The highly-anticipated Carcara restaurant has opened its doors at Sheraton Phoenix Downtown, welcoming one of the final phases of the hotel’s property-wide renovation. The menu is inspired by the five C’s of Arizona: cattle, citrus, copper, cotton and climate.
Named after the Cara Cara oranges that sprinkle the trees on the restaurant patio, Carcara boasts a beautiful modern design with lush greenery, earth tones and one cool social media moment: a 14-ft. tree in the center of the dining room. The Sonoran-inspired menu, led by Executive Chef Chaz Frankenfield and Chef de Cuisine Angy Dykstra, spotlights locally sourced ingredients.
Menu highlights include: candied prickly pear ribs served with jalapeño slaw; Baja shrimp ceviche with cucumber, orange, serrano peppers, tomato and cilantro sourced from Stern Produce; crispy eggplant taco with Crow’s Dairy goat cheese, citrus ratatouille and shaved jicama; prosciutto-wrapped seared sea scallops; and beef ribeye with roasted fingerling potatoes, jalapeño-cilantro chimichurri, fried garlic and lemon broccoli.
Carcara’s cocktail program, developed by Director of Restaurants Lenny Skorcz, showcases seasonal flavors and a citrus flair. Inspired by well-known Arizona hiking trails, signature sips include: Devil’s Bridge featuring pink dragon fruit-infused rum, stone fruit syrup, pineapple juice, lime, lemon and orange bitters, and Cathedral Rock made with Cruzan rum, Del Maguey Mezcal, Blue Curacao, chipotle-pineapple syrup, lime and pineapple. Carcara even offers a selection of local beers and its own signature canned cocktail, produced in-house, with Grey Goose Vodka, Martini Rossi Fiero Aperitivo, martini bitter, Valencia Cara Cara, Tarocco blood orange, saline and tiki bitters.
Carcara is open Tuesday through Thursday from 3 to 9:30 p.m. on weeknights and 10 p.m. on weekends for dinner and cocktails. To learn more, visit carcararestaurant.com.