Deseo
Accommodations,  Arizona,  Food,  Travel

Dinner at Deseo at the Westin Kierland

We are continuing our Arizona Restaurant Week adventures this weekend with a visit to the Westin Kierland Resort and Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Exploring the Resort

We started the evening by taking a quick walk around the resort.  Water features and cactus gardens dot the property.

fountain at kierland

We walked out to the golf course and took a look at the driving range and practice putting greens.

kierland putting green 

The resort has a lazy river, waterslide, and water park in addition to a quiet adult pool.

lazy river

private island

Bagpipes at Sunset

Each evening at sunset a bagpiper, Michael McClanathan, approaches Dreamweavers Canyon and plays the pipes. You can enjoy a cocktail at the outside patio bar, watch the sun set, and listen to the bagpiper. The traditional bagpiper is a tribute to the contributions Scottish immigrants made to Arizona’s railroads and mining industry.

bagpiper at kierland

Inside the Lobby

The lobby bar has a large water feature inside.

indoor waterfall

Fresh orchids decorate the lobby seating areas.

orchids

Muddle Bar for Mojitos

Before dinner, we headed to the Muddle Bar.  There the bartenders make freshly muddled mojitos and cocktails using fresh fruit and herbs.  

muddled cocktails

I chose a drink called “Caught in the Rain” which was a mojito-style muddled cocktail with a piña colada flavor. It was made with Don Q Barrel spiced rum, Amontillado sherry, muddled fresh pineapple, coconut cream, coconut water and Angostura bitters. It was much lighter than a piña colada though, very refreshing. There were no mocktails on the menu, but the bartender created a mango pineapple mojito mocktail with muddled fresh fruits, mint, lime and a little soda water for Kevin. It was very fresh tasting.

mojito

The Muddle Bar is small and cozy. It also serves a large variety of ceviche, but we were waiting for our dinner reservations so we only had our drinks and nibbled on the truffle popcorn they served with the drinks.

muddle bar

Dining at Deseo

We had dinner reservations at Deseo. Deseo is a Spanish word which when translated means “desire” in English.  From the website: “Deseo showcases contemporary Latin cuisine, a pairing of traditional Latin American ingredients and contemporary culinary style to create unique, fresh and flavorful dishes.” The colorful candles lighting the way set the atmosphere, as we descended the steps down to Deseo.

steps

When we arrived for our reservation, the host asked if we would like to sit at the Chef’s counter.  We said, “Yes!” and were seated at the counter with a front-row view into the open kitchen. Chef Dereck and his staff made sure to check in with us regularly to see how we liked the food and answer any questions we had. Watching the precise plating of each dish was very interesting.  The chefs even used tweezers to properly place micro- greens and other small items on the plate! Each dish leaving the kitchen was a carefully constructed work of art.

Chef Dereck at Deseo

The restaurant week three-course menu:

menu

Starter Small Plates

For the starter, I chose the wild arugula salad.  The salad featured pink lady apple, roasted grapes, pomegranate, and ricotta salata with a vanilla vinaigrette. The burst of flavor from the roasted grapes gave the salad a distinctive taste.  

salad

The real star of the appetizer course was the dish Kevin chose. He went with the Peruvian fried chicken which had a ginger-scallion marinade, pickled jalapeño, and a rocoto sweet chili. Bursting with flavor, this dish could have been the main course.

chicken

Entrées

For the entrée, I chose the arctic salmon.  It was prepared with cauliflower, golden raisins, zucchini, toasted almonds, and a dill chimichurri. The zucchini was made into very thin noodles the size of vermicelli. It was cooked with the raisins and toasted almonds.  I could eat the zucchini again as a dish all on its own; it was very flavorful. This savory dish with the unexpected pop of sweet from the raisins and salt from capers was something that I will be craving again soon. The salmon was perfectly cooked and when paired with the creamy cauliflower puree and a touch of the dill chimichurri each bite was a medley of flavors that blended perfectly.

Salmon

Kevin chose the coffee and panella seared wagyu short rib as his entrée. This was served with a yucca hashed browns and roasted pineapple chimichurri. The meat was flavorful and very tender.  The yucca hashed browns resembled a potato hash brown cake. The pineapple chimichurri brightened up the whole dish – an excellent selection. There was not a spot of food left on the plates by the time we were finished.

short ribs

Dessert

We were getting full but we needed to save room for dessert. I normally like to choose one of each dessert offered on the restaurant week menu so that we can compare.  Tonight, however, we both wanted the chocolate dessert. The ganache de chocolate was made with coconut, mango, and a brown butter cocoa nib crumble. The ganache was not very sweet, and it was molded into a curved shape down the middle of the plate.  It was surrounded by little mounds of a coconut creme which had the texture of marshmallow creme but a delicate coconut flavor. These mounds were lightly torched to give a hint of a roasted marshmallow taste. There was a fresh mango sorbet, and then the brown butter cocoa nib crumble finished off the plate.  Each element was tasty on its own, but the real magic happened when you created a bite with a little bit of each flavor on the plate. Magic in your mouth! I would not have thought that mango and chocolate paired so well together, but I was mistaken. It was a delightful combination that was the perfect end to a scrumptious meal.

chocolate dessert

The service was friendly and attentive, not rushed at all. The chef and his staff seemed genuinely interested in interacting with the guests at the chef’s counter.  Sitting at the counter made the meal very interesting. If you enjoy watching Food Network shows as I do, I recommend requesting seating at the counter.  Dining at the Chef’s counter was like watching a live show right in front of us.

night lights at kierland

Tip: self-parking is conveniently located close to the resort and restaurants.  There is normally an hourly fee for self-parking, but the restaurant will validate so your parking will be free.

Another successful and delicious date night in the books.

Do you like to dine at resort restaurants even when you are not currently staying at the resort?

bagpiper

 

 

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