I agree with @thumper1 that St. Francis is a good choice if you’re not sure people really want Mexican food and you definitively need a large room. But just to be clear they have virtually no Mexican food. Aside from the Pork Chile Verde, there’s no Mexican food on their menu (http://stfrancisaz.com/wp-content/uploads/DinnerMenu1.pdf). I like the restaurant a lot – it’s in my hood – but if you’re willing to take the light rail up to Central and Camelback there are many other restaurants at that intersection to choose from, of which only Joyride is really Mexican.
Oh too bad! I had great fajitas at St. Francis when I was there last.
Apropos of the Mexican food comment, I suppose I should say that I don’t necessarily think of Phoenix as being a great Mexican food city. There are certainly some great Mexican restaurants here, but it’s not like Tucson, where I like to think that everyone has their favorite Mexican restaurants ranked and will argue their merits extensively. I would recommend to the OP that they find a restaurant whose menu people can agree on with a big room and accessible with their limited transportation, with Mexican cuisine being a nice bonus. I don’t think of Phoenix as being a city where the Mexican cuisine defines it. If you’re visiting from a fair distance, I can understand your desire to eat Mexican food, just understand that it’s perfectly normal to visit Phoenix and never touch a taco or try chicken mole and still think you’ve eaten at some great only-in-Phoenix restaurants.
@thumper1 – St. Francis is under new ownership in the last… year? six months?, so it’s possible that they’ve further tweaked their menu since you last ate there.
Ah…I didn’t know about the new ownership of St. Francis. Thanks.
Still…it’s good with a varied menu.