By J.E. Pizarro, Chief Executive Foodie

Susie and I recently decided to revisit a local food institution after a long hiatus. T. Cook’s at the Royal Palms resort.

I remember that the very first time I visited T. Cook’s, so many years ago, it felt like I was in my Great Aunt’s fantastic garden.  With arches, green grass, bougainvilleas, and the sweet smell of a variety of flowers it brought back memories of childhood forgotten.

Beyond its ability to take me back to my youth, dining out at T. Cook’s is an incredible experience!

From the engaging bar with live music on most nights to the rich Tuscan paintings that adorn the restaurant, T. Cook’s brings richness to Phoenix/Scottsdale dining that is rarely seen.

The main factor in the unique richness that is T. Cook’s happens to be Executive Chef Lee Hillson.

Hillson is down to earth, funny, talented and literally not afraid to get naked for a good cause.  (Check out the naked chefs calendar that raises money for multiple organizations).

My business partner Susie was able to gaze upon his “good nature” every day for the month of April!

Lee is not only a charismatic feature at T. Cook’s, he has also created a menu that is sublime. Lee really let his hair down during the crafting of this menu. (If you’ve met him you understand how much).

When Susie and I dine out, we enjoy when we have the chance to dine on small tastes of larger starters, entrees and desserts.

This way we get to taste a larger variety of items while not filling up-or gaining 20 lbs per meal!

Hillson prepared a six course tasting menu for us on this particularly fortuitous evening.

It’s said that we eat first with our eyes before our mouths. Hillson’s 6-course menu was printed and waiting for us on the table when we arrived for our reservation. We knew immediately that we were in for quite a treat!

Just try to resist this bread!

T. Cook’s has a warm, disarming atmosphere that allows all worries and cares to melt into the background. The focal point becomes simply the plate in front of you.

The first course was wild burgundy escargot with roasted red onion and roasted garlic and crisp (and I mean crisp) house-made pancetta, presented in a puff pastry bun. The mix of flavors and textures was remarkable.

Sometimes escargot is “chewy” or “rubbery”, however in this case it seemed to dissolve in my mouth with rumors of the garlic and onion flavors.  The presentation of it was equally inviting.  I’ll certainly be back to have it at the bar with a nice glass of wine while I write my next foodie adventure.

Escargot Delight!

We are always up for a great antipasto platter and the second course didn’t disappoint.

House cured meat, vegetables and artisan cheeses all served in a caramelized onion puff pastry were complimented by a crisp Pinot Grigio. The puff pastry was light and buttery.

As tasty as it is beautiful!

The next course is where Susie and I normally would be worlds apart in our assessments. Susie typically remarks that beets “taste like dirt.”

In this presentation however, she agreed that Roasted Beet Carpaccio Salad was “the bomb.”

The artichokes with the lemon vinaigrette that formed base flavors made a light and favorable course that tickled our taste buds and were portioned small enough to wet our appetites for the next course.

Beets are our friends, and regardless what a certain “blond” says, they are a delicious, earthy root that if well prepared (such as this one) will become a fast favorite.

Un-beet-able!

Next on the lineup was one of the best pasta dishes I’ve had in a few years.

Carbonara with garlic cream, prosciutto, house-cured Pancetta and egg yolk. It was a combination of several of my favorite ingredients that together, created an incredibly memorable dish.

Rarely do I take leftovers home, but in this case I had to take an extra serving home (I ended up giving it to Susie to take home to her husband Eric).

I wish I had kept it for myself because it was that damn good.  The pasta was tender but it was really the sauce. Oh my, the sauce. Salty, creamy and mouth-watering.

This life-changing entrée is worth the trip to T. Cook’s.

Unforgettable Carbonara

Next on the docket, seared curry-dusted scallops with potato spinach cake & golden raisin-caper emulsion.

In this case Susie gave rave reviews.  I’ve never turned down a scallop, but I don’t typically go out of my way to order them. Susie remarked the curry spice mixture was just enough spice to give a unique flavor layer that offset the sweetness from the raisin-caper emulsion. She enjoyed it tremendously.

Savory Scallops

At this point we were getting very full! Hillson came out to greet us and we joked, “Is that it??” He said, “No, I’ve got a lot more in store.” Uh oh. We gripped our full bellies.

The second to last course was a tasting of three of their main entrees.  Paella, boursin and spinach stuffed chicken breast and their 21-day dry aged prime rib-eye. We enjoyed the chicken the most. We found the paella to be fairly flavorless and the rib-eye was a bit too fatty for our liking. The chicken was moist and the tangy boursin cheese complimented the dish tremendously.

Meat Medley

The final two courses (wow) were dessert and cheese. The cheese was the surprise from Hillson as he had us sample multiple different kinds, all that he purchased thru Petit Fromage. There were various textures and tastes involved but overall it was a truly amazing cheese plate.

Almost too pretty to eat!

T. Cook’s is a Valley restaurant with incredible staying power and consistency. We were swooning over our delicious meal and cursing ourselves at the same time for letting years lapse between visits. Guaranteed, that will never happen again.

http://www.royalpalmshotel.com/phoenix-arizona-dining.php