You're working late. You're partying late. You've had too much to drink and you need to soak up the booze in your belly. Or maybe your idea of a midnight snack is more elaborate than those leftovers in your fridge.
Where to go?
Good question -- the Valley could stand to have some more late-night dining options besides Denny's and Mickey D's.
Here are some restaurants that really go into the wee hours, serving well beyond midnight:
Saddle Ranch Chop House in Scottsdale takes the prize for the latest late-night eats we've heard of -- on Fridays and Saturdays, the kitchen keeps sizzling burgers, jumbo buffalo wings, crispy onion rings with chipotle mayo, and other treats from its late-night menu until 4 a.m. (That's so late that it's early.) The restaurant also screens feature films and serves free popcorn on those nights. Sunday through Thursday, it's open until 2 a.m., with a reverse happy hour from 10 p.m. to midnight.
Coming in a close second, Lo-Lo's Chicken & Waffles' new Scottsdale location will start opening for dinner and late-night dining on September 11. The full menu of Lo-Lo's celebrated fried chicken and other soul food splurges will be available Fridays and Saturdays from 5 p.m. to 3 a.m.
If you're out club hopping in Old Town and looking to chow down, The Lodge features a late-night pub grub menu from midnight to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.
Metro Brasserie at SouthBridge does a limited menu until 2 a.m. (Thursday through Saturday) that includes an heirloom tomato salad, steak frites, moules frites, charcuterie, croque monsieur or madame, and the fabulous Brasserie Burger.
Thanks to its prime location at 32nd Street and Camelback, Delux gets the Phoenix and Scottsdale crowds for after-midnight burgers -- impressively, they cook 'em up until 2 a.m. daily.
Good thing chef-owner Johnny Chu keeps cooking his scrumptious Asian tapas until 2 a.m. (Fridays and Saturdays) at Sens -- it's a handy excuse to keep sipping on cold sake and shochu cocktails.
And up in Sunnyslope, Bomberos dishes up delicious bruschetta, sandwiches, and cheese plates to pair with luscious South American wines until 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. They feature half-off glasses of wine for reverse happy hour, too.
