SENTRY - WATCHING RESTAURANTS
Copper & Sage
322 E Camelback Road
Phoenix, 85012
Sometimes one is caught between reporting the truth and trying to sweeten bad news. I decided that only if I reported the truth would I be honest to myself and my readers.
Three of us went to Copper & Sage for dinner and were promptly seated. Our water glasses were filled with tap water and our waitress informed us that no other water was available.
Companion 2 ordered a “Respect Your Elder” cocktail. Upon sipping it declared it to be vile. After sharing it around the table we all agreed that whoever invented it has no idea of what a proper cocktail should be. Companion 1 and I both drank non-alcoholic drinks.
This still being Restaurant Week, Companions 1 & 2 ordered off the special menu and I chose to order off the regular menu.
Both companions ordered Hush Puppies as a starter and neither could eat much of it. I’ve never before encountered a hushpuppy with a liquid center. Disgusting was a proper description.
Companion 1 ordered Hot Chicken and Beignets. While each part of the dish was acceptable on its own, the combination was weird. Companion said they had never had a main course served with a dessert as an accompaniment to it.
Companion 2 ordered Duck Confit but was told that they were sold out. The restaurant had just opened for the night and it was difficult to understand how it could be sold out of food. They ended up being served Duck Leg Jambalaya. Not only was the dish overcooked but the flavors were quite different from what a “normal” jambalaya would be.
For myself, I tried several appetizers and a main course. I started with Fried Green Tomatoes. They were properly breaded and cooked, but then came the weird twist. Goat Cheese and Balsamic Glaze. Strange bedfellows to a southern dish. Next I tried the Bourbon Deviled Eggs. Properly cooked hard boiled eggs topped with overcooked bacon jam with no promised pecan on top and no chives added as described. While the flavor was decent it was hard to get the bacon jam out of my teeth. On to my main dish. I ordered Walleye Fish and Chips and was told that they were sold out! How can a restaurant that just opened for the evening be sold out?
I ended up ordering Shrimp and Grits. A plate of grits that had the same look and texture as oatmeal, with half inch chunks of over cooked pork down the center covered with 6 small shrimp. The grits had the same mouthfeel as wallpaper paste and the pork was inedible. I had ordered a dish of collard greens as a side dish. Crunchy undercooked collards with the same over cooked pork cubes and no proper vinegar or hot sauce with it. When I asked for some vinegar I was told the kitchen doesn’t have white vinegar but they sent out some cider vinegar and tabasco sauce. I’d have given anything for some Trappey's vinegar hot sauce.
I opted out of having any dessert but companions dinners came with it. Deep Fried Donut with Banana and Caramel Sauce. While the presentation left much to be desired the flavor wasn’t bad.
I must mention that the “bartenders” kept referring to sheets of paper on how to make cocktails. I’m not sure I have ever seen that in a running bar.
In this industry when something should be removed from a menu we say to 86 the item. In this case I would 86 the servers, the bartenders, the cook, and most of the food. The manager tried his mightiest to keep the ship afloat but with no food and no good help this is a sinking ship rapidly going down.
In all my years as a restaurant critic I have never written a review like this. I normally post my reviews within 24 hours of eating but in this case I had to really think about how to be kind in my writing and finally decided to be honest with my readers.
1 star
