There's a new wine bar in town -- specifically, in the Ahwatukee Foothills neighborhood. Brought to you by the folks behind the area's Loco Patron, Unwined Cafe aims to be the neighborhood's go-to spot for drinks and dinner.
Located in a shopping center on the northeast corner of Chandler Boulevard and Desert Foothills Parkway, the wine bar offers a selection of wines by the bottle and glass, as well as craft beers on tap and a short menu of cocktails. On the food side, there's a menu of appetizers, salads, panini, and entrées such as Chilean sea bass with red quinoa, artichoke hearts, and romesco.
See also: 11 Great Wine Bars in Metro Phoenix
Unwined has 17 white wines and 25 red wines available by the glass, with an ever larger menu of those available only by the bottle. Glasses range in price from $7 to $15 with bottle prices starting at $26 and topping out at $105 for a bottle of Pierre Joiulet. Overall, the menu favors California wines with a smaller selection of Old World options.
The craft beer lineup includes a nice collection local brews including Lumberyard IPA from Flagstaff, Sleepy Dog Wet Snout Milk Stout from Tempe, and Papago Orange Blossom from Scottsdale. Those are joined by options from Colorado's Odell brewery, Sierra Nevada, and Stone.
There are 10 cocktails to choose from as well, ranging in price from $10 to $14. They include the Come Fly with Me featuring Edinburgh gin, lavender syrup, and ginger beer; The Green Gentleman with Chopin rye, green chartreuse, Luxardo maraschino, and lime; the Paptio made with Cruzan Estate, ambrosante, creme de cassis, and pomegrante molasses; and the Midnight Frolic with Ruzzell's Reserve 10 Year, lemon, Luxardo apricot, and strawberries.
For food, there are four types of bruschetta (choose two for $12), four salads, and starters including green chile white bean hummus, mussels, and a chef's choice meat and cheese board. Heartier options include a short selection of panini and entrées such as a pesto mac n' cheese, scallop pasta, and grilled filet mignon.
Unwined is still nailing down its happy hour/daily specials but offered a bottle of wine and bruschetta for $20 on our visit. It applied only to a special list of cheaper wines -- a little bit of a bummer -- but still made for an attractive option. And we'll give the less-than-two-weeks-old kitchen a pass on the just acceptable bruschetta.
Check the Unwined Cafe Facebook for updates and daily deals.
