- 8351 N. Hwy 89A, in Oak Creek Canyon (about 30 minutes from Flagstaff and 10 minutes from Sedona)
- No menu online (but they will fax you one if you call and ask)
- JunipineCafe.com
- Call for reservations: 928-282-7406
The Food (taste/flavor/quality of food & drinks)
>>>= good, but not great
The Atmosphere (environment, wait staff, comfortableness)
xxxxx= you’ll love it
Price (what to generally expect to pay per person per entree)
breakfast $ -$10
lunch $$-$$$ - $10-15
dinner $$$$-$$$$$ - $20-$30
Value (what you get for your money)
**** = worth it - you won’t be disappointed with what you get for your money
Junipine Cafe is located in a beautiful location in the midst of Oak Creek Canyon, just north of Slide Rock State Park. It's the perfect spot for a quick getaway for locals and a nice rest stop of tourists. (And it's a part of the Junipine Resort hotel, which is a nice location for visitors who want to check out Flagstaff, Sedona and the Grand Canyon without staying at a place that feels super touristy, though I can't speak to the rooms because I've never stayed there.)The cafe has a great patio with views of the towering trees and red rocks in the canyon. The sun shines down through the trees, leaving it warm but not too hot, though it can get windy. But its a very relaxing feeling and the premium place to sit at the restaurant when its sunny out. Inside has a very woodsy, cabin feel with oak paneling and furniture.
The claim to fame at Junipine are their fish dishes, they say. They use locally caught trout and fly in other fish fresh from the coast. The lunch menu includes blacked or season fish specials, fish tacos, several salads, burgers, sandwiches and a soup of the day. Dinner has many of the same items plus steak, fajitas and more fish selections... all at higher prices of course. They also serve up breakfast, with items like trout and eggs, waffles and pancakes on the menu.We ate at Junipine today for lunch, celebrating my daughters birthday. The perfect time to try something new. We've driven by so many times and always wondered what their food was like but never stopped and their menu isn't online so we had no idea what to expect. But it's such a nice day, we figured why not. And it was a good choice.
For an appetizer, we got the calamari. It was very good, nice light crust and very flavorful, and among the best we've had in this area, though the dipping sauces weren't very exciting at all. I got the blacked fish special with a side ceasar salad. They don't make any of their own dressings and you could tell. It was just average. The fish, however was perfectly cooked, though almost too seasoned, but full of flavor and something I'd order again. My husband and dad ordered the sandwich special of the day - the Reuben with fries. The fries were very good and the Reuben was also tasty and worth getting. Junipine also serves a turkey reuben daily for those who don't eat beef. And for vegetarians, they have a garden burger. My step-mom ordered the Junipine burger which was really small and had an okay taste, but nothing special. For my daughters - chicken nuggets and fries from the kids menu. The kids menu says the meal comes with a beverage - all for $5, but they charged us an $2 extra for that on the bill, so be sure to ask before you order so you don't have any surprises. On the desert front, we tried the apple cobbler a la mode- which was homemade with a nice flaky crust and fresh apples, but not too sweet- and the chocolate lava cake with a scoop of ice cream. My daughter really loved that. Though we were there for her birthday and informed our waitress, they didn't give her a complimentary desert nor did they put a candle in her cake or sing to her. All of which was fine, but kind of surprising being most of this area's nicer places offer a complimentary birthday desert with a candle to blow out, so we were a bit disappointed.
Prices are inline with Flagstaff and Sedona restaurants at about $10-$15 per person for lunch, so they're more expensive then they should be for each entree but what you would expect for this nice location. And dinner puts them up into the expensive range at closer to $20-$30 per person. If you have a party of six or more - even if some of your party are babies that don't order - they take it upon themselves to add a 18% gratuity. That's also unheard of in this area, where most places don't include kids in their party totals when automatically adding gratuity. When we asked about it our waitress was really snippy and rude and quite frankly it ruined the nice, relaxing experience of our lunch today. She also got defensive when I asked why she charged us for milk that the menu said came with the kids' meal. They're also not on top of things when it comes to drink refills. So I wouldn't say service is their string point but all in all Junipine is a nice change of place and really feels like a nice getaway, even though it's just down the road.Check out the menu in the below gallery:
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By Angele Sionna
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The best Mexican food I’ve had in Arizona... that about sums up Sedona’s Javelina Cantina in one sentence. Located south of the “Y” on Highway 179 in the upscale Hillside Shopping Center, this restaurant is welcoming as soon as you walk in the door. The décor is modern southwest with stone and metal used heavily throughout. It really reflects the city’s chic artsy atmosphere. Large windows let patrons enjoy the famous Sedona scenery without the heat. But the best spot to sit is on the patio, which features a relaxing red rock waterfall and a great view of the city.
For the main course, I had the South of the Border Combo Uno ($14.95), one of Javelina Cantina’s signature meals. It comes with one cheese enchilada, one green corn tamale, and one taco plus rice and beans. The enchiladas were, simply said, awesome. A tortilla filled with hot cheeses topped with a flavorful tomato-based sauce with just enough kick but not spicy. Also, thankfully, they weren’t greasy like too many other Mexican restaurants. The tamale was about twice the side of typical tamales. It was covered with melted cheese and served without a husk. It was nice to have a vegetarian tamale. Too often you don’t get much variety in this dish. The masa was thick with a corn, cheese and green chile center. Again, full of flavor but not spicy. I’m thinking that must be a trait of Sonoran-style Mexican food, which I’ve honestly never heard of before eating here. The chicken taco was my least favorite part of my combo but still decent. It was filled with super-thinly shredded chicken but a little dry and bland in comparison to the other items. I added some of the guac we had for an appetizer and it really improved it. My dad opted for beef tacos on his combo and thought they were much better than the chicken ones.
My husband ordered the Steak Fajitas ($17.95). They were perfect for one, but probably not enough to share like at other places. The steak was marinated and grilled with onions, tomatoes, and red peppers. The juices all ran together making a savory sauce. The meat itself was very tender and far above your average fajita meat. The fajitas come with warm flour tortillas, guacamole, and a special spicy sour crème sauce that they call crème fraiche. Javelina Cantina also serves chicken ($17.95), shrimp ($18.95), Tilapia white fish ($17.95), or garden vegetable ($14.95) fajitas.
Not to be overlooked are Javelina Cantina’s margaritas. What Mexican restaurant meal would be complete with one of these! This cantina is not messing around with their margarita menu. It has at least ten different varieties… from a standard frozen concoction ($6.50) to a Green Monster ($8.00), which is a standard margarita with a Midori float, to a Fiesta Titanic ($12.75), which has a mixture of mango and prickly pear margaritas with Midori and Blue Curacao added.
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