Pa'La Wood Fired Cooking - Phoenix, Arizona

Lucas Flores

I had an impromptu date night with my wife and we decided to try a new place. Thank goodness we landed on Pa’La! As soon as you walk in the hostesses were all amazing and the night only got better from there. Our server was extremely knowledgeable and helpful throughout the meal. Oh and the food, absolutely amazing! This has to be one of the best meals I’ve had in Phoenix from the sourdough focaccia to desert. Every dish, including the Japanese sweet potato side, got even better somehow. I can’t give specific dish recommendations because the menu changes based on the fresh ingredients they have, which is amazing! I definitely recommend you try it out yourself. I included a few pictures of our meal that I remembered to get, forgive me we did start eating before I remembered to get a pick lol.

Jackson D

My partner and I decided to set a reservation for 7:15 PM on a Sunday night.

Once sat, we were quickly asked what we would like to drink and shortly thereafter received our initial beverages.

My partner and I decided that we would commit to the omakase experience. We are both adventurous food lovers and were really excited by the idea of a progressive dining experience.

We were served a total of 9 dishes for our experience:

1. New Brunswick and Oishi Oysters
2. Scallop Crudo
3. Spanish Piquillo Peppers
4. Woodfired Octopus
5. Foie Gras with Palmiers & Pomegranate Gastrique
6. Miso Black Cod
7. Pork Loin with Kimchi and Italian Beans
8. Japanese Sweet Potato
9. Milk and Honey Flan served with ice cream trio

I understand that the typical, prescribed progression of omakase is to guide the palate from lighter dishes, next to richer, fattier dishes, and then to the main dish of intrigue, and finally something to wipe the palate clean. Knowing this, I think this meal had the potential to be spectacular, but due to the pacing of the meal, I felt too bogged down by the previous course to build excitement for the next.

I found the pacing of the entire meal to be haphazard. In my experience with omakase, the next dish should be served following the completion of the previous course. At one point, we had three dishes sitting on our table at once (dishes #6-8). This caused some of the food to get cold and led to a less than optimal dining experience.

Perhaps in the future, a stronger line of communication between the front of house and back of house staff would alleviate some of these concerns. Or maybe even a disclaimer to the covers for the evening.

I would love to give Pa' La a higher rating but the overall dining experience relative to the price point left some to be desired. For $150/cover, there are some non-negotiables that I would expect an omakase to deliver on that were not satisfactory. For this reason, I do not think I would ordering the omakase again.

Nikole V

Originally wanted to do the 8 course meal but it was completely booked. The pork belly was hands down the best thing we ordered. It was so tender it melted in my mouth! We also ordered the wood fire snapper which was better when we squeezed the lemon over it, the anchovies which tastes better when eaten with crackers, the octopus, and the pasta with lobster. The servers were also wonderful!

Linzee Prescott

Really wonderful experience! As walk in’s we didn’t know what to expect, but the live jazz band started at 6, happy hour gave us a nice sample of the flavors, and we left extremely delighted.

Don’t expect to get these same dishes. They rotate the menu constantly.

John L. Ramos

It was a surprise for her, and I won. She loved it! The service from Anna was awesome and hats off to the cooks the did was amazing! Gilles was a great host and took care of us on the side-by-side seating. The Jazz music was extra fun touch.

Gigi Bendiciones

In celebration of our marriage anniversary we selected Pa’La for our fine dining experience. We chose the 8 course chefs choice dinner experience. This by far was the ultimate experience. Every dish was perfectly selected to satisfy our palate. This restaurant is a hidden gem within the tall buildings of downtown Phoenix: thanks to everyone who helped make our night so memorable. Compliments to the chef and the kitchen staff. Their menu changes often. Not all items were photographed down below. We highly recommend the chefs choice option.
I wanted to add to this review. 7/2024 they have a wide variety selection of wines.

Alli Son

First time visiting and I’m very impressed. I sat upstairs at the bar so I could hear the jazz performers while I enjoyed some tapas. The bartenders and woman I sat next to were so knowledgeable on the menu and guided me through. Each dish was fresh, had cohesive flavors, and smart plating. The melody of complex flavors sang the story of the chef and stamped their essence on my memory.
Looking forward to my next visit to try additional plates.

Chandler Wilson

What an amazing experience! HUGE shout out to Pablo, he was a fantastic server. The food was stellar, the cocktails were great, everyone in our group had an awesome time. Every single dish that came out was excellent, but the mushroom pasta and Japanese sweet potato were the standouts for me. Would definitely come back, and am planning to be back to experience the omakase!