After a standing ovation last year, our Earth Day dinner returns with a “green” feast of family style vegetarian dishes!

Before the dinner, mix & mingle with friends and guests outdoors where farm owner A. Wayne Smith will deliver a welcome speech covering the Farm’s history and vision for sustainability.

Join fellow neighbors as we share the bounty of Mother Earth in a family-style, multi-course vegetarian farm dinner featuring the fresh produce of Maya’s Farm and McClendon’s Farm.

All net proceeds from tonight’s dinner will be donated to the World Food Programme. The World Food Programme fights hunger worldwide and is leading the fight against hunger in Haiti as well as all over the world. With just a single dollar donation the WFP can provide four nutritious meals to hungry people worldwide.

Vegetarian Earth Day Dinner
April 22, 6:30 pm.
Space Is Limited. Reservations Required.
Call 602-276-0601 $59.00 per Person
Includes Reception, Hors D’ouvres & Vegetable Feast
Tax and 18% Service Charge Not Included.

Chilly temps = warm soups! To get your hands on this recipe, you’ll have to pick up one of our favorite local magazines, Arizona Vines & Wines.You can grab this local publication at several wine bars and restaurants, but why not pick up a copy during dinner at Quiessence?

Visit Arizona Vines & Wines online >

“Welcome Back!”

“Great to see you again.”

…Both phrases that will be echoed as here at The Farm over the next couple of days as we welcome back our fellow coworkers and other businesses, but most importantly we welcome you back to The Farm at South Mountain!

We’re ready to start the season with a new energy and a reenergized purpose. Like everyone else, the strain of the economy has been felt here on the Farm too. It’s been increasingly tough to compete with the myriad of restaurants offering a growing number of deals to drive traffic through their doors.

Just how does a restaurant like Quiessence justify paying a premium for organic, range grazed, local beef from a small family when the price on commodity beef from the big meatpackers can be so much more affordable?

Simple.

At Quiessence, we’ll never compromise our cuisine. We will never put profit ahead of our principles; Sourcing the best ingredients from a fair, sustainable, local food system combined with handcrafting our cuisine in house from these ingredients.

Last week, Time Magazine’s (August 31st, 2009) Cover Story was “The Real Cost of Cheap Food.” The article began, “He’s raised on grass and hay and lives happily on a pasture by the ocean. His Meat is free of antibiotics, but can we afford to eat it? We can’t afford not to.”

Food Inc., the movie released this summer, drove home the idea that there are major problems in the American food system that we see first hand on the evening news with food recalls, e coli contamination, etc. I encourage you all to take note of these problems and to consider where/how you choose to spend your food and dining dollars.

I promise you this; at Quiessence we will continue to work hard to serve you the best meal possible. We will continue to make all of our pasta in house, all of our salumi in house, bake bread out of our hearth oven, custom butcher all our meat in house, fly-in (overnight) safe sustainable seafood, and purchase the best seasonal, local, and organic produce we can get our hands on. While this is not the “cheap” route or an “economically savy” business decision it is the choice we make for quality. We do this for us, we do this for you, and we do this for our community.

Thank you for supporting us for another season. We look forward to seeing you down at The Farm and Quiessence soon!

Salut!
Chef Greg

Enter the doors of Quiessence Restaurant at the Farm and you’ll be greeted by a bounty of fruits, vegetables and flowers. But they’re not limited to the plate anymore.

Artist Bertica Garcia Dubus has beautifully captured the juicy pulp of fresh cut limes, crispy paper skins of red onions and waxy sheen of golden peppers in her series of food-inspired paintings now on display throughout the restaurant’s dining rooms.

Long time fans of the Farm will remember Bertica from her work with the Artist’s Studio. More recently, she presented an exhibit of 35 paintings in Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic.

The paintings will be on display throughout the summer and fall of 2009 and are available for purchase.

Make your dinner reservation to enjoy food for all the senses. 602-276-6701.

We may all get our fifteen minutes of fame, but few of us come from a family so influential that a major road has our surname on it. But that’s the scenario for Ron Power Jr. and his wife Trescia — who own Power Ranches in San Simon, AZ and think nothing of tooling down that major East Valley artery known as Power Road. Ron is a descendent of James Oliver Power, who began farming a 2,000-acre spread near Queen Creek in 1917. After World War II, the family began running cattle and later moved their farming and ranching operation to a remote spot in southeastern Arizona, where their cattle could graze on pristine pastures. These days, Ron and Trescia supply us with the 100% organic Limousin beef we offer at Quiessence, their commitment to quality evident in every juicy, ultra-flavorful bite. Check out their website (www.powerranches.com) to learn more about the superiority of the Limousin breed, what the Powers feed their cattle (alfalfa and natural grasses) and more importantly, what they don’t give them: hormones, additives, antibiotics, steroids or animal byproducts.But maybe the easiest way to become a believer is by conducting your own taste-test. So why not bring Dad down to the Farm on Father’s Day? We’ll serve him the best steak he’s ever eaten, and you’ll feel good knowing it’s the safest, healthiest beef money can buy — solid proof he raised you right.

He’s back…One night only!

Quiessence Restaurant welcomes legendary Arizona wine maker and Hollywood film director Sam Pillsbury and his award-winning wines for a can’t-miss night of storytelling throughout six courses of dinner and wine!

 View the menu and RSVP online >

DOWNLOAD & VIEW THE MENU >

Celebrate Earth Day with Quiessence and the Farm at South Mountain as we present a very special Earth Dinner & Farm Tour. Discover the merits of sustainable farming right at the source as you stroll through our organic gardens and scenic property.

Dinner features a “green” spin on five courses of vegetarian dishes, each paired with an organic mini cocktail.

6:30pm – Reception and Hors d’Oeuvres
Mix & mingle with friends and guests outdoors while enjoying “taste of the farm.” Owner A. Wayne Smith. will be on-hand to deliver a welcome speech.
7:00PM – Farm Tour
Led by farmer Maya Dailey, you’ll tour the organic gardens and learn all about sustainable living, farming and this seasons produce.

7:30PM – Earth Dinner at Quiessence
Savor a 5-course vegatble Earth Dinner featuring the seasonal bounty of the farm and region. (Sugar Snap Pea Soup with Crème Fraiche, Rainbow Valley Farmer’s Cheese Gnocchi with Maya’s Baby Beets, and more)

Each course will be paired with organic mini “cocktails.” (Fresh Mint and Organic Vodka Spritzer; Tomato Water Martini; Spiced Beet Bubbly; and others)

Quiessence Earth Dinner & Farm Tour
Space Is Limited. Reservations Required.
Call 602-276-0601 $75.00 per Person
Includes Reception, Farm Tour and Five Course Dinner with Cocktail Pairings
Tax and 18% Service Charge Not Included.
DOWNLOAD & VIEW THE MENU >

Looking for the ultimate vegetarian dining experience in Phoenix? Imagine salads, pastas, soups and dozens of dishes featuring fresh handcut vegetables from the organic gardens located on the same property. Some may call it “veggievore,” “locavore,” or other special label, but we simply call it everyday business as usual.

A New Menu Everyday: Each morning, Chef Gregory LaPrad visits with dozens of local vendors who present the day’s finest local and organically sourced fruits and vegetables. Only after hand picking the best seasonal produce and goods, LaPrad crafts the day’s menu to present a true farm to table experience.

In addition to our daily menu, Quiessence Restaurant will gladly craft a vegetarian feast for you and your guests.

• Most pastas and dishes can be made vegetarian
• We can even prepare gluten free meals
• Our menus are perfect for both vegetarian and non-vegetarian guests alike

With just a little advanced notice Chef LaPrad will craft an unforgettable multi-course, organic vegetarian experience.

Quiessence Restaurant is located at this historic Farm at South Mountain, just 8 minutes from downtown Phoenix.

View Today’s Fresh Menus>
(updated daily at 11am and 3pm)

With over 80 thoughtfully selected and award-winning wines, Quiessence Restaurant & Wine Bar offers a unique selection of boutique varietals by the glass or bottle.

“The wine list is one of the best in the Southwest,” says national wine & food critic John Mariani in recent article for Bloomberg (read full article here.)

Quiessence proudly features only domestic and Arizona wines to maintain our commitment to locally-conscious dining. Explore the list and find wonderful Arizona selections from nearby winemakers and friends in Sonoita, Cornville and Coshise County. All our wines are hand-selected by Chef Gregory LaPrad to complete the perfect lunch or dinner experience.

Quiessence Restaurant & Wine Bar is located at The Farm at South Mountain, only 8 minutes from Downtown Phoenix

Eric Glomski: Vigneron

If you’ve met Eric before, you’d describe him as a Wine Grower, River Activist, Outdoorsman,  Brewer… the list goes on!

Now you can add Touring Vigneron to the list. Eric is currently traveling with fellow wino & Tool singer Maynard James Keenan to sign bottles and promote  their Arizona Stronghold wines.

We know and love him for the incredible Arizona wines produced from his Page Springs Cellars and Arizona Stronghold Vineyards.

For years he’s been a visionary force behind the state’s growing wine movement but with a unique focus of making incredible wines accessible and enjoyable by everyday people, specifically families.

He envisions a new American wine culture similar to Western Europe where “…wine is seamlessly integrated into family and culture,” says Glomski.

 By the way, a Vigneron  means wine grower in French. You learn something new everyday.

Stop by Quiessence Restaurant & Wine Bar to enjoy a glass (or bottle) of:

• Page Springs “Familia Blanca” Malvasia (white)
• Page Springs “La Serrana” Viognier (white)
• Arizona Stronghold “Nachise” (red)

View the Quiessence Wine List >

Follow Eric Glomski on the road >