage, and I loved the crisp texture of the fried sea lettuce. I'm not sure what constitutes vegan cream, but I was getting a pretty strong tahini flavor. Whatever the composition is slayed. Great dish.
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Great sauce on this chicken — a marsala-spiked pan sauce, maybe? — ringing celery root puree and an absolutely perfect piece of chicken. Chicken breast bores the crap out of me, but I would get this again in a heartbeat. Tender and juicy, with GORGEOUS crisp skin. Very, very tight.
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Man, the sauce game is strong here. A black garlic demi, to be precise, and that's one hell of a pork chop. Tender and crazy juicy with a nice crisp fennel and apple slaw.
I realize those meats look pretty much straight down the middle, and they *kind of* are, I guess, but they're executed so sharply that they really stand out.
I'm looking forward to getting back here.
Rough Rider
roughrideraz.com
602-675-0439
1001 N. Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85004
