Restaurant review | Cork! Chandler, Arizona

About 25 miles south-east of downtown Phoenix, lies a hidden gem in the Sun Lakes area of Chandler.

The glass walled wine cellar

At first I was a little skeptical of the location, being that it’s not in the CenPho corridor or Old Town.   But I decided to give it a whirl and I’m glad I did.

Immediately upon entering I knew that this was not just a wine place in a strip mall.  The large glass wall featuring a fully functional wine cellar was one clue.  Another was the wine glasses.  I totally judge a restaurant by its wine glasses.  The bigger the better.

Also, the wine list is all on an iPad.  This is quite interesting.  A few years back I would have preferred a book, but now that better interfaces have improved functionality dramatically I quite like the interactive approach.  It probably makes updating the list a lot more efficient than reprinting the wine book.

Cork!’s cuisine is can be described as European.  What this means to hungry Americans is that you should order a starter as well as a main dish, because the portions are reasonable, not super sized.

What you will also find is some more unusual but non the less tasty offerings such as Wild Boar, and braised rabbit, and venison.

Wild Boar

As far as the wine list goes, I found the list to be pleasantly extensive, but not so big that it was hard to decide what to get.  One wine really popped out at an exceptional value:  Beaulieu Vineyards 2004 Georges DeLatour.  This is a $100-$120 bottle in the grocery store.

Flourless chocolate cake

I was just in Las Vegas last week and this wine was $350 a bottle at the steak house I was eating at.  At Cork! it is priced at $160.  If you were celebrating a special occasion that would be a deal that’s hard to pass up.