Review: Cowboy Club Restaurant in Sedona, Arizona

Recently I had the pleasure of visiting some close family in Scottsdale Arizona. On a day trip to beautiful Sedona we went looking for a restaurant for lunch. As we looked around on North Highway 89A my cousins said, "hey, there's Cowboy Club. We've eaten there before. It's pretty good!" That was an understatement.

Entering the restaurant I found a clean, inviting, and rustic atmosphere. We were quickly seated and as we were seated I started noticing some menu items I was not used to seeing in restaurants in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia. These included Cactus Fries, and Snake Brochettes, and quite a number of Buffalo entrées such as Buffalo Flank Steak, Buffalo Bourbon Meatloaf and Buffalo Cheeseburger.

I have never tried buffalo or cactus but I figured, "why not, what do I have to lose (other than about $20)? I hope I didn't embarrass my cousins but I had to ask about the cactus fries appetizer. The menu said that the they are "Strips of Nopalitas (prickly pear) cactus, breaded and deep fried, with prickly pear sauce for $7.99." The waitress said they were delicious and one of the most popular appetizers. She described them as the texture of strips of zucchini but sweeter. When they were brought to the table I took one, dipped in the sauce, gingerly put it in my mouth and slowly took a small bite. As I crunched down into the cactus an explosion of flavors jarred my taste buds like I had just awakened from a 20 year Rip Van Winkle sleep. These had a crunchy and firm texture of the breading with a slightly sweet taste of the cactus combined with the also sweet but somewhat vinegary prickly (cactus) pear sauce. I'm not generally an adventurous eater but I was exhilarated and anxious for my main dish.

I like to have salad with my meal so I also ordered a house side salad with balsamic vinegar dressing for $3.99. The salad was huge, the mixed greens lettuce was fresh, crunchy and the dressing at least tasted like it was homemade and not bottled. Between the salad and cactus fries, I was almost sorry I had ordered a main dish. I was already full.

For the entrée I, again, felt I might as well step out of the box (for me) and try something out of the ordinary so I ordered a half pound Buffalo Hamburger. This was served with lettuce, tomato, pickle and onion on a toasted bun and sweet potato fries for $12.99. Now I've never tasted buffalo but I 'heard' that it tastes a lot like regular beef and is MUCH healthier to eat because of the lesser amount of fat. As I was finishing up my salad the buffalo burger was put in front of me. I really had no idea what to expect; Gamey? Tough? Dry? I had ordered it medium rare. I decided to put a substantial amount of ketchup on the burger to hopefully mask any unpleasant taste. As I took off the top of the bun I saw a huge and beautifully grilled hamburger. This thing was massive. I took a bite and as I chewed and swallowed, a thought came to my mind. Did they switch and serve me a regular ground beef hamburger? I honestly couldn't tell the difference between the buffalo meat and a regular chargrilled hamburger. It was one of the best burgers I had ever eaten. It wasn't dry but nor was it running with juices like a regular medium rare hamburger might have done. It was absolutely perfectly cooked and delicious. It was actually so big I couldn't even taste the ketchup I put on! The sweet potato fries were scrumptious. I've had sweet potato fries in the past and really liked them. The chef loaded the plate with more than enough as a side dish. My only worry in this whole scenario was that the food was so good, how could I possible finish it all?

I was really too busy enjoying my meal to pay a whole lot of attention to what my cousins were eating. They ordered a market Grilled Fish Sandwich with a side salad ($16.00) and the Silver Spur Salad (Romaine, bleu cheese, red onions, and toasted pecans with raspberry vinaigrette) for $7.99. They added a side basket of sweet potato fries for $3.50. They said they really enjoyed their meal, but perhaps they will see the review and comment on their own meals! Now our bill for the three of us totaled a few cents over $60 before the tip.

The other dinner type entrees were quite a bit more expensive. Buffalo Flank Steak which is brushed with ancho chili glaze, and served with sweet potato mash, charred tomato-cactus salsa and seasonal vegetables goes for $22.50. Alaskan Halibut which is pistachio crusted with lemon-thyme beurre blanc, pasilla chili rice and vegetables goes for $28.99. A 22oz bone-in cowboy ribeye which is served with a baked potato and asparagus tips the scale at $44.50. There's quite a selection of other salads, dinners, and sandwiches to fit almost anyone's taste buds. For the less adventurous there's a regular cheeseburger, BBQ pulled pork, club turkey sandwiches, and veggie wraps.

We were too full for dessert but there were a number of pretty good sounding desserts such as Mudd Pie, Banana Cream Pie, Vanilla-Bean Brulee, and their signature Warm Chocolate Cake which they serve with raspberry and vanilla sauces and vanilla ice cream.

There is also a kids' menu. Baby back ribs, pasta, Junior Hamburger or Chicken Fingers. All items served with fries or a fruit cup and include a soft drink and cost $6.99

If you're in the Sedona area, this is the place to go eat!! They are located at 241 N. Hwy 89A, Sedona, AZ 86336. Phone number is 928-282-4200. They are open daily from 11:00 am to 10:00 pm. All the prices are current as I wrote this 2/09, but I suspect that prices could and will change at some point in the future! :-)