Asylum Restaurant, a Romantic Dinner in an Old West Arizona Ghost Town of Sedona

On a trip to Sedona, Arizona, we were blown away by the red rock landscape that evokes the planet Mars and surrounds this wealthy tourist city. Unfortunately, we were less than impressed by the expensive yuppified restaurants and stores. After only a day in Sedona, we took a day trip in search of a more authentic Arizona old west experience, and we found small town of Jerome hidden in the mountain region halfway between Sedona and Prescott.

Jerome, Arizona is a beautifully restored copper mining town once abandoned and restored by artists and hippies in the 1960s. Back when it was a boomtown at the beginning of the 20th century, Jerome was the fourth largest town in Arizona, teeming with whorehouses, saloons, gambling joints, and even opium dens. By the 1950's the town's population had dwindled to around 100 people. In the sixties, hippy squatters found the almost abandoned town and they moved in, restoring the seedy old buildings and turning them into galleries, artist and craftsman studios, and living spaces.

The few remaining pre-hippy locals, about 400 of them, are keepers of Jerome's history. They talk of the gunfights, the colorful characters, and the ghosts of prostitutes and bandits that still haunt the town.

We walked up and down the hills and around the town's narrow streets chatting with locals, peeking inside artist studios, and reliving old west history. Around dinnertime, a local suggested that the best romantic dinner to be found in Jerome is at the Asylum Restaurant in the venerable Jerome Grand Hotel.

At the early part of the 20th century, the Jerome Grand was actually a hospital, one of Arizona's finest. As a result, so the locals claim, ghosts roam freely throughout the Hotel. Abandoned for nearly fifty years, the Altherr family bought the old hospital and restored it to be an elegant full service hotel in 1994. The Jerome Grand's restaurant, The Asylum, on first impression appeared to be too fancy for me and my spouse. We were wearing jeans and T-shirts. But, the staff was very friendly and welcoming, and gave us prime seat next to one of the restaurant's majestic picture windows offering a dramatic view of the multi-color mountains surrounding Jerome. Upon closer examination of the dining room, it soon became apparent to me why the restaurant is called The Asylum. Artifacts from the former hospital appear in surprising places throughout, including bedpans as flower pots and wheelchairs on the patio.

When the food arrived, its appearance was as elegant as our surroundings and as delicious as any romantic dinner I had ever had in Los Angeles. I'd ordered the Rocky Point Shrimp on a skewer. It was fresh and prepared in the southwest style with tomatillo salsa and crumbled Mexican cotija cheese. My spouse had ordered the Roast Maple Leaf Duck Breast, another exquisite dish prepared in the southwest style with orange plum Serrano chili salsa. But, the standout of the meal was the wine list. In 2002, Wine Spectator Magazine gave The Asylum its Award of Excellence, designating it as one of the world's top restaurants for wine lovers.

The wine list is extensive (mostly California wines) and is served by the glass, the half bottle, or by THE MAGNUM. We chose the wine tasting menu. This enabled us to taste four half-glass selections of different wines.

At the end of the meal, we were reluctant to go back to Sedona, but the Jerome Grand's rooms were all booked. This was strong indication that what was once a real old west ghost town has come back as one of the state of Arizona's great tourist attractions.

RESTAURANT INFORMATION:

Open daily

Lunch 11-3
Dinner 5-9

Address: 200 Hill Street, Jerome, AZ 86333

SOURCES:

http://www.theasylum.biz/

http://www.jeromegrandhotel.net/

"Arizona: Hippies, Hogs and old haunts", Dennis Sigman and Eve Conant, LA Times, URL: (http://travel.latimes.com/articles/la-tr-jerome14jan14?single_page=y)