Scratch

This place is closed. They filed for bankruptcy.

So Ginger O and I went there for brunch. We were the only ones there and it took probably 30+ minutes to get our food. I got Eggs Benedict which didn’t have any hollandaise sauce on it however the waitress gave the excuse that it was the «French» way… ummm to say it includes hollandaise sauce then making it invisible on your plate? The eggs were over cooked. It was really hot in the restaurant. The service was bad, took forever for the food and they just didn’t seem to care. Then I found out the next day, Scratch closed. But that is no excuse for the bad service, go out with a bang. not a «lame» attitude. Obviously we will not be going back.

***I am rating from a vegetarian and customer service perspective so take that into consideration when reading my review.***
I really like Scratch. I love sitting outdoors. Phoenix is BEGINNING to feel like a CITY city.
I can empathize with others regarding not knowing what to do when you first walk in if no one greets you immediately but after the initial visit, just do your thing.
They have a tasty vegan burger which hits the spot every time. It’s so not the typical thoughtless effort most non-​vegetarian places do NOT put into their burgers. And omg, my tattooed (points for this) server was quick to let me know that the truffle fries are vegetarian but not vegan and offered me pesto-​tossed fries instead. OMG, they were so YUM!
I really appreciate that kind of service. I personally think that the fact that it takes them a long time to come back to you is to allow you to slowly enjoy your food and the experience. I mean it’s not fast food, for goodness sakes. Its French, for whatever that signifies.
I would like to see more creative vegetarian choices but I realize that that is wishful thinking and I give them kudos for the 7 vegetarian/​Vegan offerings. Not many restaurants give that much thought to alternative palates unless it specializes in that type of cuisine.
Go and bring your patience.

I hate writing bad reviews. I hate it hate it hate it. But I really have only one good thing to say about this place.
Its in a great location and the patio will be awesome in the cooler weather.
As for the rest of the experience it was simply awful.
Before I start on the food, I have to complain about the service. All the servers help out with all the tables which usually works out but in this case it just meant that no one owned any table and everyone was left to languish. It took 40 minutes for our food to come. Our drinks were empty for 10 minutes at a time, several times. The coup de grace came while I was already getting irritated and the waiter walked to the end of the table while we were eating, exclaimed «pardon my reach» leaned in and reached past two of us to the opposite end of the table to pick up a napkin ring. When I said ‘really/​” he said «I SAID pardon my reach!». Classless. Walk around to the other end of the table. Its not that far.
Three of us dined and ordered different items.
A companion ordered the breakfast sandwich which is served on a croissant but since they were out of croissants they had to substitute a very bready mealy bread. Its a french café and they were out of croissants. Let that roll around in your head awhile. He didnt finish it. it was awful.
I ordered the Eggs Benedict. It was served on toasted baguette. Toasted so hard that if I wasnt so strong I wouldn’t have been able to cut it. Chewing it was another problem altogether. I found it greasy and flavorless. The potatoes that came with it were of the crispy chunky frozen food variety.
Our third companion ordered the savory crepes with goat cheese and ham. This comes with a side salad. A side salad. Really. He enjoyed the crepes but was left hungry.
The quote that sums up the experience came on the way to the car «The best thing about that restaurant is the food is so bad we can now go get frozen yogurt!».
My advice, train your staff or hire new ones. Have more than two cooks on a Sunday Brunch. Order enough food so that you don’t run out of the staples. Re-​evaluate your menu and dishes.
Best of luck, I hope you make some changes and can pull this off.

I went there with my guy pal and I’m only giving this place four stars cause we had the dinner AND dessert. If it was JUST the dessert, I’d give it more than the maximum five stars. First the dessert: I had the Irish crumble and he had the lemon tart. WOW!!! The Irish crumble flavor, texture, and aesthetic appeal was nothing short of phenomenal. It was layered with two different types of chocolate and heavy cream. Very light and airy and just the right amount. I don’t know what else it is made of, but I’d sure like the recipe. I wonder if the owner will share it!!! The lemon tart was fabulously wonderful as well. Yes, my guy pal let me have a bite, but only a bite. Lemon desserts are not my favorite desserts, and I count chocolate as one of the major food groups. So you know which dessert I liked better.
The bakery is adjacent to the restaurant. So much to choose from. All of them are a work of art. And I bet they taste as good as they look. The perfect place to get that special someone a wonderfully delicious dessert.
As far as dinner, I had the seared jumbo scallops in white wine creamy garlic sauce with fresh veggies, and he had the Budda beer and burger special. The scallops were perfectly seasoned and cooked. Geeezzzz, I hate it when places overcook the seafood! Not this place. El perfecto. The sauce had the perfect blend of creamy sauce and garlic. If I had some rice to go along with it, I would have sopped up the sauce with the rice. Hey, I’m Asian. What can I say?
His burger was good as well. I’m not a real hamburger kinda gal. But it was good as burgers go.
The owner is truly from France. He is friendly, and makes it a point of going to each table, and talking to his guests. He wrote his name and number down, but, for the life of me, I can’t read his writing. He told me he is half Japanese and half Chinese. I found it quite interesting that an Asian speaks with a French accent. Guess I need to get out more.
I’d definitely go back, especially to try the many other eye-​appealing desserts.

I had a great time… love the place, love the space, love that they have invested in downtown and believe that everyone should be as constructive as possible in writing a review… a 1-​star review should usually mean you got food poisoning and were robbed and yelled at by staff… a 2-​star review means you got an upset stomach and were rudely treated with no respect… a 3-​star review is average, a 4-​star review very good, and a 5-​star review is a wonderful experience. My experience was 5-​stars… I was offered tastes of small, freshly baked items that had just come out of the oven, from the chef/​owner who is a true Parisian from the 3^rd arrondissement… the breakfast is excellent, lunch great, desserts out of this world… I think you’re going to see some wonderful things happen here. Heck, if he could make it in central Paris, I think he can make it here…
oh, and before I knew the chef was from Paris, my friend ordered an omelette and when it came out, it reminded me of an omelette I had at the Crillon in Paris… sounds weird, but a omelette in France is just somehow different, doesn’t look like it came out of a cookie-​cutter, looked like an egg cooked perfectly, and tasted amazing. paired with their great coffee and a croissant… simple perfection.
thank you for being part of the neighborhood!

I went here for the first time last week; I really enjoyed the food. I ate the bltc sandwich. Delish!

Service is bad & slow. It took 10 minutes after sitting to get our drink orders taken (only 5 tables with patrons). In fact, while we were waiting for breakfast one patron simply walked out after having ordered. I sat near the open kitchen area, I observed the staff. I saw the waitress move toast on the plate with her bare hands — Wash Much? The hash browns were good & my wife enjoyed her omelette. Big problem with the crepes. The crepes came from the kitchen burned on the edges. To his credit the cook noticed me flaking off the burnt edges and offered to make us another crêpe to go.
I would have given 2 stars because it has great potential but I had to take 1 back because of the service.

This little corner really has poop service but they are brand new so in time im sure it will be much better.
The fries are ridiculously good. I got the bison burger sub kobe beef with an egg and it was pretty damn good.
Great selection of craft beer
Will come back again for sure.
Get better servers or train the ones that are there to be prompt and not forgetful. Our guy was flustered beyond believe with 5 tables. The music could be better too. I still give it 4 stars though.

Here are a few things to consider before you dine at a restaurant named Scratch:
Quite possibly you will be eating something made from scratch, which may take a little longer to prepare than the average restaurant.
You will have an opportunity to enjoy the freshest, in season quality ingredients.
You will be able to have handmade, fresh baked, painstakingly prepared French croissants in the morning and in the evening a tray of beautifully detailed French desserts will arrive table side for you to select from… there were 13 different options on a recent visit.
I think Scratch is best enjoyed when you are not in a hurry, and perhaps not (yet) on nights when there is a mob scene, though I think they will master that in time. Lovely patio dining options (with great people watching) to enjoy before the heat comes. Staff who are clearly friendly, attentive and take great pride in quality ingredients, cooking and service when the place is not slammed. They mentioned on a recent visit that they are working on expanding their vegetarian and vegan offerings, so stay tuned for that. Impeccably brewed, flavorful French teas. Murals by local artists on the streetside planters, a parklike promenade and great ambience. I love that they are open from 8 am — 10 pm weekdays and until 2 am on weekends. That is ambitious for downtown Phoenix and deserves our support until they work out some of the details mentioned in other reviews.
So here is my advice on Scratch. Put yourself in a leisurely frame of mind, go on over there on a weeknight when you can have the staff’s undivided attention and I think you will be charmed with what Scratch is offering. KJ the chef is a wizard from what I have tasted so far, I plan to be back again and again to this cozy neighborhood gathering place.

Let me start by saying I was happy with the food. I would have given 4-​stars if based solely on my dinner.
Now let’s get on with the rest of the review… Management if you are reading, you HAVE to improve on service, organization and staff training.
I understand it is a relatively new spot. But everything and everyone looked chaotic and confused. We were waiting to be seated for a while. Hostess was busy with seating another big party. So the other guy (assuming waiter) told us to sit at the corner empty table. They have limited amount of high chairs (2 to be exact), and both were taken by the big table, which wasn’t a big deal for us but may want to invest in a few more. We were not greeted or brought any water for a while. I finally went up on my way to the bathroom just to give them a heads up, since hostess wasn’t the one who seated us.
I think during the course of dinner we had about 3 – 4 different people stopping by, no one knew what the other person did before. We were given water but no one once asked about our drink preferences (upsell anyone?). At the end some lady we never saw before brought us the wrong check… Which made me wonder: isn’t the table numbered? And why don’t the staff know the table numbers then?
2 of us ordered burgers ($ 13 dinner price). There is a big selection of burgers. It came with fries and a little side salad. One ordered the vegan tofu salad because the little girl cannot eat meat… And the salad arrived without tofu because they ran out. I didn’t think tofu is expensive to stock, and they don’t go bad that easily in the fridge. Worse is no one mentioned it until the mom asked «where is the tofu?» She also ordered the French onion soup, which came with a big side salad. Personally I think the dressing looked awfully thick. I am not a salad person so I will hold my piece.
My dinner was the grilled scallops in white wine sauce with veggies. I found $ 16 to be well priced. No one in my town (Charlotte NC) offers scallops for less than $ 20. My other option was the curry lamb shoulder ($ 16 as well). and I really wish someone would have ordered it so I could taste. My scallops were perfectly cooked. Though they are not big, but I got 5 pieces. The wine sauce was divine. If anything the veggies were a little undercooked but I have a feeling it was purposely not cooked. All in all I was happy with my dinner. They were out of escargot so I didn’t get to try that either.
This place has potential. The ambience was good, it’s hip-​ish yet chill. I hope you make the necessary improvements. I would give you a 2^nd chance if I live there.

While out with a girl friend and her parents doing the First Friday thing, we happened across Scratch’s newest location in downtown Phoenix. I’ve been to Scratch in Scottsdale and was pleasantly surprised to discover their newest location.
Let’s get a few things out of the way…
It was a First Friday.
They just opened two weeks prior…
The space is at least 3x larger than their original location…
And…pretty much all new waitstaff.
Okay, back to the review.
We arrived at the restaurant during peak First Friday craziness, and was promptly seated on the patio (as requested). Due to it being FF, they were only serving a limited menu of burgers. After a quick peruse of the menu, we quickly found a burger to suit all our tastes (Lamb, crab, beef). We were ready to place our order, and then we waited…
And waited… until we flagged down the hostess and asked her to find our server.
This is where the review could go south for most restaurants, but I give the team at Scratch a lot of credit for how they turned this experience around. The friendly hostess, our lovely bartender, the owner, and an assortment of other staff went out of their way to ensure the remainder of our experience there lived up to our expectations. And it did!
Sure, there were some newby mis-​steps, but on the whole, the food is well-​prepared, the desserts are interesting and yummy (not to mention the awesome presentation!), and most of all, the staff is friendly and engaging.
It’s a cool spot, great location, and there is so much potential here. We will definitely be back!

They are one day away from their First Friday ‘hard’ opening and this is the best they could do? Fifteen bucks for a burger and fries I’ve happily paid many times at many places, but here? Not so happy.
I was warned they have gotten off to a horrid start, but didn’t want to believe that precious Scottsdale place can’t figure out hipster downtown Phoenix.
I called when I got out of the Jeff Speck talk over by City Hall and got hung up on in the middle of asking whether they do takeout.
So I rode my bike there anyway to find out how supremely busy they must have been on a glorious Thursday night to hang up on a takeout order. 6 tables out of 22+ have guests, dealt with by two wait staff, with two other staff wandering around and two cooks on duty.
Two strikes already — but wait! It’s goes on! The cashier was too busy to even speak with me for about 4 minutes. I never could figure out what she was doing.
So I ordered a cheeseburger from this «French Bakery» — note that is IS NOT a «Boulangerie» — with fries to go. She just looked at me and said «is that all?». I said «yes» and she looked disappointed. After a few seconds, she asked «Don’t you want bacon and mushrooms?». I thought maybe saying «yes: might get the order processed. I was right. So I asked how long it would take. Was told «10 minutes». Which seemed slightly quick, even though nothing was being cooked in that moment.
So I came back 10 minutes later and sat around for 5 minutes, eventually noticing two little boxes over by the cashier, who was chatting away at another employee. So I waited 60 seconds before going over to find out whether the little boxes were my order. She stopped chatting long enough to put the boxes in a bag and hand the bag to me.
I’ve seen greasy spoon short order cooks fork a par-​cooked hunk of meat out of some liquid slop and slap it on a grill. This burger tasted like that. I noticed a few little squiggles of something that could have been mushrooms, and a few flakes of something that could have been bacon bits.
I only had to bike 4 blocks home. The food was luke warm. At least the fries taste better lukewarm than McDonalds fries do.
But that re heated burger — not good. It does something to the texture of the meat.
There is serious competition in downtown Phoenix now. This place is not ready to succeed here.

Went there yesterday for lunch, with very low expectations for service based on previous reviews. I have to say that this was not even REMOTELY the case for me.
I sat on the patio which was absolutely lovely. The service was incredibly prompt, and sensitive to the fact that I had less than an hour for lunch (including transit!). Our waitress was very friendly and split my friend and my check with absolutely no problem.
I had the cold smoked salmon sandwich which had avocado, cucumber and dill. It was delicious, and, I think, a pretty healthy option! The side salad with balsamic vinaigrette that came with the sandwich was equally as delicious. This was all for $ 7.25– unbelievable.
Their happy hour is 3 – 6, and I will definitely be back to check it out. I’m so excited to have a fun, new, and different option for lunch close to downtown.

Scratch this place off your list! Unsure what’s worse: Scratch’s ambiance, service, or food quality. A French ex-​photographer opened this restaurant and you would think it would match Parisian cafes or at least other local restaurants in quality of service & food. The bad: situated on a concrete base, with no added plants/​lights/​other outdoor accessories AND no music it felt like we dined in the middle of an empty parking lot. The ugly: stale bread, cheap ingredients (arugula as side for both hummous and burger, store fries), thick balsamic vinaigrette, burgers not cooked to our preference (why ask?), tiny plastic cups for water (we are not toddlers). Worse yet– our server was wearing the filthiest uniform & dirty sneakers one might wear to mow the lawn on Sundays, our food arrived 20 min AFTER the table next to us got theirs (of course they sat down 10mins AFTER us, do the math), and our drink orders went through 3 servers before ending up on our table. Will not come again and will warn fellow downtowners from trying this mess out!

Based on 2 breakfast visits I must say that I am a fan! Great coffee delicious omelets and fresh salads. Love the outdoor shaded patio. Only improvement I see is that the bike racks need lower loops down the post to accommodate using u-​locks for shorter bikes like my Brompton and my wife’s folding bike.

My girlfriend and I went here for breakfast yesterday. I ordered the breakfast sandwich and she had the eggs florentine. My breakfast sandwich was really quite good. It was like a little omelet sandwich inside a croissant. It was priced right and I would definitely order it again. Her eggs florentine was just ok. She would have preferred if the spinach was cut up a little bit smaller so that all of the leaves didn’t come out in one bite. The patio was a nice atmosphere, and the décor was nice, and that’s why I gave it the one star that I did. The reason I didn’t give it any more stars is because the service was epically, comically bad. Like we both wondered if we were being punk’d or something, like it was a joke.
Our server disappeared for several minutes at a time repeatedly. First she took our drink order and brought us our drinks and said she would be back to take our food order. Literally 15 minutes later she finally ventured back out to the patio and took our order. We were already a bit frustrated at that point because as soon as my girlfriend saw my coffee, she decided she wanted one, but had to wait forever just to order it.
Our food was brought out by a different server, and right away we knew we needed some hot sauce and ketchup for our hash browns and eggs. No one came back a few minutes later to see if we had everything we needed, which is basic serving 101. Another 10 — 15 minutes went by and finally I just got up and went inside to track someone down. Once we were done eating they took our plates and dropped off our check. We put our card out to pay for the meal, but after another 20 minutes of it sitting on the corner of our table we eventually just got up and took it inside to pay. And all the while both servers that served us were not friendly or welcoming at all. It was like we were annoying them. We were there for like 90 minutes, and probably more than half of that we spent just waiting for our server to come around so that we could move forward with the dining process.
I might be able to understand some of this behavior if they were slammed. But they weren’t even ¼ full when we got there. And part of me wants to give them the benefit of the doubt because they have only been open a week, but after thinking about it, no. There is no excuse for this type of crappy service, and really it has nothing to do with how long a restaurant has been open.
I don’t know if we’ll be back to give this place another try or not. With all the great dining options in downtown, a place can’t really afford to make too many bad first impressions.

Ok, so I know I just reviewed this place on Friday, but, as promised, I went back for breakfast and it was much better than lunch. I had the breakfast sandwich with an over medium egg. The breakfast sandwich was delicious! It is an egg, cheese, bacon, and tomato sandwich with some bechamel sauce all on a croissant. Usually the egg is like an omelet, but I asked for mine over medium. This turned out to be a total mess, but a tasty mess. I didn’t like the potatoes it came with, they were dry and boring, so I left them. The salad it came with was delicious as noted before… they always have the same delicious vinegar based dressing (not 100% what kind of dressing it is… kind of like a creamy vinaigrette). The coffee is strong, but not bad. The service is still lacking, it was extremely slow… took over an hour for breakfast same as when I came for lunch. I understand the restaurant is brand new, but I hope the service improves as time goes on. Anyway, I would recommend this place for a leisurely breakfast, but probably wouldn’t come back for lunch.
Here is the copied lunch review for your viewing pleasure:
3 stars
Let me start by saying that I really enjoyed breakfast at Scratch in Scottsdale, so I definitely need to come to this Scratch for breakfast (especially since it is 3 blocks from my apartment… woohoo!!). That said, I just got back from lunch here and it was disappointing. I went with my dad and we ordered the harmony salad and the chicken pesto sandwich to share. Unfortunately, these two items are essentially the exact same item except one is in a bowl and one is on bread (it did not sound like that was the case on the menu). I wish the server would have just given us a little warning before putting in our order as she knew we were sharing. Anyway, the salad was better than the sandwich because it had avocado and because the sandwich had their french bread, which was dry and not very flavorful. The salad dressing was very good, the pesto needed more flavor, maybe a little garlic increase. The service was fine when we got there, but we waited a LONG time for our check and for a box at the end. We were there for about an hour and a half for lunch, which is unacceptable for people who have jobs. I think most of these issues will be resolved as the restaurant is open longer, so I’m not terribly concerned about that. Also, the chairs have weird chair covers over them that make it hard to push them in and out and are awkward… not sure why those are necessary, but other than that it is a nice, clean looking restaurant. Other positives include they have a nice patio, they have the open air feel inside because some of their walls open, the salad dressing is good, the food was very fresh, the prices are far less pricey than expected, and the portion sizes are generous (the two of us could have shared the sandwich or the salad… def did not need both). I will be back to Scratch for breakfast… maybe this weekend, and will update then, but for lunch, this only gets 3 stars

Patio, Patio, Patio!
Spring time is a wonderful time to eat outside and this renovated building is definitely a new draw on Roosevelt Row in the Evans Churchill neighborhood. The outdoor patio is shooting for French Quarter in the middle of the southwest. It is adjacent to two other restaurants opening up soon. There were an abundance of people rolling up to take advantage of all the bicycle parking. (***Main parking is accessed off the alley, which runs east-​west between 3^rd St and 5^th St***)
The interior is very contemporary with an open kitchen concept and clean lines. There is a cozy bar along the west wall with plenty of local on tap. There will also be a walk-​up baked goods counter and I’m told there will be ice cream!
Given the vogue of many restaurants recently… they went with a soft opening and still seem to be working out the kinks. The staff is still learning their sections and the intricacies of the menu.
As for the food, it’s a solid 3.5 stars, went with the Lamb Burger which was well seasoned, topped with fresh mint leaves on their own freshly baked bun… this come standard with a mixed greens side salad. Also tried the Pulled Pork BBQ sandwich that was well seasoned on two grilled pieces of bread, with sliced cucumber and avocado.
It’s a balanced price point of $ 8−10/sandwich with a great outside ambiance. The menu has a wide variety to choose from breakfast, sandwiches, and soon to be great pastries.
A slow opening would not stop me from going back given all the great reviews of the original location. I’m sure management will dot the I’s and cross the T’s soon enough.
Bön appetit!

From GREAT to REALLY BAD in three quick visits.
2^nd Visit:
Last week I ordered the Egg Benedict and the english muffin was ROCK HARD. Like «chip your tooth» hard. How this got put on a plate is beyond me! Completely in-​edible. The service was soo bad I never had the chance to talk to a server, I just paid and left.
3^rd Visit:
But that English Muffin was nothing compared to yesterday morning’s breakfast sandwich which was tasty as all get out … only one problem.
I SERIOUSLY NEARLY DIED AFTER EATING IT! I HAVE NEVER BEEN THIS SICK IN MY ENTIRE LIFE!!!
I’ve never had food poisoning … Hell, I’d never gotten sick from eating anything, anywhere. But yesterday I woke up, got dressed and walked to Scratch (I did nothing else). By the time I walked home I was doubled over in SEVERE pain. I laid in bed for the entire day. I really should have gone to the hospital, it was that bad. Instead I was writhing in pain for EIGHT HOURS until I started puking up that breakfast sandwich. Two hours of puking it up, I was «stable». Naturally this is typical, but it was my experience.
And now, all that I can think of is how lucky that couple was, whom after 20mins of being ignored by the staff, they just up and left without ordering (this is COMMON! THEY ARE DREADFULLY UNDERSTAFFED!!!). The servers are great … just nowhere near enough of them! It’s a complete fail! And it’s been happening regularly ever since they opened a few weeks ago!
1^st Vist:
Located on 5^th Street and Roosevelt right smack dab in the middle of the Arts District.
Outdoor seating/​patio with a great view of Downtown.
The dinning room has table and barstool seating with an ultra modern motif.
And I just had the best omelet in my life.
Not kidding.
My drip coffee was hot, strong and smooth (I loved it).