Tonto Bar & Grill

I had the shrimp tacos, which were fabulous. My mom had the chicken tacos, which were less flavorful than mine. (She also didn’t like that she had to put her own lunch together. I thought it was fun and I like to control the condiments, so I was perfectly happy to assemble my tacos).
Very knowledgeable and friendly staff, nice beer list. I haven’t eaten in Carefree, but my guess is that it’s worth the short drive to head over here for lunch in the middle of a Carefree shopping day!

This is everything you want dining in Arizona to be. The views from the patio area were beautiful. The menu has solid choices at each price point. I would highly recommend the chips and salsa appetizer that comes with guacamole and fried bread. The interior has a very authentic feel.

Great and civilized dining. Good menu. Atmosphere is worth the visit. Have had dinners and lunch there. You will not be disappointed.

Absolutely ideal. Food was delicious & patio in the sunshine looking over the lush golf course was so relaxing. The corn chowder is a MUST! Thought my husband was going to lock the bowl in public. He always talks about how a dish can be improved. Instead he thought the crab cakes were the best he has ever had. The Cobb salad was fresh & light. Perfect afternoon meal after some time on the tennis courts.

I’ve never had a bad meal at Tonto Bar and Grill. The food is delicious (try the Walleye) and the ambience doesn’t get much better any where else… Great seenic vistas on the large outside patio.

Had lunch in the New Year’s Day 70 degree sun along the golf course so that was a plus right there. My Mom and I enjoyed a delicious lunch (cobb salad with calamari side, street tacos with white shrimp). Just what we needed and fun too. Will go back! Yay!

The food here was really good! I had the tacos — very fresh and flavourful. When you first walk in, you are not sure what to expect. It is very rustic looking. The food and menu exceeded my expectations. There is a large range of items — including corn and grass fed chicken. If you are in the area, you should check it out!

The food is awesome, as is the service. Tonto Bar NEVER disappoints. Go.

Service was great… food so so. Salmon special was not great. Chips and salsa was enough for 8 of us. They sat us in the patio and although there were heaters it was very uncomfortable. Wouldn’t choose to return.

If you ask me, the name «bar and grill» is deceiving. I hear that and think Chilis, Zipps, etc. Well, let me tell you, this place doesn’t come close to being placed in the same category as your standard bar/​grill. My parents are Cave Creek residents, and boy are we glad that Unilocal helped us stumble across this place.
The ambiance is great. Nestled in a resort on the golf course– gorgeous location with soft lighting. We sat on the patio which was enclosed and kept very warm on a cold day in the dead of (an Arizona) winter.
The service was top notch. Our water glasses were never left less than half full. Those bussers were on it. The server made great recommendations and gave good insight on menu options.
We went with the guac/​salsa trio as an appetizer. It included a generous serving of fry bread and deliciously double fried tortilla chips– so so good. The fry bread was a unique touch you don’t typically see served with salsa/​guac, but more restaurant should pick up on the idea!
For entrees, our group ordered a variety of stuff and we stole bites off of each other’s plates, so we luckily were able to try a lot. The pork schnitzel was the table favorite– hands down. The lemon sauce served with the dish was heavenly. The bbq orange salmon was a close second, but very fishy. To be expected (duh, it’s salmon), but I expected the sauce to be more overwhelming in taste. Not a bad thing, and definitely a delicious cut of salmon. Both pasta dishes were good, but I would not order those over the other options. Even the bread and butter to start was deelish. The blt got a good grade with sweet potato tots, as did the veggie dish– just not standouts.
We’ll be back! I recommend it highly. Now, looking forward to trying their sister restaurant– Cartwrights. And one last important thing to note– chocolate mints at the exit from the (free) gum ball machine. Gotta love that!

Our go to place for when we want a nice dinner and feel like being pampered a bit. Great menu, nice drinks and always top notch service. Do your self a favor, have lunch on their patio on a beautiful day over looking the patio or on a gorgeous evening on the patio. You will love it. The prices are just a tad high for us to go often but 100% worth every penny. Make reservations for the weekends because there is usually a wait. Love this place.

Perfect! Perfect! Perfect! We ate on the bar. Lovely setting. Yummy food and cocktails. Great service. My BLT with fried green tomato and avocado was delicious. My friend enjoyed their tacos. I look forward to a return visit.

I love this place. I’ve been going for years. This is my go-​to for special occasions or a mid week happy hour w a gf. The food is amazing. The service is also 5star. I had a birthday dinner party here once and asked for a custom all vegetarian menu for my guests. Tonto exceeded my expectations from the actual menu quality through the several gourmet courses to the dessert. My guests were blown away, they did not leave hungry or having wanted a thing! Sit outside on the lower patio if you can.

Excellent Az wine and appetizer menu. Pricey, but worth it. Kind of out in the middle of bfe, do make sure you can drive afterwards. Oh and be on the lookout for wild boars running around especially at night.

My friend was in town house hunting. We were exhausted and hungry. I remember the hummus trio app on the menu. My friend is a vegetarian. We ordered the trio which was very good. I enjoyed all the fresh cut veggies on the plate. We both ordered salads. I had the compressed arugula salad. WOW! Delicious! I am craving this salad. I like that you can order two different sizes with the salads.
Our server Nicole (I think that was her name) was fabulous. The servers assistants are on spot filling our glasses of Arnold Palmer’s. Great experience for my friend who will soon be a Creeker!

Excellent service every time I have been here. The servers are trained and knowledgable and well rehearsed without being stuffy. They also get a lot of help from the AMAZING crew of support staff who bus tables and deliver food. It’s almost worth it just to go there to watch them strategically bus a table. They can carry so many plates without worry. I mean, it’s hard for me to adequately express how impressed I am by these guys.
Anyway, the food is always good, with fresh, quality ingredients and prepared with care.
Tonto-Rita’s are no joke.
It’s a little pricey for me but worth the money. Enjoy!

I have been wanting to try this place ever since I saw it on ‘Check Please Arizona’ (PBS) a few months ago. I finally got to go for my birthday last night and was not disappointed. First of all, I love that they have a gluten free menu and not just one or two items, on the contrary there are quite a few GF menu items to order. If you are GF, please let your server know right away and they will bring out freshly baked GF bread for you. It was just scrumptious! The butter melted on it and was so yummy.
Our server was really on point. I wish I could remember her name, she was very attentive without hovering over us. The busboys were always making sure our waters were filled. The ambiance was really great. The interior dining area is picturesque, Old West-​ish but cozy, warm and yet classy.
I started off with a Pinot Noir and the Tonto House Salad. The salad was wonderful and the size was perfect (appetizer size). My boyfriend got a Merlot and the Caesar salad. For my entrée I selected the Ancho Chili-​Rubbed Filet. Oh. My. Word. Probably one of THE best steaks I have ever had. Medium rare done to perfection. The presentation was lovely.
My boyfriend got the Mesquite Wood-​Grilled Venison Tenderloin Medallions. Had a bite of that and it was just divine. Save room for dessert because you will be sad if you don’t. I got the GF/​vegan Chocolate Cake, it was served with raspberries, a raspberry sauce and vanilla ice cream. My boyfriend got the crème brûlée. SO good. Seriously, we were in a food coma by the time we hobbled out to the car. The sun was setting and naturally it was another gorgeous Arizona sunset, a perfect ending to one of the best meals I have ever had.

This place never disappoints. A true taste of Arizona in a picturesque dining room.
Their burgers and Steaks are especially impressive, but really everything I’ve ever tried has exceeded my expectations.
They also have an in-​house pastry chef — so desert is a MUST!

I will Never go back. The only redeeming thing about this place was the view.
The food was Sub~par. The service was poor… The margaritas weren’t even good.
It was maybe 3:30pm on a Sunday afternoon. It was not even a busy time.
With so many places to choose from why spend$$$$

My Wife picked this spot for her Birthday dinner. Great choice! Never even heard of this place before. Now, part of the 5 star experience has to do with a few intangibles that were beyond their control: Weather was perfect, about 80 degrees. I’m usually not a big fan of dining Al Fresco (outdoors), but this evening was just perfect. They have a very nice patio for dining, overlooking the sunset, cacti, and a golf course. No bugs, no excessive heat, no wind… All things that can spoil a Desert Dining Experience.
Food was fantastic. She had crab cakes as an appetizer, I had a beet salad with greens, goat cheese, and vinaigrette dressing. Entrees were filet mignon with au gratin ‘taters, and I had a braised short rib in a root beer sauce, french green beans, and a squash side dish… Both veggies were excellent. Dessert came with our prix fixe meal, and they made a swell Birthday cake ensemble for her, and I had a relish crème brûlée that was perfect.
I definitely will return to this place, as I saw people ordering (southwestern) hamburgers with sweet potato tater tots, for about 12 bucks. Looked great.
Service was really professional, not overly friendly, just spot on. This would be a great place to take out of towners to experience a Southwestern dining experience. Near perfect!