A Review
By D & D Diners
If a menu offers a palate-pleasing variety of food, the large windows offer stunning views from every angle, the staff provides good service, and the venue offers exhibit space for local art, why isn’t the Overlook Restaurant busier? We are delighted to be working our way through their eclectic menu, but their inspired specials often throw us off our routine.
During our foray, we enjoyed the breakfast burrito, stuffed with bacon, eggs, cheddar/jack cheese, and green chiles. It is a double blessing because half of it becomes dinner! The burrito stands on its own, but the accompanying salsa has just the right note of spicy kick. The firecracker shrimp, a perfect appetizer, are big and crunchy, perfectly paired with a piquant sriracha mayonnaise and a side of mandarin orange coleslaw. The chicken parmesan sandwich, accompanied by a side Caesar salad, stands up to similar offerings at “real” Italian restaurants with a sauce made with marinara, mozzarella/parmesan pesto mayonnaise, and pepperoncini. For those of you longing for seafood in the desert, their fish and chips easily satisfy that craving. And their sprightly Asian salad, made with cabbage, romaine, peppers, carrots, mandarin oranges, cashews, scallions, and crispy wontons, is served with ginger-sesame dressing that would be inspiring as a marinade for grilled chicken. A perfect afternoon lunch in a lovely setting, and we were the only diners.
The restaurant also offers specials which change daily. They sounded delicious, but we elected to stay with the printed menu. We did ask our charming server, Octavio, why some of them aren’t always on the menu. He said their chefs will readily add the most popular requests to the menu. Both the servers and the chefs routinely accommodate requests if they have the ingredients on hand. Octavio cited a dessert item that’s not always on the menu, but they make sure it’s available for one of their “regulars” who comes in weekly. And speaking of menus, don’t just look at what is shown on the Overlook website. The menu in the restaurant is far more complete and varied than what you will see online.
So, why aren’t we all “regulars”? Part of the problem might be the hours. 10-4 is not exactly enticing for the early breakfast crowd, nor attractive to the fine-dining date-night folks, not to mention popular happy hours. It also feels like the Town has not fully committed to supporting the Overlook. Over the years, they have consistently changed the hours, considered turning it into a fitness center, toyed with getting rid of it and having a snack bar instead. Indeed, the golfers eat there occasionally (and single-handedly keep the bar going!), but golfers do not constitute a strong enough client base. There was even a push to bring in a local restaurateur, but OV would not offer a long-term lease, making it difficult for an entrepreneur to commit to the expense and effort.
We commit and challenge you to commit as well. Oro Valley is a more welcoming place because the Overlook exists. Don’t overlook it!
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