Go for the laser tag, bowling and arcade games; stay for the hearth-oven pizzas and creative cocktails. Scottsdale’s Mavrix is a local favorite for first-class family entertainment while its Trophy Room Grill and Patio scores points for its top-notch menu of burgers, pizzas, salads and more.
While most associate Mavrix in Scottsdale with the clanging of bowling pins and the flashing lights of Skee-Ball machines, the entertainment center–which is next door to sister establishment, Octane Raceway–is also home to a cool, casual family-friendly restaurant that makes it worth a trip, even if gaming isn’t on your agenda. Trophy Room Grill and Patio offers a wide selection of shareables, salads, burgers, pizzas. craft brews, cocktails and more.
The interior dining space is quite expansive, marked by a long wood-paneled bar and several large televisions for taking in the day’s games. As its name suggests, sports play a central role in the Trophy Room’s theme, with a wall dedicated to sports heroes like Muhammad AliĀ and Lionel Messi.
Outside on the patio (also a very spacious area), friends and families can gather–not only to eat and imbibe, but enjoy games of giant Connect Four and Jenga or even ping pong.
Many of the usual suspects, like chips and guacamole, cheese curds and toasted pretzels, show up on the Trophy Room appetizer menu, so there are plenty of tasty crowd-pleasers to choose from to kick off the meal. For a lighter entree, the AZ Chopped Salad is as pretty as it is delicious, chock-full of greens, couscous, roasted corn, pepitas, avocado, tomatoes, house-made green goddess dressing and just-sweet-enough honey-smoked salmon.
The pizzas are a standout option featuring hand-made dough that is prepared daily, which has a crisp, bubbled-up crust but with the perfect dose of chew. Sure, you can order a pepperoni or wild mushroom ‘za, but why not try something different? The Blueberry option features swaths of prosciutto, creamy goat cheese, grilled onions, vibrant bursts of fresh blueberries, baby arugula and a drizzle of honey.
To wash it all down–and to help work up courage to take on robot attackers in a Mavrix VR game–enjoy the Royal Apple Mule, with Crown Apple, agave, lime juice, angostura bitters and ginger beer. And be sure to watch the preparation as the smoked cocktail gives literal meaning to the fire emoji.
MavrixĀ and Octane Raceway are now hiring for 60-plus front- and back-of-house positions. Open positions include line and prep cooks, servers, bartenders, admissions, track marshals and more. For a limited time, line and prep cooks who join the growing team will get a $500 bonus after 90 days of employment. For more on Mavrix, visit www.mavrix.com.