Usher out 2013 with a meal to remember

2013 is coming to a close and what better way to say goodbye than by enjoying a decadent meal with your closest friends? Here are just a sampling of places that you can celebrate the final evening of the year.

All spots require reservations, so hurry and pick the best place for you, ring them up and get ready to party in style.

Bungalow Bar and Grill

4360 North Scottsdale Road | Scottsdale | 480.994.1888

It’s  all about glitz and glam on New Year’s Eve, and Arizona’s Old Town Scottsdale is the place to be. Usher in 2014 with party favors, a live DJ and a free champagne toast when the clock strikes midnight at the New Year’s Eve Bash at Bungalow Bar and Grill, the place famous for fun.

Revelers can spend the most magical night of the year showing off their dance moves and party attire when the live DJ at Bungalow Bar and Grill hits the deck at 9 p.m. Upbeat mixes will keep the party turned up until the night winds down. Bungalow  Bar and Grill’s bar staff will be serving up delicious signature cocktails all night long and merrymakers can raise their glasses for a complimentary champagne toast at midnight, ensuring the new year starts off right. Unlike  other Old Town bars, there’s no cover charge at Bungalow Bar and Grill and a full menu and decadent drinks will be available throughout the night.

“New Year’s Eve only comes once a year and Bungalow Bar and Grill is the place to ring in 2014,” said Trish Clark, manager of Bungalow Bar and Grill. “We’re offering our full menu and fun hors d’oeuvres throughout
the night , so party-goers can refuel and indulge in Bungalow Bar and Grill favorites without having to leave the party scene.”

Christopher’s Restaurant

2502 East Camelback Road | Phoenix | 602.522.2344

Enjoy a 4 Course Tasting Menu created by the talented Chef Christopher Gross. The exquisite menu will feature signature dishes like smoked salmon with caviar, lobster with brandy, chestnut soup with foie gras, boneless rack of lamb among other decadent options. Sommelier Paola Embry will be pairing wines with your meal if you choose that option. There will also be a special a la carte menu available on New Year’s Eve as well.

If you opt for the wine paired dinner the cost is $100 and $65 without the pairings.

Dinner will be served between 5pm and 11pm.

Culinary Dropout

7135 East Camelback Road | 480.970.1700

The rock star fans of Culinary Dropout can choose between a three-course prix fixe menu and the regular all-day menu before kicking off the New Year. For $40 per person, start with the house salad or yesterday’s soup before choosing from a variety of American comfort classics like fried chicken and meatloaf. Finally, celebrate the year’s end with salted caramel custard or monkey bread. The special menu will be available from 4 p.m. – close.

Kelly’s at Southbridge

7117 East 6th Avenue | Scottsdale | 480.393.3205

New Year’s Eve is right around the corner…do you have your plans set yet? If not—make Kelly’s at Southbridge in Old Town Scottsdale your place to celebrate and ring in 2014. Kelly’s dinners will be available in three different tiers. Each tier will include lobster bisque and either a mixed green or caprese salad as well as the following:

Tier 1 – $30 per person| Oven roasted chicken, garlic mashed potatoes, vegetable medley and mustard jus

The vegetarian options is red quinoa with grilled vegetables and sautéed spinach drizzled with a red pepper Coulis

Tier 2 – $40 per person| Braised short rib or Market fish with creamy polenta, exotic mushrooms and beet leather

Tier 3 – $50 per person| Surf ‘n’ Turf with an 8 oz. center cut filet, 4 oz. Maine lobster tail, garlic mashed potatoes, grilled broccolini with a cherry Cabernet reduction

Dessert (Choice of)| Nutella cheesecake or chocolate flourless cake

Little Cleo’s Seafood Legend

5632 North 7th Street | Phoenix | 602.680.4044

Dive in to a four-course coastal-inspired menu at Little Cleo’s Seafood Legend before sailing off in to the New Year. Guests can start their meal with their choice of shrimp or oysters before indulging in seafood-centered appetizers including crispy frog legs, New England clam chowder and grilled octopus. The main attraction offering includes grilled loup de mer, grass fed New York strip steak with king crab butter and other seafood favorites. Dinner includes a complimentary champagne pour. Little Cleo’s prix fixe menu, available 4 p.m. to close, is $50 per person from 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. and $60 per person after 5:30 p.m.

LUSTRE Rooftop Garden

2 East Jefferson Street | Phoenix | 602.253.6633

Ring in the New Year at LUSTRE Rooftop Garden’s “Legendary New Year’s Eve” party. Bring your friends and enjoy spectacular views of Downtown Phoenix while counting down until midnight. DJ Al Page will be spinning while revelers delight in dancing, signature cocktails and complimentary savory bites from 7pm to 10pm. Party goers must be 21 and over and the cost of attendance is $40 per person.

Mark’s Café

6340 South Rural Road | Tempe | 480.839.6455 

With three dinner seatings at 5:00pm, 7:00pm and 9:00pm guests at Mark’s Cafe will be able to choose their seating preference and entree selection from the menu below when making their reservation. Prices are per person and include beverage, tax and tip.

The New Years Eve dinner menu will include shrimp cocktail, mixed greens salad with a balsamic vinaigrette dressing and bread. Entree options range from filet medallions ($48), baked almond crusted salmon ($46), chicken neptune ($46) or a roast pork loin ($42). The dessert of the evening is a cheesecake with raspberry sauce.

Mark’s Cafe is a BYOB restaurant, so don’t forget to bring your own libations.

North

Arcadia| 4925 North 40th Street | Phoenix | 602.324.5600  

Kierland Commons| 15024 North Scottsdale Road | Scottsdale | 480.948.2055  

A three-course meal at North starts with a variety of flavorful Italian starters to choose from including Tuscan tomato soup, braised short rib and bruschetta. For the main course, choose from dishes like spinach tortelloni and seared diver scallops. The third course offering includes heavenly tiramisu or rich and decadent chocolate truffle tart sure to satisfy any sweet tooth. The prix fixe menu is available from 4 p.m. – close and costs $40 per person from 4 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. and $50 per person from 5:30 p.m to close.

Rusconi’s American Kitchen

10637 North Tatum Boulevard | Phoenix | 480.483.0009 | www.rusconiskitchen.com

Rusconi’s American Kitchen will be celebrating New Year’s Eve with a special tasting menu with menu options as follows.

First course options are house smoked salmon, warm goat cheese with Taylor Farms baby greens, Sonoran caesar salad, winter pumpkin squash soup, lobster bisque or a braised beef short rib with Cabernet sauce.

Entree option include  roasted pork tenderloin, wood grilled salmon, garlic and herb crusted rack of lamb, grilled tenderloin of beef or an open face roasted ravioli.

Dessert options range from a warm Ghirardelli chocolate torte, vanilla bean creme brulee or a coconut and passion fruit panna cotta.

Rusconi’s will be having two seatings, the first will be $50 per person and the second will be $58 per person and will include a sparkling toast.

Salut Kitchen Bar

1435 East University Drive | Tempe | 480.625.3600

When the ball drops and the clock strikes midnight, Salut Kitchen Bar in Tempe is the place to be this New Year’s Eve! Salut has unveiled their one night only specialty New Year’s Eve Menu. The night includes all sorts of package deals on appetizers, drinks, entrees and desserts, and features live music from the Chad Gregory Band.

Salut will feature three dining packages ranging from $60 to $200.

Dining packages are as follows:

One appetizer, entrée, dessert and a glass of champagne for $60

Two appetizers, entrees, desserts and a bottle of champagne for $100

Four appetizers, entrees, two desserts and two bottles of champagne for $200

Appetizer choices are salmon wontons, bacon wrapped asparagus and Caprese salad.

Entree options will be seafood pasta, bacon wrapped stuffed chicken, Malbec braised short ribs or vegetarian kabobs. and the dessert of the evening will be a gluten-free chocolate torte tiramisu.

Scottsdale Station

8220 North Hayden Road  Scottsdale | 480.998.7777 

On December 31, Scottsdale Station will ring in America’s New Year during every time zone, celebrating with champagne toasts, party favors and live music. In addition to the regular menu, the restaurant will serve a variety of dinner and dessert specials created just for the occasion. The restaurant is also offering its brunch, typically only served on Sunday, for New Year’s Day, Wednesday, January 1.

Scottsdale Station’s Executive Chef, Thomas Nasworthy and Pastry Chef, Heather Nasworthy, have created a variety of a decadent dinner and dessert specials worthy of ushering in the New Year! In addition to Scottsdale Station’s regular dinner menu of globally inspired dishes, select from a Lobster Trio, Supreme Oscar, Prime New York Strip or their Land and Sea special. You are also invited to indulge in a Three Layer Mousse Tower for dessert.

In addition to offering cuisine worth celebrating, Scottsdale Station will keep the festivities going all night long. Beginning at 8 p.m., Jon McConnell will entertain guests with a mix of Sinatra classics, country, oldies and rock music. To ring in the New Year with every time zone, beginning at 10 p.m. and continuing on the hour, guests will enjoy complimentary champagne toasts and party favors as the East Coast (10 p.m.), Midwest (11 p.m.), Southwest (midnight) and West Coast (1 a.m.) celebrate the start of 2013. There will be no cover charge for guests dining at Scottsdale Station. However, there is a $10 cover charge per person for bar guests who are not dining.

Taggia

4925 North Scottsdale Road | Scottsdale | 480.424.6095

Taggia is host to a decadent prix fixe menu on New Year’s Eve to help you escort out 2013 in style..

The prix fixe menu consists of the following:

Amuse| “Prosecchino” a glass of fine prosecco

PRIMI / appetizer| Roasted cauliflower bisque with butter poached king crab and american black caviar, smoked salmon with cucumber, piquillo pepper, whipped mascarpone, pickled onions, dill crema and bagel cracker or risotto with black winter truffle, black trumpet mushrooms and truffled pecorino

SECONDI / entrée| Surf n’ turf with grilled beef tenderloin, roasted 1Ž2 lobster, garlic potato puree, asparagus, barolo demi glace and porcini sabayon, braised lamb shank with wild boar sausage, winter squash, baby bok choy

and smoked tomato jus, roasted halibut with parsnip, spinach, pickled sunchokes and shrimp vellutato or braised swiss chard with, glazed heirloom carrots, cherry tomato confit, pioppini mushrooms and avocado – caper salsa

DOLCI / dessert| Mousse with white chocolate, milk chocolate, dark chocolate and raspberries, Crema Bruciata Amaretto crème brûlée, vanilla and almond dust or Budino “pouding chômuer” with caramelized apples, caramel and hot maple syrup

The cost of dinner is $74 per person, adding $25 for wine pairings.

The Herb Box

7134 East Stetson Drive | Scottsdale

20707 North Pima Road | Scottsdale | 480.289.6180 

On New Year’s Eve, enjoy some special dishes that have been created just for the occasion. A Southern tradition of eating black-eyed peas for the New Year, have a bowl of Black-Eyed Peas with Niman Ranch smoked pork shank and cornbread croutons. Accompanied by a glass of champagne, try the Fried Chicken with wilted red chard and a sweet potato waffle with Serrano syrup. Vinyl Station will be playing live music at The Herb Box at Southbridge from 5 to 8 p.m.

The Shout House

6770 Sunrise Boulevard | Glendale | 623.772.1500 

Shout in the New Year at The Shout House’s Masquerade Ball on Tuesday, December 31, 2013. The ticketed event includes live entertainment all night long, a prime rib dinner buffet, party favors, and more, plus guaranteed seating. The doors open at 7 p.m., and musicians will play energetic background music from 7:30 to 9 p.m., and then they will rock the house with a nonstop dueling piano show until 2 a.m.

To ring in 2014 in style, guests are encouraged to dress in semi-formal attire and wear their most lavish masquerade masks. Ticket prices range from $20 to $75 per person. For $75, partygoers will receive guaranteed seating, a prime rib dinner buffet (with a vegetarian option), party favors, a midnight champagne toast, plus a souvenir champagne glass. The dinner includes an elaborate buffet of Prime Rib, Citrus-Poblano Chicken, Vegetarian Butternut Squash Ravioli in Poblano Cream Sauce, Garbanzo Bean Salad with Romaine Hearts, Caesar Salad, Roasted Rosemary Garlic Potatoes, Grilled Seasonal Vegetables with Herbs, Croissants, and Chocolate Mousse and Key Lime Pie Shooters for dessert.

Standing room only tickets are $45 and include all of the above items, except guaranteed seating. After 9 p.m., the night of the event, standing room only tickets are available for $20 at the door, which also includes a champagne toast and souvenir glass.

Twisted Rose Winery & Eatery

5040 North Northsight Boulevard | Scottsdale | 480.398.7700 

Close out the year with a four course dinner that has been carefully crafted to feature savory flavors that will match perfectly with the smooth elegance of the wine pairings at Twisted Rose. Enjoy the music of Tina Agnotti from 7pm to 10:30pm.

Enjoy their Prix Fixe menu (the cost varies based on the entree selected)

Appetizers (choice of one): BBQ pork stuffed apple, traditional shrimp cocktail or burrata with pesto

Soup or Salad (choice of one): cauliflower with leeks and potato soup, Twisted Rose house salad or beet salad

Entrees (choice of one): 12oz Prime rib eye steak served with garlic potatoes and baby carrots $65, Neiman Ranch flat iron steak with romesco local greens $60, Chicken Picatta with Roasted Potatoes $55, fresh Pacific halibut in a buerre blanc sauce with mushroom risotto $65, fresh Pacific Salmon served with cauliflower puree and beluga lentils $60or a fresh pan seared Scallops accompanied by a seaweed bed and pineapple $55

Desserts options are their Twisted sundae, Chef’s special bread pudding or chocolate mousse

All tables of two receive a complimentary glass of Voveti Prosecco and all tables of four receive a complimentary bottle of Voveti Prosecco.

Reservations are required and the first seatings begin at 5pm and the last seatings will be at 10:30pm.

*All prices noted do not include tax and gratuity.