See why food writers love Flagstaff restaurants

Everyone knows Arizona is a land of vibrant landscapes with outdoor adventures in every corner. But savvy travelers who want a great meal with their excursions know Flagstaff is the place to stay when they are out and about in the Grand Canyon state.

What does Flagstaff’s food scene have to brag about? I hope you’ve got a minute.

The mountain town has been making food writers take note for more than a decade, and in 2018 Phoenix Magazine claimed Flagstaff held “a vibrant restaurant scene that, pound for pound, probably outranks anything we’ve got going on in the Valley.” That is high praise from a publication that faithfully covers the nation’s fifth largest metro area!  

Flagstaff has only expanded its culinary offerings since that recognition. It now has two of the top pizzerias in the country. It brews the highest-rated India pale ale in the state. It has four James Beard nominees within walking distance of one another in a historic downtown. With more than 200 restaurants, Flagstaff offers everything from family friendly barbecue and burger spots to an eye-opening variety of spicy Thai and sushi. Saturday bake sales from an acclaimed pastry chef? It has that, too. And the accolades keep piling up.

Keep reading to see what culinary journalists, food reviewers and others have been saying about this high-elevation, dark-sky city and its booming restaurant scene.

The James Beard judges have discovered Flagstaff

The professional connoisseurs have taken note of Flagstaff’s rising culinary offerings. Four restaurants have drawn praise from the James Beard Foundation since 2022.

The inconspicuous French-inspired venue called Forêt on Beaver Street south of the railroad tracks was the latest to draw attention from the prestigious award group. The James Beard Foundation nominated Chef and owner Sam Greenhalgh for Best Chef — Southwest in 2024.

His brunch spot impresses most visitors with plates like the popular omelet with Boursin cheese and Plugrá butter, served with a little gem salad and house vinaigrette. The seared brioche with smoked shoulder ham, gruyere mornay and a fried egg is one of the “Top 100 Dishes of Arizona,” according to Phoenix Magazine, which bestowed that title to the dish in 2025.

Top off the morning with a mimosa or espresso martini, or fresh-squeezed juice if more adventure is on the day’s agenda.

Fans of Forêt rejoiced when the Greenhalghs opened a second venue, Petit Marché, on Aspen Avenue, offering small plates, Montreal-style bagels and baked specialties at a coffee counter. On the other side of the venue is a hyper-local French market with a curated collection of wines, breads, meals and desserts, perfect for travelers on the move to create a picnic or quick meal in their room at a bed and breakfast.

The James Beard Foundation nominated Proper Meats + Provisions in 2023 as a semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurant, and this lunch spot and deli with a historic Route 66 façade is still renowned for its creations.

Proper Meats is housed in a historic building along Route 66 in downtown Flagstaff that still advertises the Grand Canyon Café that occupied the site for 75 years. Inside is a butcher counter specializing in Arizona-raised meats. But the sandwiches have stolen the show for some loyal patrons.

A food writer for The Arizona Republic newspaper in 2022 confessed to making the two-hour drive for sandwiches from Proper, and declared it makes the best pastrami in the state.

“After it’s been brined, the meat is smoked over hardwood for 10-12 hours, which gives it that ambrosial crust called ‘bark.’ Then it’s steamed to add back a little moisture. When the meat cools down, it’s sliced for sandwiches,” the Republic described in 2022.

Just around the corner is another 2023 James Beard semifinalist, Shift Kitchen and Bar, whose former chef Christian Lowe was nominated for Emerging Chef.

After Lowe moved on, Shift owner and pastry chef Dara Wong brought on Tamara Stanger, who is well known in Arizona for her previous accomplishments in the Phoenix area, including Copper & Cotton in Tempe.

Wong and Stanger are maintaining the focus on shared plates and community that helped build the venue’s acclaim.

“We knew we wanted our space to be interactive, so in addition to the open kitchen focus on shared plates and affordable twists on what many would call classics, with everything plated in such a way that it engaged folks in conversation,” Wong told A Taste of AZ magazine when discussing the concept behind the restaurant. “We named our restaurant Shift because our goal was to shift expectations, both about food in Flagstaff and the concept of going out to a restaurant for a meal.”

Wong continues to tempt fans with her baked goods as well, offering a first-come bake sale the first Saturday of the month that gets everyone out of bed early to line up for her sweet offerings.

Wine enthusiasts also can enjoy the amazing selection at Wong’s nearby wine bar called Oeno, which offers guests the option to order from Shift’s menu.

Another upscale dining option in downtown Flagstaff that has been recognized by the James Beard Foundation is Atria. In 2022, Rochelle Daniel of Atria was a James Beard semifinalist for Emerging Chef.

Daniel continued to collect accolades in 2023 by winning the “Top Chef” Foodist Award from the Arizona Restaurant Association.

Culinary journalists who have experienced Daniel’s tasting menu are universal in their praise. Whether it is the mouthwatering bone marrow or perfectly grilled pork belly, its dishes impress. Best of the Southwest, which bestowed Atria with its “Bestie” destination, said it this way:

“For those ready to revel in a Flagstaff gem that provides as much of a culinary adventure as it does fine food, beverages and service — make sure Atria is on the next Flagstaff trip itinerary.” 

Arizona’s favorite IPA is brewed at Mother Road

Mother Road Brewing Company launched in 2011 and quickly became a staple among the Grand Canyon State’s beer scene. The Route 66 themed brewery has significantly grown since then, but perhaps its biggest move was the production of Tower Station, an unfiltered India pale ale named after an iconic Route 66 fuel station in Texas.

How good is the citrusy hop flavor of this Flagstaff-brewed ale? Good enough to be the top selling Arizona craft-brewed IPA and to sit atop the BeerAdvocate ratings for the highest rated IPA in the state of Arizona.

Mother Road has a variety of other beers on tap and available in cans across Arizona and some parts of neighboring states. But Tower Station has taken a life of its own — so much so, it has a growing “family” of beers under the name, including a Turbo Tower Station imperial IPA brewed with mango, and Tower Station Roadside Grove brewed with grapefruit and blood oranges.

Mother Road is one of eight award-winning breweries in Flagstaff, each with unique offerings that reflect the individuality found across the forested city. Guests can visit each stop on the Flagstaff Brewery Trail and redeem their digital or paper passport at the Flagstaff Visitor Center at 1 E. Route 66 for a free pint glass.

Grand Canyon Brewing Company: This growing brewery and distillery has locations in every town near an entrance to Grand Canyon National Park, and its Flagstaff pub is near the Northern Arizona University campus, offering a woodsy vibe and large meeting area.

Historic Brewing Company: A Flagstaff original, this brewery maintains the industrial brewhouse and taproom in east Flagstaff as well as a Barrell House serving food downtown in Flagstaff’s Southside neighborhood, where favorites like the Deer Lord amber ale are on tap. Their Salt River beer won a gold medal in 2019 at the Great American Beer Festival.

Beaver Street Brewing opened in March 1994 and claims the title of the oldest operating brewery in the city, not to mention the highest rated pizza on Yelp in the state (more on that later). It also offers a 21+ pool hall next door called Brews and Cues. 

Lumberyard Brewing Company: This brewery from the same family behind Beaver Street is a larger repurposed lumber building nearby, with a broad beer selection, including First Light Lager and Hazy Angel IPA, which can be found in cans across the state.

Dark Sky Brewing: The eclectic brews from Dark Sky can be enjoyed in a taproom served by Pizzicletta pizza, or a 21+ venue next door on Beaver Street downtown called Atmosphere Kitchen, where weekly bingo and trivia nights bring in a lively local crowd.

Wanderlust Brewing Company is a smaller taproom on Flagstaff’s east side with a bar and seating right next to the brew tanks. While most of Flagstaff is dog friendly, Wanderlust is exceptionally so and commonly hosts a handful of hounds while their owners sip their 928 Local and other brews nearby.

Flagstaff Brewing Company: Casually referred to as Flagbrew, this downtown venue with brewing equipment fronting Route 66 opened the same year as Beaver Street and has deep roots in Flagstaff. Its weekly live music commonly fills the room as well as the patio.

Flagstaff is pizza town

Flagstaff locals and visitors may never peacefully end the perpetual debate between fans of Frattelli Pizza and NiMarco’s Pizza, both of which are reliable for delicious pies to their respective fans, and both of which have locations in east and west Flagstaff.

The city takes its pizza seriously. And there’s plenty more besides those two Flagstaff staples.

In 2024, Yelp ranked its top pizzerias nationwide, and Fat Olives came in at No. 35. The east Flagstaff restaurant bustles with cooks tossing dough and sliding thin-crust Vera Pizza Napoletana, a specialty of Naples, Italy, out of the oven. Fat Olives was certified by the Italian organization created to protect the authenticity of these brick-oven pizzas, ensuring those who serve it use only “00” fine flour, San Marzano plum tomatoes, mozzarella de bufala and other authentic ingredients.

Beaver Street Brewery also made that Yelp list. Among their pizza offerings is the Enchanted Forest piled with artichoke-olive pesto, wild mushrooms, spinach, French brie, roasted bell peppers, walnuts and more.

Also squarely on the Flagstaff pizza map is Pizzicletta, another brick-oven pizzeria. The original location shares a historic Route 66 building with Mother Road Brewing that formerly housed a laundry for hotels and commercial buildings. With high demand, owner Caleb Schiff opened another location inside Dark Sky Brewing, then a third in Sedona, as well as a catering and mobile pizza kitchen that makes the rounds at special events. Schiff has plans for a new Flagstaff restaurant to open in 2025.

Phoenix Magazine named his Amore oi Mari white pizza with prosciutto, mascarpone and pecorino among the “100 Best” of Arizona as well in 2025.

Breakfasts to start your day right

Most Flagstaff visits are built around outdoor adventures from the Grand Canyon to the largest ponderosa pine forest in the world that surrounds the town. So if you are lacing up hiking boots or hauling your skis, you need to fuel up properly in the morning. Flagstaff has that well covered.

Flagstaff restauranteur and celebrity chef John Conley, who runs Salsa Brava and Fat Olives, opened his third restaurant in December 2023, debuting Fat Bagels to positive reviews from breakfast afficionados.

Conley makes traditional, New York style, kettle-boiled bagels at this new restaurant along Route 66. Fat Bagels also features hand-crafted coffees and a full breakfast and lunch menu. Conley grew up in Phoenix and worked at the former Katz Deli when he was young, which he cites as his inspiration behind Fat Bagels, where everything is made from scratch and cooked with classic “old-school” bagel equipment. Quick grab-and-go breakfast and lunch options also are available. Phoenix Magazine chose the Miss Piggy with its applewood-smoked bacon, pistachio mortadella, hashbrowns, scrambled eggs and cheddar cheese on a toasted plain bagel among its 2025 “100 Best.”

Traditionalists require Macy’s European Coffee House and Bakery on Beaver Street to be prominently mentioned in any breakfast discussion. Locals have argued this coffeehouse should be on the National Register of Historic Places, to give a flavor for its popularity. Coffee is the star of the show here, but the simple menu also wins applause because most items can be ordered gluten free or vegan. Yogurt, granola, oatmeal, waffles, steamed eggs, a breakfast sandwich and biscuits and gravy round out the breakfast menu, with salads and sandwiches available for lunch.

For a hearty morning meal, try Martanne’s Breakfast Palace downtown on Route 66, where dishes like spicy green-chile pork posole topped with eggs, the Jerry El Mujeriego or their famous chilaquiles are enjoyed. The “J.B.’s Volcano” version made Phoenix Magazine’s 2025 “100 Best” with its pork green chile, chorizo, melted cheese, sour cream and an over-medium egg served with rice, beans, hash browns, chips and a flour tortilla.

Or stop at one of the Mike and Ronda’s locations, where hearty, traditional breakfasts like the Hungry Man Special, top sirloin strips, chicken-fried steak, build-your-own omelets and other items are served up.

Another option is Toasted Owl, which also has two locations in town where visitors find breakfast, brunch and lunch in a quirky setting that includes vintage furnishings and owls peeping from every nook and cranny.  

Tourist Home All Day Café on San Francisco Street offers American cuisine with Southwestern flair in a 1920s Basque sheepherder building that was rebuilt in 2014.

Plenty of sports bars in a college town

Of course, as home to Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff is a college town, so there’s no shortage of places to enjoy Buffalo wings, a beer and ballgame, not to mention karaoke, bingo and other late-night activities.

People looking for a college vibe can find it across town, including locations like Collin’s Irish Pub downtown, where coeds can be found sharing massive “Trash cans,” a boozy concoction of Red Bull with too much alcohol to list here. Or go underground to Bigfoot BBQ in the Old Town Shops, where full pounds of wings are half priced on Mondays.

Another popular college hotspot is a tiny shack on San Francisco Street called Evans Fish and Chips, which culinary influencer FoodTherapy.AZ hinted may have the best fish and chips in the state. The venue stays true to the British style. This fan favorite is mostly a to-go location, but even on snowy nights, patrons can be found huddling among the few patio tables sharing steamy baskets of chips.

For a full list of Flagstaff eateries, attractions and accommodations, order a free visitor guide.