Spotted Donkey Cantina, el Pedregal

Better than average Mexican food for Arizona. Lovely restaurant — appropriate decorations; very good service.

We made reservations for dinner and after looking at pictures from fellow reviewers we had a general idea of what to expect and order. Our server was very friendly, offered suggestions on what to order. The best part was when we decided to have the nachos for apps, she mentioned it was enough to be dinner. We are glad she did, we still had leftovers. The nachos were delicious, the combination of different salsas on each quarters was the best as they complimented the flavors and texture. There was pork carnitas a plenty! We were pleasantly surprised at the amount of meat they had in the nachos.
We also ordered the shrimp ceviche, it was refreshing and perfection with the balance of flavors spicy and cooling.
The décor is very fun, makes for good photo opps.

The cocktails are very expensive and they dont offer table side happy hour. The food was average as was the cocktails. Wont go back.

Every aspect of our meal was impeccable from the drink presentations to the fried bananas at the end of our meal.
The servers are knowledgeable and it was the best Mexican/​Southwestern food that I have had in the valley.
Located in El Pedregal enhances the evening with the beautiful Coy ponds and manicured grounds. It was an outstanding dining experience…

Had the great quacamole and chips and everything else at the restaurant was downhill. The service was slow once you got a servers attention. How can you be a Mexican restaurant and screw up cheese enchiladas and a chile relleno. They have found a way and sell them over priced! Once was enough! Can’t understand the good reviews and have wiped this restaurant off my list forever and a day!!! If there was any competition in the area they would no longer exist!!!

I felt my dinner was yummy; I ordered the chicken and pork enchiladas with rice and beans. Chips and salsa are extra, not complimentary like most places. They do give you 3 types of salsa to try.
The margarita was good, just the portion was too small.
The view is amazing outside (on the second floor) and inside is clean and pleasing. Service was average.
The location is hard to find in a desolate shopping area next to the Boulders. The restaurant is on the second floor.
Be prepared to pay $$$ it’s pretty pricey.

A friend recommended this place so I gave it a try. It was a bit crazy from some kind of convention group or something. The service was really sub par. From delays to misunderstandings, it wasn’t a good impression. The food was tasty and the view was nice. Maybe worth another try at a less busy time.

Chicken Tortilla Warm spinach salad good healthy choice. Fajitas were also tasty and clean. Not South Tex MX food in any way shape or form. Cool vibe. Moderate to expensive.

I am mixed about my review for here. We got there, and I made the reservation via Open Table. It was one of 2 reservation times left, so I felt like the restaurant was going to be packed. It wasn’t. The inside was basically vacant, but I will say that the patio was packed. So we sat down, and it took about 10 minutes for the waiter to come over to us. Then it took another 10 minutes to get our drinks and guac/​salsa brought to our table. The chips and guacamole were delicious, so there is no complaints about that. Then it took about another 10 minutes after that for our food to come out (our waiter kept vanishing and never stopping by). Once our food came out though, it was soooooo good. I got 2 shrimp tacos, which I can’t find the name of now on the online menu, they were phenomenal. I highly recommend. And the side of rice that came with them was so light and fluffy. Absolutely delicious. So that is why I am so torn. the food was amazing but the service was absolutely horrible. Oh, and the margarita was not good. It was premade in a machine and not mixed well at all.
Also, it was really hard to find. We were in Scottsdale for the week, and it was dark by the time we went to dinner. There was absolutely no signage for the restaurant on the main road, and we drove around for about 10 minutes and were about to give up when we finally found it tucked away in the corner of some business complex. No signs on the road, nothing. So that is another reason I gave it 3 instead of 4 stars.

Best nachos I’ve ever had in my life and that is saying a lot since I eat nachos at least once a week.

Do you know excellent service? Jill the bartender does! We were there before they opened on Sat. We wanted a Bloody Mary — she was very accommodating! Lunch was good too! For reasons I don’t want to detail, we will definitely be back! Jill and team know how to take care of their customers!!! Smiling faces abound! Thanks for adding to our great day!

Friends recommended this restaurant and now we do to. The waitstaff was friendly and efficient and the food was excellent. The atmosphere was a little sterile, but we came for the food.
I had a honey glazed salmon fillet on a tostada that was excellent and my wife really enjoyed her pork tenderloin on a bed of Mac and cheese.
The only con were the drinks. My iced tea was no better than the Lipton sun tea I make at home in a mason jar. My wife had a margarita which she thought was delicious, but when I got the bill her 8 oz drink cost $ 16. My salmon was only $ 17.
Overall though, a very good meal.

It’s expensive BUT it’s worth it for a special night. Fantastic menu. Amazing mixology drinks and an impressive tequila list to chose from. Beautiful scenery and not overly packed Bc it’s kinda out there a bit. If you get a chance, check out Boulders too.

This place was absolutely grotesque! Everyone left their meals and NO THANKS to the to go boxes! No one seemed to care at all about the experience. $ 120 out the window for something worse than dog food! N-​A-​S-​T-​Y!!! way less than 1 star! Poor service too!

The Spotted Donkey is a great restaurant.
The food is consistently good and the staff are always great. The donkey paintings through out the restaurant are a lot of fun. The only down side I see with the restaurant is the pricing. It’s a little pricey for what you get.

You’ll notice, if you stay at the Boulders at the very tip top of Scottsdale, that there are not very many food choices to be had. A food desert in the actual desert. Weird. Of the choices that are available, you are left wondering which are actually OK and which are just plain crap.
This place, which has a great name, is in the OK category. If you are not careful, you’ll drive right past it and get stuck at another restaurant you didn’t want to visit. It’s located on the top floor of what seems like a deserted «only in Arizona» designed strip mall. After a little bit of exploring, we found it and entered into an atmosphere that is distinctly southwestern. All average so far.
The average continued. Margaritas were good, but overpriced. Food was good by overpriced. The queso, which my partner in crime reported was the best of her life, was just that. The service was absent with occasional sprinkles of attentiveness. We walked out with a $ 60 bill for 2 people and wondered what the hell we had just eaten.
You could go elsewhere, yes, but if you get lost and actually happen to find this place in the zombie apocalypse that is North Scottsdale, then you will probably have the best average experience of your life.

After a long hike in Seven Springs cave creek area, we decided to try this place. It’s been just about a month since we’ve been here but definitely worth the review.
The Baja shrimp tacos were fresh and tasty! It only came with 2 tacos for $ 15 but they were large tacos that were filling especially with its included side of rice. My friend had the same entreé but had one of the tacos with beer battered mahi instead of both shrimp, which he reports was very enjoyable.
My hubs had the beef barbacoa grande chimichanga and it was flavorful! The outside was crisply fried, which is tough since chimis can get soggy quickly. It creatively was served in halved with one of the halves standing vertically like a «pillar of yumminess.»
Unfortunately, chips and salsa are not free. If you order this though, you may want extra of the guacamole tomatillo salsa out of the three served.
As far as cocktails go, the Dulce Calor delivered exactly what its name implies. It’s a drink with spiciness but enough sweet to get you through it. Perfect inner warmth on a cool breezy Sunday morning. I wanted a Bloody Mary too but they didn’t have any of the ingredients for it that morning so I settled for an apple pie sangria which was written on their chalkboard menu coming in. I’m not sure if it tasted quite like apple pie but it was sweet like a dessert.
The ambiance is zany and lovely with very quirky but cute large photos of donkeys covering the walls, Saltillo tile floors, and large wood furniture and booths. I really liked the inside and would love to check out the patio when it’s a bit warmer outside. Service was a slower at the end but it doesn’t stop me from wanting to go back at some point.

Beautiful view and okay service, though one of our meals was prepared incorrectly and had to be re-​made. A unique presentation of generously portioned food, that all looked like delicious, Tex-​Mex.
While it was not awful, it wasn’t good either. 3 out of 3 people eating got sick, to varying degrees. I don’t think the food was «bad», more likely some lower quality ingredients. If you eat a clean diet, and tend to get sick when you eat junk, I’d suggest going elsewhere. Chips were greasy, all three salsa choices were bland. Chips and salsa was $ 8 and we didn’t eat it. Nobody asked if it was okay, and we assumed they were complimentary, as most places in the US. In fact, most of the food was not eaten, it just wasn’t very good flavor and WAY too much grease. My plate was piled high and sitting in a puddle of grease extending to the edge of the plate. So much so, that when it was served, some grease spilled over the side of the giant plate.
Lunch for 3 was $ 50 plus gratuity. That’s a little much for low quality Mexican food in Scottsdale! I wouldn’t eat here again, not even if it was free. It wasn’t so awful that it only deserved one star. The view is amazing! Maybe some friends and beer on the patio would enjoy socializing. I realize some people like greasy food loaded up in giant portions. If that’s your forte, go for it, just keep expectations low.

Had a late lunch today with a friend who has cancer. We both ordered the Enchiladas and loved every bite. Not for sissies, the sauce packed a punch, JUST RIGHT. I fought myself between those and the Stuffed Poblanos… another favorite. And don’t forget to share an order of the Jalepenos Poppers!!! I can’t speak for the Margaritas as I don’t drink them so if YOU don’t like them, have a Victoria draft and dive into some of the best Mex food in the Valley!!!
And, the service was great, as always.

Could live on chips and salsa… if they were all as good at The Spotted Donkey!
2 visits in 2 days.
My friends swore by the signature nachos and didn’t even share!
Great salads, for those of us who overdosed on Blood Orange Margaritas and chips/​salsa.
Fantastic service from Melissa — outstanding — friendly, efficient and with a smile.
Worth the visit.
Cold Victoria draft (from Mexico) and delicious margaritas.
Designated driver.
Enjoy the outdoor patio if at all possible.
Had to fly back to cold snowy Washington DC the next day. Sad!