The Valley’s, ahem, hottest restaurant is frequently terrific – and potentially perfect.
By Nikki Buchanan | Photography by Jill McNamara
Since opening last November in the swanky new mixed-use utopia on 44th Street and Camelback known as The Grove, PYRO has been the hot buzzword in Valley dining circles. Yes, the pun is annoying, but facts are facts.
The gush from foodies has been particularly surprising, given the restaurant’s corporate underpinnings. A Japanese-American bistro conceived around open-flame cooking on a custom-made, wood- and charcoal-fueled hearth, PYRO is one of more than 30 restaurants owned and operated by Omaha-based Flagship Restaurant Group, which also brought three hipster concepts (Ghost Donkey, Palma and Châm Pang Lanes) to Roosevelt Row in 2022. So, no, PYRO is not strictly local – but it is an original concept, the first in what figures to someday be a nationwide fleet of PYROs, given its fiery Phoenix debut.
Much of the to-do has focused on the restaurant’s elegant design, lauded in Forbes and Robb Report, the latter naming it one of the 27 most beautiful restaurants of 2023. Its straight lines, heavy wood frames and screen-like partitions recall traditional Japanese houses, while velvet banquettes and retro floral prints (allegedly geisha kimono patterns) lend a sense of plushness and luxury that complements the curated whiskey collection, impressively diverse wine list, Japanese-inflected cocktails, $100 Wagyu and $130 osetra caviar. But here’s the burning question: Does the PYRO experience live up to the hype? I think it depends on what you order and, to some extent, the luck of the draw. The kitchen is inconsistent, which I find hard to swallow given the prices.
Fluke crudo, anointed with nori oil, then sprinkled with smoked chile and fleur de sel, make a terrific first impression. A smattering of dried black lime takes it to the next level, adding a bit of bitterness and complexity.
Also from the starters menu: a mound of spicy tuna with avocado. Sounds mundane, right? In fact, it’s much more fun than the standard poke preparation. Hot sauce gives it zip, shiso a certain mint-like freshness. We spoon the silky mixture onto dainty disks of potato rösti (crunchy fried potato cakes) and wonder how many of these little nuggets we could put away in one sitting.
Uni, tucked in nori and sprinkled with smoked trout roe, isn’t half as good as the previous two – mainly because it doesn’t stand up to the Santa Barbara or Hokkaido uni usually on offer at Roka Akor and Shimogamo. Flagship prides itself on meticulous sourcing, but these look and taste like mainstream sushi bar sea urchin, more flaccid than creamy, more fishy than sweet.
The first cooked dish of the evening – grilled and skewered chunks of Ibérico pork, charred, juicy and sticky with a sweet glaze of soy-based tare – eloquently illustrates why the restaurant is named PYRO. Sided with pickled daikon and dragged through yuzu aioli, they’re luscious. Crispy, skin-on nuggets of chicken would be just as good if they weren’t slightly oversalted. Dotted with yuzu kosho
(citrusy chile paste), sided with kimchi and served with a soy-based sauce containing a raw egg yolk, they promise to be fantastic when the seasonings are adjusted.
Beet salad – dabbed with persimmon jam, topped with crunchy quinoa, strewn with mizuna and set in a puddle of whipped tofu – looks gorgeous and offers a new take on beets, but it needs a tad more acid. However, a leafy stack of butter lettuce, grilled radicchio, hazelnuts, Meyer lemon ricotta and embered grapes, drizzled with brown butter vinaigrette, is balanced and perfect as is.
It’s always the little things. Dungeness crab noodles bear the sweetness of the crab, the creamy richness of crème fraîche, the brine of smoked trout roe and the tang of Meyer lemon, but the noodles are slightly overcooked. It’s still delicious.
The flagship entrée menu is something of a mixed bag. Charred whole branzino is marred by too much salt – a boatload of it – canceling out the freshness of the pickled ginger shoots, Tokyo turnip, herb salad and lemon-chile vinaigrette strewn over its top. It’s a good thing I like rare meat, because the rack of lamb is seriously rare. Nevertheless, it’s a perfectly conceived dish, set in a puddle of umami-packed black garlic jus and topped with shiso gremolata and garlic chips.
A side of root vegetables, drenched in tallow caramel, are perfectly cooked and candy-sweet, but more delicious the next day when combined with bitter arugula in a salad. Love the short rib fried rice – augmented with kimchi, onion, shredded nori and poached egg – for not being drenched in soy sauce.
I regret ordering opera cake rather than ube panna cotta. The cake is cold and hard, as if it’s been sitting in the fridge for days. The flavors of chocolate, buttercream and smoke are irresistible, though, and I eat every bite, anyway.
I’m conflicted about PYRO and more than a little exasperated with its inconsistencies concerning seasoning, flavor balance and cook times – small, easily fixed details. I hope that happens. The menu is fun, and I like the space. But until the food is dependably on point, I can’t say PYRO unequivocally lights my fire.
PYRO
Cuisine: Japanese-American
Contact: 4300 E. Camelback Rd., Phoenix, 602-755-0049, pyrophx.com
Hours: M-Su, 11 a.m.-close
Highlights: Fluke crudo ($24); PYRO spicy tuna ($25); Ibérico pork skewers ($21); butter lettuce ($18); lamb rack ($67)
