San Tan Flats

If western atmosphere trips your trigger, a visit to San Tan Flats in Queen Creek, AZ, is definitely in order. I've been hearing about this place for several years, but didn't head to the outskirts of town to check it out until tonight.

Walking in the "front" is really walking in the back of the restaurant, past wagon wheels set into low adobe walls and through the authentic saloon doors. The "back" of the restaurant, which is really the front, sports a large patio area for outdoor dining, a fire pit for marshmallow roasting, a band stand for live entertainment, and an open area for dancing. Inside, the restaurant is a cross between Miss Kitty's place from Gunsmoke and a modern honky tonk with beer names plastered on the walls in neon lights. In addition to the signs, the walls are covered with cowboy paraphernalia like chaps, rifles, harnesses, spurs, jingle bells, holsters, and a myriad of paintings ranging from desert landscapes to Wild Bill Cody and John Wayne. To cap off the joint, the ceiling has straw stuck to it as if it were spread on the floor and turned upside down.

The menu isn't extensive, but there is enough variety to please everyone in the posse. A friend and frequent visitor to the Flats recommended the flat iron steak, which Jeff ordered up medium with sautéed mushrooms on top. The meat was tender and juicy with a potato choice, creamed corn, and dinner roll. While Jeff chose the steak fries - an average side dish - the roll and creamed corn were to die for. The bread was a cross between a yeast roll and a crusty French baguette. It was golden brown and shiny on the outside, tender and warm on the inside. But the creamed corn was the best of everything on Jeff's plate. (Well, he thought the steak was best, but the corn was my favorite. Funny, I haven't even gotten to my plate yet!) The corn tasted like fresh sweet corn on the cob cooked in real cream with some sugar and butter added for good measure. It was served in an individual ramekin warm from the oven with a toasty top crust. (YUM!) The boy and I fought over who got to eat it since Jeff isn't crazy about creamed anything.

I ordered a mesquite chicken sandwich which featured a juicy, butterflied, grilled breast on a ciabatta roll. The chicken was topped with a spicy ranch dressing, red onion slice, thick slabs of tomato, and curly lettuce. In addition, the ciabatta bread was toasted and crispy. Instead of fries I opted for potato cakes, and what a good choice that was! These babies were made from gloriously smooth mashed potatoes doctored with chopped green onion, breaded, and deep fried to hot crusty goodness. I tasted them as soon the plate hit the table and polished off one before Jeff could say, "Let me have a bite!" The second one I saved until after the sandwich so I had something gorgeous and yummy to look forward to at the end of the meal. (You'd think it was dessert, right? Sometimes, I think potatoes are better than cake!)

Our son had the same potato cakes - which he, too, devoured before playing tug-of-war with me over the corn - and a bacon cheeseburger with house barbecue sauce. The burger was large and topped with all the fixings, so the boy was happy.

Actually, we all left satisfied this evening, which is something that doesn't happen at many restaurants. No disappointments. No poor service. No dull food. It was a nice way to celebrate Jeff's post-dental work ability to chew once again and our son's 95 percent on an English class research project. All in all - a tasty end to a good day.