deseo

Deseo came as advertised! The food was incredible, the service was prompt and the wine was a great pair! I would highly recommend this for a special occasion dinner or if just in the mood for some nice dining and mouthwatering food.

I used to love coming to this «Dime in a dozen» but this restaurant has lost its charm. I came in trying to show my date what a wonderful restaurant this is. The whole property is gorgeous and the restaurant has a cuisine like no other. From the moment we came down the stairs the hostess was on her phone texting. When she acknowledged our presence she threw her phone into a drawer in the host desk. Which to me is very unprofessional considering I’m easily spending $ 150 for me and my date so this is not what I expect from a high end establishment. The manager ended up walking us to our table. When the manager was handing me the menu I could smell alcohol from his breath while he was talking to us. It was so strong that I sarcastically stated «looks like someone got off to a good start» he laughed and said its one of the perks to working the job. I didn’t mean it as a joke. I was just blaintly stating that he reeked of booze. I dine out almost every night and I’ve never seen a manager that drinks on the job. I was appalled and embarrassed to bring my date to this establishment. The server didn’t come over for almost 5 minutes. I know that’s not that long but considering there was barely anyone in the restaurant it really started to irritate me. From the moment the server came to the table he didn’t even smile once. I asked him what his favorite thing on the menu was and he said everything on the menu was good. which didn’t answer my question. So I asked him to describe a dish to me because I wasn’t familiar with the ingredients. He said he didn’t know and he would have to check with the chef. So I asked in the mean time for the wine list and he said he would be right back with that. He came back without the wine list and i asked him again about the dish and he said he forgot to check. Because he didn’t bring the wine list I asked him what wines they had by the glass. the server rolled his eyes at me and left and grabbed a list and said they are all right here. I asked him for a full bodied red and he ended up bringing me a Pinot Nior. Now I don’t know what kind of joke this is but it really wasn’t funny. I ordered an appetizer and it took over 30 minutes. By the time I got the appetizer the shrimp was super cold and tasted soggy. And they never brought the bread which I was really disappointed in because I really love their Spanish style corn bread. About an hour later we got our entrees which turned out amazing. But what I wasn’t fond of is while my date was finishing up her seabass the server presented me the check. I was really looking forward to dessert. I wanted to show my date the chocolate cigar because it’s one of my all time favorites and I had been ranting about it prior to coming in. I didnt end up getting dessert at all because at this point I was furious that he did such a thing. Now I have never personally worked in a restaurant but I dine out almost every night so I do have an understanding of how things are supposed to go. especially in a restaurant with all the hype like Deseo. and that was completely disrespectful. It made me and my date feel rushed when all along the service was the slow part. When I looked at the bill I told the server that the glasses of wine were not on the bill. He told me that it was his treat to us. but I’m sorry a glass of wine isn’t enough to persuade me to want to come back. The best part is when i was leaving the manager was drinking a glass of wine at the bar and he didnt even say goodbye or anything. This restaurant is far from professional. They were all walking around as if they hated their job and it truly showed. I used to love this restaurant and now I don’t even care how great the food is. because I will never come back and I will never recommend this restaurant to anyone. I had great service here in the past but this was truly a horrible experience. It seems as if this place is a hit or a miss. I will be taking my business elsewhere probably to Fairmont next time.

Deseo was amazing, food and service was wonderful. It will not be our last time there.

I am pretty sad about writing this review because I used to LOVE Deseo! Now, my boyfriend and I have pretty much concluded we will never be back after Tonight :(we have been to Deseo tons over the last 5 years or so and have not had a bad experience such as what we experienced tonight. Firstly, they sat us at a tiny table against the wall, the table wouldn’t have been large enough for our plates. I eventually asked to be moved one the much larger and comfortable table next to us opened up. Secondly, the service was horrible. We sat there for way too long until the server came to our table (the slow service was continuous the whole time), the server gave me a mojito without a sugar cane stick (isn’t this Deseo’s little signature?) and a martini for my boyfriend with olives on a napkin, not in the drink (weird) and not dirty as he ordered it. Side note: the Tito’s martini was $ 19, seems a little steep to me? Especially when it’s not even made correctly. Anyway, the server was pretty absent the entire time, I’m sure he is a nice person but no personality and obviously not a happy server. At Deseo we’ve always had the best service, this was just so bad, it was hard to figure out and explain, it was like he was annoyed by serving us. Thirdly, and most importantly, the food that is normally amazing just wasn’t. The rolls are usually so tasty! A little hard in the outside, soft and moist in the inside and always hot, served with the yummy garlic butter, the rolls were hard and cold :(next the shrimp chichiron is what we crave at Deseo, it is the BEST appetizer, but tonight it tasted like it was sitting out not fresh at all, probably because it was waiting for our server to bring it out to us, I’m not sure. Thank goodness the other appetizers and our entrée was good, we had the ahi tuna ceviche, ensalada and the plater for two (lamb, pork tenderloin, beef and shrimp). We ordered plenty of food and were full from the meal, we asked if we could have our deserts boxed, ordered the chocolate cigar and rice pudding (my boyfriend loves the chocolate cigar). I had to take a picture of this because it is SO bad, never order desserts to go, it will look like this! Nothing like what you receive in the resturant. Sadly for a $ 230 meal, this didn’t live up to what is normally to be expected from Deseo.

Outstanding food especially the vegetarian entrée creation for my daughter by the chef. A hidden gem in the hotel.

Great Latin restaurant tucked away at the Westin Kierland resort. Amazing food and great service. The servers are very committed to the concept and are enthusiastic about explaining the menu. Trust their recommendations.

Fabulous experience with their Thursday chef tasting. For $ 75 plus tax and tips, you get 3 pieces of their ceviche, a soup or salad, main course, dessert, a mojito to enjoy with your ceviche, plus wine pairing for your soup/​salad and main course. The big add here is the chefs teach you how they make their ceviche, and they are willing to share recipes, including their pan de bono, a yucca based cheese bread which is delicious! Highly recommended if you have the time and cash in Phoenix.

Went for Anniversary dinner. We are vegetarians, I was a lil skeptical about the food, looking at the menu. But the chef made his own creation and it was awesome. It was Quinoa with rice garbanzo beans and mushroom all organic. It was delicious!!!
The place was filled on a normal working day, i was surprised to see that. Looks like they had some conference for a firm and people from the conference flooded in.
Food — Excellent
Ambiance– Excellent
Really good for special occasions.

Called yesterday afternoon to make a reservation for two day from yesterday. No one answered but the greeting said to leave a message for r serrations. I left a message. No one called back. I called today and left another message. No one called again. So I called the hotel and was transferred to a concierge who told me that my party was too large to make a reservations with him. I have a party of 9. So I called the restaurant again and left another message. After work I stopped at the restaurant but it was a ghost town. I stopped by the concierge who called restaurant manager who told him that the restaurant is booked by a large party. Which is fine but a phone call back would have been great. Their food and waiter staff is great but reservations is horrible. I had my wedding at the Westin and that was great.
Update: A friend called today, which is the same day for which I wanted to make a reservation and was able to make a reservation. This place sucks.

Solid 4.5 Stars
Ate here last night and the night before and had an excellent dining experience. I recommend sitting at the chef’s counter and watch this culinary team do their thing. This is probably the best Latin cuisine I have had. The flavors shine and the South American wine selection is great. I highly recommend eating here when staying at the Westin. Two thumbs up!

All the previous reviews already raved about the restaurants fresh ceviche and fabulous dishes such as the Mahi Mahi & the Kobe skirt steak. I just want to add that the Potato Frits con Queso was also delicious. It’s light and airy. Great addition with the Kobe Vaca Encebollada. Our waiter was polite and helpful just not warm and friendly. Our experience was more like 4.5 stars.

We just had an awesome meal at Deseo. All dishes were flavorful, well prepared, and presented with reserved flair.
Thoroughly enjoyed the service and the ambiance.
We will be back.

Had a wonderful dinner her with my boyfriend and grandparents the food was all very good and the setting was beautiful.
We had two plates of the chicken, the kobe steak and the mahi mahi.
The cigar cake was delightful and my grandmother found it very amusing that we ate a book of matches
The downside was that the music was way too loud and we had to yell at each other all night even though we were sitting right next to each other

OMG! This place is AMAZING! It ROCKS! I been here too many times to keep count! The décor looks sweet! This place is so upscale & classy! If I could give it 10 stars I would. The service is top notch, they treat you like a VIP! I love the lounge area for apps and cocktails prior to eating dinner. When I’m on a 7 day vacation as I’m on now, I go here 2 times. You have to make reservations to get in. One «major perk» is the FREE babysitting, you have to show proof of receipt. If I did not show proof, I would pay $ 60 out-​of-​pocket, so all-​in-​all, I’m SAVING $ 60, and I can have a relaxing dinner with my wife (without) the kids. Expect to spend $ 150, but sooooo worth it!

deseo is an exciting restaurant due to the experience of the food that we had at this Award winning Nuevo Latino cuisine. We enjoyed their tostada, duck and prime rib empanadas, and chicken dishes. It was also great to see how quickly the five line chefs orchestrated by the head chef got the dishes out quickly, hot (temperature) and flavorful. Each dish that we experienced had a touch of Asian flavor, they were so flavorful that we were able to taste most of the flavors which blended well together.
Also we got a chance to meet the artist who created a lot of the beautiful artwork that was strategically placed within the foyer, stairway and throughout the restaurant. We watched him worked as he began to create another piece of art. He was so personable as he explained to us him creative process in his native tongue which after a while we had to have it translated; -)
If you are ever in Scottsdale, Arizona and want to try something new and exciting in a beautiful place with excellent customer service stop by deseo.

The plating here is beautiful, and for once they taste just about as good as they look here!
We got the Groupon deal which is a 3 course dinner for two people for about $ 80. This is a ridiculous deal and if I’d known how good this place is, I would have gotten 2!
For the first course we got the rainbow ceviche and the lobster one. Rainbow was phenomenal — yellowfish, tuna all stacked in a little cylindrical pile with slices of jalapeño and some watercress on top. The magic though is in the citrus liquid that fills the bowl. The taste changes the longer it sits there — if you’re a fan of sushi, you will probably like this dish. The lobster escabeche was slightly different — poached lobster in the middle and fried avocado and yucca chips in a broth of its own. This one was pretty good, however, the lobster was a bit overcooked and I didn’t think the chips really added anything. Round one goes to the rainbow ceviche!
I got the kobe skirt steak which I thought was seasoned beautifully. It’s cooked well but is still pretty juicy and tender so I didn’t mind. The tomato topping was a nice vacation to renew the dish, but very subtle. The potato slices with guacamole were decent. My friend got the lamb cutlets which arrived kind of cold to the table which he was not happy about. The chimichurri that comes with it is also very sweet which he didn’t appreciate. I thought it was a nice mix of flavors, though the portion wasn’t very much since half the lamb cutlet is bone and fat and you only get 2 per plate. Definitely not a gut buster, but delicious.
For dessert we got to try the chocolate cigar which had a fun presentation. The cigar is very rich and chocolaty, and the cappuccino gelato that came with it was delicious. The crema catalana was more my speed with a little crème brûlée/​flan type mold on a bed of berries and fruit syrup accompanied by a spoonful of coconut tapioca.
The complexities of these dishes are tasty and fun — as you incorporate different combinations of bites you get a totally different flavor experience. The grounds are immaculate and well designed without feeling too stuffy. The service was excellent and very attentive. All in all, this was a very positive experience for us and though the price tag precludes it from being a regular stop we will very much enjoy frequenting this restaurant for any happy occasion in the future.

Talk about a special occasion. At deseos prices, we won’t be back unless we win the lottery.
The food and service were excellent. Another plus? When so many other restaurants have tv’s to distract you, you won’t find any distractions here.
We were recommended to try the shrimp chicharonnes. It was a textural wonderland. Crunchy sweet, but creamy spice with slivered jalapeños.
Both my wife and I had the sea bass (not Chilean btw). Mine came with 2 large delicately cooked filets, skin on, and buttery delicious.
We rounded out the meal with the cigar desert and it lived up to its status.
We left feeling extremely full and satisfied. This was definitely a splurge for us, as it is not amenable on a middle class budget to eat here regularly. But service, food, and ambiance was worth it for a special occasion.

Fantastic experience! We purchased the Groupon for the prix fixe dinner *and* were treated like non-​couponed folks.
There are two seating choices for this restaurant — a regular ‘olé table or you can sit kitchen-​side (kind of like a sushi bar) and watch the chefs prepare. They’re also happy to take questions.
We opted for the «epicurean experience» which was fascinating. It does interfere with conversation a bit so if you’re having the «I think we should see other people» or «I like your brother in a way that is not condoned in the Bible», you may want to opt for a table.
The food was exceptional. My ceviche-​style poached lobster was magic on a fork. The skirt steak was beautifully prepared and the «cigar» dessert is not to be missed.
The mojitos were outstanding — the right blend of sweet and tart along with a sugar cane stick for good measure. Service was fabulous. It took longer than perhaps is reasonable for our dessert to come out but our server explained that the kitchen had gotten a little backed up. Really, the only reason I cared is because I was anxious to try to much the much touted Deseo Cigar. It was worth the wait.

As a fan of raw food, I was looking forward to their ceviche. It may have been that we went on a Monday night and maybe they didn’t have their best chefs working but the ceviche was sub-​par.
Here’s what we ordered:
Tres Ceviches (Lobster escebeche, ruby red tuna, lobster, shrimp, scallops, octopus ALL RAW) — It wasn’t horrible but for the price, it was pretty mediocre.
Kingfish with Serrano Pesto — The fish was a tad overcooked but some people like it that way. Sauce was great though.
Pollo Asado — Delicious
Lamb Cutlets with Truffle — Cooked perfectly and also delicious.
—-Dessert — –
Crema Catalana — This was flan in sherried berries and again, it was sub-​par. When I say sub-​par, I mean I would probably order it again but the for the price, it wasn’t worth it.
Arroz con Leche Patron — This was a real treat. If you have a sweet tooth, this is the one for you. It came with a smoking cinnamon stick and the combination of chocolate and rice pudding was perfect.
Chocolate Cigar — There is nothing they should change about this dish. It was delightful.
—Drinks — -
Caipirinha — This is a traditional cocktail in Brazil. It is served with a sugarcane stick. I don’t usually like mixed drinks but this one wasn’t bad. It almost like the moscow mule of brazil.
Again, I am open to give this place another chance. I guess I just expected too much the first time.

Nuevo Latino cuisine at its finest. When you combine elegant presentation, Latin infused flavors, and excellent service, you can’t go wrong.
We went on a Monday night, and redeemed 1000 points through OpenTable reservations. Since it was a weekday night, it naturally wasn’t too busy, with only a few patrons here for dinner.
We had a Groupon, and redeemed a 3 course meal. Despite this being an evanescent deal, the restaurant had the choices for the 3 course menu printed out and posted on a one-​page, hard-​backed menu like it was a regular menu– very nice touch!
We started with the millionaire tacos and ceviche. The millionaire tacos were superb, filled with fresh seafood, with a variety of textures and flavors running through the appetizer. I especially enjoyed the use of yuca chips as the shell for the tortilla. The ceviche was good as well, with spicy piquant flavors and a masterfully done presentation, but the added textural component of the millionaire tacos made me a bigger fan of this dish.
For entrees, we had the kobe vaca encebollada (Skirt steak), and yuca-​­wrapped dorado al ajillo (Mahi-​mahi and shrimp with garlic sauce). The kobe beef was very tender, and a complex mix of flavors. The blue potatoes that went with it were stunning, both in flavor and in presentation. The seafood dish was excellent as well, from the crispy crusted mahi-​mahi to the tender shrimp swimming in a saffron colored citrus-​garlic sauce. I particularly enjoyed the use of toasted amaranth to add an extra textural crunch and nutty taste.
To further gild the lily, we ended our meal with dessert, sharing the crema
catalana and the chocolate cigar. The crema catalana was an interesting blend of flan and crème brulée (It is in fact the Catalan version of crème brulée). The creaminess of the custard meshed well with the berries and whipped cream, and there was a light topping of candied peeled ginger on top. The chocolate cigar was pure indulgence, and I loved the unique presentation. The cigar was wrapped with a «Deseo» paper ring, and they even made candy matches and a coffee mousse dessert to go with it.
Unlike other restaurants where Groupon patrons are treated like they are the scum of the earth, service was impeccable and we were treated just like regular paying customers.
If you have the coin to spend on a good meal, or if you are feeling like splurging and going to somewhere nice, this is definitely a good place to go! The grounds at the Westin are beautiful as well, and if you park in the regular parking lot you get to see a little bit of them as you walk to Deseo.
Overall, a wonderful meal at an excellent restaurant!