FOOD & DINING

Review: Modern Grove eatery cool, casual, dog-friendly

Barbara Yost

Special for The Republic

Modern Grove developer Aaron Klusman also created Zoyo Neighborhood Yogurt.
The northeast Phoenix restaurant opened last year%2C followed by the Mesa store.
With a spacious patio and gourmet market%2C Modern Grove makes great noshes in a laid-back atmosphere.

Modern Grove Neighborhood Eatery & Market is a destination made for the Valley. It's cool, casual and dog-friendly, with a menu of noshes that pair well with wine and beer. It has plenty of outdoor space locals like to brag about. The soft artificial grass gives a park-like illusion.

The Apple chicken salad sandwich from Modern Grove Neighborhood Eatery & Market in Phoenix.

Developer Aaron Klusman is the neighborly type. Not only has he branded Modern Grove as a neighborhood gathering place, but he also created Zoyo Neighborhood Yogurt.

The first Modern Grove opened in Flagstaff in 2013. That was a test market that has now closed. The northeast Phoenix location opened about a year ago, followed by a Mesa branch. We dined at the Phoenix location.

Scene: Modern Grove stretches along North Tatum Boulevard (north of Greenway Road) with an expansive patio, plenty of metal-and-wood seating inside and a market that sells alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, gourmet foods, condiments and takeout items. The lawn boasts some games, such as corn hole, and strings of bulbs light up the space at night. When we were there, the patio was also hosting a significant number of canine customers in all sizes.

Food: There are no surprises on this menu but a predictable lineup of appetizers, burgers, pizza, sandwiches and panini. Still, most of the items we tried were well executed. One section of the menu is dubbed "Local Neighborhood Recipes" and includes a couple of quinoa bowls, pizza and a cookie. On the restaurant's website, you can submit your own recipe for consideration. I'm not sure this helps foster the community spirit that owners hope for, but it's probably fun if it's your dish being featured.

Modern Grove commits the sin I run into all too often. We ordered an appetizer of the bruschetta board ($13) and expected to savor it before our other choices arrived. But proper pacing failed as our bruschetta came about third in the lineup. All of the several items we had ordered arrived en masse. These things are called starters for a reason. The only solution would be to hold off ordering any main dishes until you've made headway on the apps.

Was the bruschetta good? Fortunately, yes. Choosing three varieties (two each) from five selections, we sampled traditional tomato, garlic and basil on crusty bread; fire-roasted peppers with whipped goat cheese and a balsamic glaze; and prosciutto with melon and mascarpone. The one with roasted peppers had the most impressive flavor. The prosciutto and melon was a nice take on the classic prosciutto-wrapped cantaloupe, though here it's made with honeydew. They were all satisfying.

From the sandwich category, we went for the apple chicken salad sandwich ($10), a mix of roasted white meat, chunks of Granny Smith apple, dried cranberries, pecans and walnuts, and a hefty lettuce leaf, served on house-baked, thick-cut, seeded bread. I would have welcomed a little more glue such as mayo to better consolidate the ingredients. The chicken and apples tend to fall out. It's a premium sandwich, nonetheless, and a good choice for lunch.

Your downfall could be the fries that come with the sandwiches (other choices are sweet potato fries, pasta salad, green salad, potato salad or fresh fruit). They're thin, cooked golden and struck me as having been coated in a crunch enhancer — they were that crispy while maintaining fluffiness inside. If you think you won't stop, don't get started. Fair warning.

Walk on the less cardiac-averse side with one of the salad choices. We dug into the Hail Kale! ($11). By now you know that you can't go anywhere in town without some incarnation of kale on the menu. Reports of the green's demise were apparently premature, because there's still a lot of it around. Maybe because chefs invested in kale futures. Maybe because it's a healthful superfood. And also because it's quite satisfying, especially when it's tossed with Mandarin oranges, pistachios, feta cheese crumbles and dried cranberries in a spiced orange vinaigrette. Kale has legs.

The disappointing choice was the pizza. From four varieties, we picked the Napa with whipped goat cheese, fig jam, caramelized onions and ham on a very thin crust ($13). It was served on a wooden cutting board and looked handsome when it arrived. But while thin crusts can be a good thing, they can quickly dry out and devolve into nothing more than a big cracker. That was the fate of our pizza. Even fine, moist toppings couldn't hydrate the crust. Would more cheese help? Mozzarella and tomatoes, perhaps? Maybe.

Desserts: We cheered up when our dessert of choice arrived, a richly indulgent bread pudding ($6) studded with chocolate and rivers of caramel and sprinkled with powdered sugar. As you plan your meal, think ahead. You deserve this treat, even if you only eat half and box up the leftovers. It's just as good, or better, lightly reheated the next day.

Drinks: Wine, including an Arizona vintage, and beer, including six on tap.

Lowdown: Modern Grove has neighborhood appeal. Parking is ample, and if I lived nearby I'd be over a lot. After a couple of tries, I would know my favorites and which ones to bypass. I can also see stopping by the market a couple times a week. It's all a good concept.

Reach Yost at barbara@yoststories.com. She dines anonymously and The Republic pays all expenses.