Everything is expensive at the moment, especially dining out. In Phoenix, it's become far too easy to blow $100 on dinner at even the most casual of sports bars. But Industry Standard, the restaurant that replaced Carly's Bistro with a swanky black-painted interior and globally inspired menu, has a deal to balance the books.
The restaurant is offering the special prix fixe menu on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. For $25, customers get a starter, a Caesar salad, a half order of spicy vodka pasta and either a martini or a glass of bubbles. On our visit, the starter included two Shamrock oysters. This week's deal swaps the shells for caviar.
On the restaurant's regular menu, signature cocktails cost $16 and the spicy vodka pasta runs $18. Granted, the "Girl Dinner" deal offers smaller portions, but they're not that much less than the regular plate. And between the salad and pasta, there's plenty to fill up.
On a recent Wednesday night, the restaurant was buzzing, with the only available seats surrounding a large community table. We settled in, ordered two girl dinners, and our martinis – one dirty, one espresso – hit the table in minutes.
Next up, a plate of four oysters resting on a bed of rock salt, served with sliced lemon and vinegar, was delivered, along with two Caesar salads. The crunchy romaine was topped with curly shavings of parmesan and toasted lemon breadcrumbs with a hint of chile. Salty, peppery and slightly spicy, the salad stands out above your average Caesar.
Before we could crunch through the full bowl of leaves, our pastas arrived. Spherical and grooved radiatori pasta soak up every drop of the spicy vodka sauce, and rest atop a sweet honey whipped ricotta. Eaten by itself, the sweet cream seems like it might fit better in a dessert. But paired with a bite of the spicy pasta, it makes perfect sense. The sweet balances the heat, and the creaminess contrasts the tomato's acidity. A sprinkling of fresh basil leaves adds a fresh, herbal finish.
Taking a look around the dimly lit room, one thing stands out. There's hardly a single person above the age of 30, and in fact, most of the customers are hovering around just-able to legally order martinis. And, perhaps due to the name of the deal, the clientele is mostly female. Gaggles of girls giggle as they figure out how to eat raw oysters for the first time. Duos catch up over plates of pasta.
Maybe the name puts guys off, or perhaps it's the meal's general lack of meat. But the restaurant's promotional posts urge, "guys welcome." For anyone looking to impress a date without breaking the bank, the "Girl Dinner" deal seems like a win.
The only downside is that the whole experience is fast – like really fast. With a line of people forming at the host stand, it's easy to understand why. The next round of "Girl Dinners" was in high demand.
But with half of our martinis still left to drink, we opted to blow the budget and order dessert. A brown butter chocolate chip cookie skillet topped with miso and vanilla ice cream was the perfect treat to share. So, a four-course meal with two cocktails came out at $67 for the two of us. Name a better deal in town, we'll wait.
