Go for the cocktails, skip the specialty dish at this new Scottsdale restaurant

When a new spot opens in town, we’re eager to check it out, let you know our initial impressions, share photos and dish about menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review but instead a peek inside restaurants that have just opened – an occasion to sample a few items and satisfy curiosities (both yours and ours).

Telefèric Barcelona opened at Scottsdale Fashion Square in mid-February, promising to bring a taste of Spain to the mall.

As someone who spent their honeymoon in Barcelona and on the Costa Brava, I was ecstatic. While everyone hyped up the new Din Tai Fung opening at the mall, I could not wait for Telefèric to open. I imagined a spot, close to home, that might whisk us back to the magic of Spain. The restaurant, after all, was started in Barcelona before expanding to open locations in California, and now, Arizona.

Six weeks after the restaurant made its Valley debut, we made a reservation and headed to the mall. The new restaurant is located on the ground floor, joining fellow newcomers Society Swan and the aforementioned Taiwanese dumpling giant. It delivers a gorgeous, modern, neutral yet not boring dining room. The bar crafts exceptional cocktails. And the tapas are worth mixing and matching for a tasty meal of small bites. 

The restaurant’s main focus, however, is on paella. This, unfortunately, is where it falls flat. 

Widely considered the national dish of Spain, paella is a cornerstone of most Spanish restaurants and one that needs to be good. Telefèric Barcelona’s iteration left us wishing for more.

Truly standout drinks

A meal at Telefèric Barcelona starts out well. The gorgeous dining room invites customers to get comfortable in plush booths and warm, low lighting. And the large cocktail menu is packed with stellar options.

The menu is split into multiple sections, including seasonal sips, classics, three varieties of gin and tonics, and low-proof and zero-proof options. Most drinks are either $13 or $16, mocktails are $12.

The descriptions of the drinks hint at the bar’s complex cocktail program that makes use of unusual ingredients. Spanish sheep’s milk cheese-washed pisco, anyone? How about some carrot cordial?

We opt for the seasonal Red Velvet milk punch and the classic Bryan’s Legacy. The latter prompts a visit from the general manager, who explains that the Scotch-based tipple was inspired by a friend of the owners who had died, and was a big fan of smoking cigars. The drink gets a douse from a blowtorch tableside, filling the glass with swirls of smoke.

The red-tinted, clarified milk punch of the Red Velvet comes in a thin-stemmed coupe glass with a crystal-clear orb of ice. The tipple is sweet yet balanced, with a creamy, velvety texture. It starts with plum-infused rye mixed with cherry liqueur, red vermouth, almond and lemon, finished with a spritz of cherry mist sprayed at the table. 

The low-proof menu features three varieties of sangria along with an elderflower spritz and the mocktails leave nothing lacking in terms of creativity or presentation.

This top-notch drinks menu is more in line with what we’d expect from a high-end cocktail bar than from a restaurant at the mall. If you are visiting Scottsdale Fashion Square and want to stop somewhere for a drink, a bar stool at Telefèric is the perfect place.

Tasty tapas to share

If, when grabbing a drink at the bar, you get a little hungry, turn to the restaurant’s lineup of tapas. 

These include Spanish classics, such as patatas bravas with creamy, piquant aioli, crab or shrimp and squid ink croquetas and thin slices of jamón Ibérico. The tapas range from $5 to $19, except for the full plate of ham, which comes in at $29.

The pan con tomate is a simple but satisfying dish that tops slices of toasted flatbread with juicy tomato. A dollop of salty, savory chorizo butter begs to be spread on top. 

The patatas bravas come with the option to order them “Beast mode,” which our server eagerly recommends. The plus-up means the crisp chunks of potato are topped with crumbled pieces of the iconic Spanish ham.

The best bite we tried was the Spanish albondigas. These dense meatballs have very little filler, and are packed with rich, umami flavor. The meatballs are served atop a creamy ham carbonara sauce and topped with a slice of sweet potato and shavings of manchego cheese. 

The meatballs came four to a plate, and we savored every bite, eagerly scooping up every drop of the sauce.

Skip the featured dish

The menu includes a few other entree options, but the focus of the larger plates is six varieties of paella. The infused rice dishes are topped with carefully arranged lobster, veggies, smoked pork or Gulf shrimp.

The regular size ranges from $39 to $62 and is recommended for two to share. Upon ordering, the servers warn that it takes 20 to 25 minutes to arrive. Still snacking on tapas, we’re happy to wait.

When the traditional flat, wide pan arrives at the table, the rice layer is pitted with holes, as if any moisture had bubbled up and evaporated out during the cooking process. One bite proves that this is indeed the case. 

The pork belly and chicken spread around the edges of the dish have unfortunately suffered the same fate. The overcooked meats were hard, with the pork veering into the territory of jerky. Six large, head-on Gulf shrimp looked impressive on top, lined up in a neat row. 

Tucking into the shrimp, we quickly learned they looked better than they tasted. The seafood was fresh, but underseasoned. We yearned for some garlic and desperately squeezed on some lemon juice from an accompanying slice. The rice itself was flavorsome, but oversalted and dry. The best part of the entire dish was a few roasted and peeled piquillo peppers, which added a sweet-and-tangy pop. 

We would go back to Telefèric Barcelona. The space is gorgeous and the cocktails were some of the better tipples we’ve tasted in a while. If we are shopping around the mall, we’ll stop by for a snacky lunch of tapas.

But at a Spanish restaurant that specializes in paella, that paella should be great. It’s confusing and concerning that at Telefèric Barcelona, it’s not. 

Telefèric Barcelona

7014 E. Camelback Road #0561, Scottsdale