A staple on the Tempe culinary landscape, John Henry’s, has recently gone through a major change in the kitchen.
With the hiring of a new chef, Joseph Sneed, the upscale longtime favorite is aiming to continue offering the same high-quality dining for which it is known, at the same time bringing a little something new to the table.
From what I tasted, they’ve succeeded.
John Henry’s has long been recognized as offering one of the better dining experiences in Tempe. The owners strive to make atmosphere, menu and service all live up to this reputation. The restaurant’s traditional dinner menu consists of a wide selection of salads, pastas, chicken, duck, veal, beef, lamb, pork and seafood.
As if that weren’t enough to keep the regular stream of customers happy, every few weeks John Henry’s hosts a wine dinner. The date I attended was of particular note because it was Chef Sneed’s first time hosting one of these dinners.
Here patrons can enjoy a pleasant gastronomic tour through five different courses, each paired with a specially selected wine from around the world. I was lucky enough to be invited. I was lucky enough to be on hand for this one.
There were a few things that stuck out in my mind about the food, the wine and the experience itself.
Fresh and high-quality ingredients are key to good food, and it was quickly evident that both were designed to meet that requirement.
A few of the dishes that really got me jazzed were the Smoked Salmon Canapé with Crème Fraiche, which prefaced our culinary tour perfectly.
Likewise, the Shrimp Scampi was awesome. There were also great reactions from the guests to the main course, a filet mignon topped with fresh tomato relish.
Now to the wine.
Sometimes the planners of these kinds of dinners elsewhere don’t take enough time to carefully consider interesting pairings that are more than just the norm.
At John Henry’s sommelier and manager Adam Selden, who was in charge of the wine pairings, was thoughtful in choosing his selections. He also did not short the guests when the time came to pour. We got more than our money’s worth in both quantity and quality.
An interesting pairing was a Vouvray (white wine from the Loire region of France) that accompanied a delicate gazpacho. Not your typical pairing, but it worked surprisingly well.
The third part of the evening that proved memorable to me was how the guests exhibited a wonderful sense of community at this event.
Most everyone appeared to be a regular, and Adam seemed to know all of them, giving the dinner an enjoyable added dimension of neighborhood.
There are other restaurants around the Valley that offer these types of wine dinners, including some at a lower price than John Henry’s ($75 per person).
However, based on the total experience, this was a classic example of getting what you pay for, and more.
John Henry’s is at 909 E. Elliot, southeast corner Rural and Elliot, Tempe. Phone: 480-730-9009. Website: www.johnhenrysrestaurant.com .
