Josephine’s Modern American Bistro

I love the setting! An old house with magnificent fire places, Windows and hardwood floor converted into a restaurant. The hummus is delicious. The filet mignon was cooked to perfection and the bread pudding and lava cake is to die for.

Came here for my birthday dinner ! Quaint, charming restaurant, tasty food & wine, great service !!!

The service was great and the food even better. Moderately priced and they allowed us to have our dogs on the enclosed patio in winter. Perfect spot. My new fav

I tried to eat her twice in the past seven days but I was turned down both times, last week the guy at front said they are not serving today because it snowed too much (all roads were clear). Not sure why he was there if they were not open? This week because «we are not busy enough so we are closed early», this was at 1:30 PM.

The ambiance is relaxed and comfortable yet nice.
Food is on point for American bistro. They don’t try to be too exotic or hip, they good dishes really well.
Best appetizer: Balaclava Baled Brie
Staff are extremely professional and the owner is frequently seen there which shows a dedication and passion for his restaurant.
We never visit Flagstaff without coming here. They catered our wedding and we couldn’t have been happier with the whole experience. Tony (owner) is a very pleasant and professional man to work with — we felt like he deserved our business because he is so honorable!

This place is such an absolute gem hidden in Flaggstaff. Although we had quite a bit of a wait, the staff never sacrificed their warmth or hospitality. The food was absolutely amazing. We had the crab cakes and champagne vinaigrette salad for appetizers. The lamb chop special with Demi-​glazed guava sauce and corn polenta sounded so amazing that our entire table ordered it. And we were not disappointed. The food is excellent and the staff is incredibly warm and attentive despite the wait. My only recommendation would be to make a reservation ahead of time. Brava Josephine!!!

Went there for Thanksgiving lunch. Place is a house made into a restaurant. It was quaint. The service was ok. He seemed really put out to have to wait on us; maybe it was because we had kids, I don’t know. Speaking of kids, I had to pay $ 15 for my three year old to eat a small plate if ham, rice, and a dessert. I felt the pricing could be adjusted for age (it was half price for children under 10). 4 stars because the fits was amazing but had to take off a star because of less than average service and child pricing.

I have wanted to try Josephine’s for breakfast for years, but typically stay at a b&b when in Flagstaff, so on my most recent trip, I decided to go for it. I had always wanted to try their filet benedict because… come on… it’s a benedict leveled up with a biscuit and then made even more decadent by having filet mignon as the meat. Sounds great, right? Well. it didn’t really live up to all that. First of all, my friend and I both got benedicts and both of our plates had overcooked eggs. The yolks were still a little soft, but mostly congealed and not runny… bad sign. I feel like if you’re a legit breakfast establishment, you should be fairly consistent with egg cookery. Anyway, the hollandaise was tasty, but the filet was under seasoned and had bled all over the biscuit making it a bit off putting (like it looked all red) and soggy. The fruit with it was good, the potatoes were mostly burnt. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great. Service was very good and the setting was beautiful, so 3 stars!

I went here for a dinner meeting and was unsure what to expect. I was pleased to find another fine dining option in Flag. We were upstairs in a private room so did not get a true feel for the atmosphere. However, the filet I had was great and will be back to try this place again downstairs.

I think I went on an off night. It was the first weekend before NAU started so there were a lot of parents and students in town.
Josephine’s has a Casey Moore’s or House of Tricks feel to it, small and cozy but with a lot of ambiance added from the old homes they’ve converted to make the restaurants.
The staff is really friendly, but it did feel a bit frazzled and made us feel a bit rushed. Again, it was a weird weekend to go with all the newbs in town.
The chef seems to really enjoy making a good soup. The clam chowder was excellent and our server told us about all the amazing soups created in the kitchen. I love soup and the descriptions made my mouth water.
The food came out super fast and I think the food suffered from not having enough TLC.
I had the special but the halibut cheeks seemed a bit over cooked. The risotto was excellent. Creamy and delicious.
My partner ordered the pork pibil osso bucco. It was dry and under seasoned.
We opted not to order dessert after our ho hum entrees.
I’d be willing to give it another shot the next time I’m in town. I truly believe this place is either great or has a lot of potential. We just visited at an inopportune time.

I had the special this evening: salmon and a
Quinoa cake accompanied by a vegetable variety. What AMAZING flavor and presentation. This place is quaint and romantic. I was so pleased with the food here. Very fresh, great service and totally worth a little splurge. Do yourself a favor, grab your favorite company and go here.

I am probably in the minority, but I have never found Josephine’s to be that good. For the most part the service sucks!!! Even with reservations, I have had to wait for as much as 20 minutes for a table, even when tables were available. There does not seem to be any leadership among the serving staff. Everybody seems to be on their own, with no cooperation between servers.
I have tried several dishes and they are not bad, but not great. Josephine’s would last about a week in a city with other good places to eat. If you get stuck with eating upstairs, I feel sorry for you. This is where they put groups. The ceilings are low and the rooms are cramped. Because the single stairway is used by both guests and servers, the service can be very slow and the food often arrives less that warm.
The patio dining is on one of the busiest streets in Flagstaff. The only road to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Diesel and gas fumes are great if you like eating in a truck stop, but not in what pretends to be a fine dining establishment. The parking is minimal, but easy to find.
All-​in-​all Josephine’s in my book is a pretender.

This is a small little place, but it is one of the best places to eat in town and is good for brunch and lunch, not sure about dinner. First there is a charming outdoor patio area where most diners tend to eat. The food is very good and well prepared. It’s a little on the expensive side, but it is a high end place and the food quality is great as well.
I have had the breakfast skillet with chicken on one visit and the chicken pomodoro on the other. Both were fantastic. The breakfast bowl was phenomenal, just the right amount of chicken, eggs, and veggies to the point where none of the ingredients overpowered the others. The chicken pomodoro was equally fantastic, and like the breakfast skillet, it was phenomenally well balanced and I could taste everything on there as well.
Also, the customer service is also pretty good. Our waitress was very friendly and quick to bring us our orders and refill our drinks. She had a lot of knowledge about the specials, and even made some pretty good suggestions for us as to what was the best menu item among other things. In all it is a pretty good place, however I would only come here for special occasions or for dates as it is pretty expensive compared to other places.

Really enjoyed the ambiance! Sat outside and enjoyed a delicious omelet and 5 $ Bloody Mary. The home made biscuit and fruit jam was so yummy I asked if I could buy a jar of it and the waiter put together a container for me. Love it.

We came here for breakfast while visiting Flagstaff and loved it!
For breakfast, we started out with fried green tomatoes. They were breaded perfectly, fried perfectly and had a refreshing relish on top.
I had the eggs benedict on top of 2 crabcakes. Best I ever had.
Mom ordered a bloody mary, spicey. She loved it.
We’ll come back here and Mike and Rhonda’s– two totally different experiences, but both great in their own way.

This feels like your going to your friends house for dinner or in this case our house our family!
The reason I say that is because Josephine’s is a little house in a small neighborhood of Flagstaff.
We came here for my brothers wedding dinner (Congratulations Drew & Bree!) they had their own special menu consisting of a few appetizers and various delicious entrée choices.
Of the appetizers we had nachos they had a bold flavor delicious gooey cheese that killed it with their fresh chips!
For dinner i had the prosciutto chicken pomodoro it was amazing very rich, flavorful, tender, and just delicious! The vegetables the dish came with were cooked perfectly, very fresh and totally filling.
For the huge group we had they did an awesome job with the service and being super accommodating to anything our group needed. Keep in mind this is a super small place we took up pretty much the whole front room area.
This was an awesome experience familywise foodwise and just all around good vibes I would highly recommend coming here for special occasions or just for some good food at a small little neighborhood place!
Congratulations Drew and Bree I love you guys and look forward to the positive growth that is our awesome family!

For a day or so I have had a strange craving for salmon, no clue why. ironically I overhead a friend talking about eating salmon at Josephine’s. When a friend asked if I wanted to join him, for lunch I suggested Josehpine’s, not having been there for 7 or 8 years: hoping they had salmon something on the lunch menu.
Upon arrival we waited for a table less than 5 minutes, and were seated by a rather young fellow with impeccable taste in clothing (I’m a fashion snob). Right away I thought I could smell the aroma of salmon I was sure. The host was our server as well, his name was Brendon I believe (I asked him to spell it). He said not only was there a salmon BLT sandwich but today’s soup was a smoked salmon chowder. My friend and I both ordered the same thing. Who would think to make a salmon BLT? Brendon assured us we were going to be happy. That was the most fantastic sandwich I’ve eaten in a long time, and the salmon chowder was perfectly flavored.
I’m a desert fan, especially at lunch. Brendon knew the entire desert menu by heart and recommended two of his favorites: a brie plate and an apple-​cranberry crisp. We both chose the later. We were not disappointed. The coffee cups and water glasses were always full, and the cream for the coffee was the real deal. Our bill was very reasonable, especially considering this was a regular business lunch. I’m just so happy with today’s discovery of a new place to eat lunch. I’m looking forward to dinner just based on our servers recommendations should we decide.
Josephine’s is in an historic former Flagstaff home with limited parking to the rear and abundant street parking all around. It’s charming dark oak interior vibrates a sense of warm family gatherings to this day. Just inside the front entry is a classy bar for seating about 6. The kitchen is open and the staff appear happy to work their culinary magic.
Brendon told us that there is an upstairs room available for large parties and special events.
I love living in a town with such a variety and spectrum of culinary delights and would rank this establishment at the or near the top.

Josephine’s Modern American Bistro is a modern American restaurant in Flagstaff that offers some interesting takes on traditional dishes. If you pass through Flagstaff and are looking for more unique options, you may find it here.
My Overall Rating — 4 Stars (Atmosphere, Service, Food, Return)
Atmosphere — Josephine feels like it is located in a converted house, or perhaps it was built to resemble a house. If that’s what they were going for, it works. It felt warm welcome, and the dining spaces were separated like in a house. Nice, solid chairs & tables, I felt like I was invited to a friend’s house for dinner. 1 Star.
Service — We had a party that was split in two, and what was interesting was the service was inconsistent. One table had great service while the other was somewhat ignored. It was a bit weird, but we were in a large party so I won’t fault them too much. Otherwise the servers were friendly and helpful when available. ½ Star.
Food — While Unilocal showed great rating, the menu sounded great, it fell a little short of my expectations. My Lamb Meatloaf sandwich had a great toasted bun, but the meat loaf was a tad bland and broke up. I ended up eating it just fine with a knife/​fork, so no loss there. The hummus & fundido are good appetizers. Presentation was good, but the price is a bit high. The food here is not cheap, but then again they’re doing some pretty creative things. 1 Star.
Will I Return? — Maybe. While I didn’t have a great experience it wasn’t bad either. But it’s not a cheap meal, and when you order modern American cuisine, you may found out you prefer the traditional type more. I could see myself returning if I find out what their must try dish (it’s not the lamb). ½ Star.
My Unilocal Rating Scale (Sum of all parts):
1 Star — Atmosphere — Is it a cool dive? Perhaps an upscale place? No matter the type, atmosphere plays a big part and I’ll give a star if I like it or thinks it has great charm.
1 Star — Service — You can have a great meal with bad service. But that’s also what can make a five star joint drop to four. It’s important to the dining experience that service is great and on point.
2 Stars — Food — I’ll award up to two stars for the food, since this is the main reason we dine out. Sometimes the extra star is given for value, but it’s really all about the food.
1 Star — Will I come back? — If I know for a fact I’ll return, I’ll give this a star. A place has to make an impression for me to return.
Each Category can be given up to 1 star except food (2 stars) because I consider all these categories important to the overall dining experience. I will sum them up to provide my final Unilocal score.

Thanksgiving Buffet
Spending our first Thanksgiving in Flagstaff, we decided to nix the 3 days of cooking for 2 and tried Josephine’s. The restaurant came highly recommended by local friends and is one of the few on Unilocal with a large number of very positive reviews (this is key as Unilocal reviews in Flagstaff tend to only highlight negative experiences, if present at all).
We were surprised that a menu option was not available, but this was honestly one of the best buffets in over 20 years of dining out as a couple. The wait staff was attentive and friendly. While it was quite warm with lots of chatter inside, the décor fit the holiday and pleasantly surprised with adult alternative music. The restaurant is a repurposed ‘cottage’ home with outside seating — which we should have asked for given the 60+ degree afternoon. The buffet line was constantly busy, but staff kept an eye on the food with new trays being replaced frequently.
The food choices were plenty for Thanksgiving and delicious! They made a great first impression on this couple, having lived in a food Mecca (Chicago) for the last 9 years. Strongly recommended!

Local. Lovely. Lively. These are the words that come to mind when I think about my lunch at Josephine’s…
You wouldn’t think that one could dine solo on a patio at a restaurant and have such a positive experience, but the folks at JMAB do it right.
From the charming historic indoor and outdoor venue, friendly host, sweet service from Evie, and divine Champagne Vinaigrette Salad with scallops, everything about my experience was fabulous!
I will definitely return on future visits to Flag…
Short, sweet and to the point — there you have it!