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Lincoln Restaurant preview: inside Camelback Inn's new restaurant

Posted at 1:40 PM, Oct 17, 2016
and last updated 2016-10-17 16:40:45-04

In August, we learned that BLT Steak, the signature restaurant at the JW Marriott Scottsdale Camelback Inn Resort & Spa in Scottsdale, would be replaced by a new restaurant and bar in October.

Lincoln Restaurant features modern American cuisine and Bar 1936 would offer craft cocktails and house-made mixers.

Last week, ABC15 was given a sneak peek at the redesign, the menu and a few signature dishes, which will celebrate its grand opening in the next few weeks.

THE REDESIGN

A majority of the changes are on the menu. However there were some aesthetic changes to the dining room and the bar.

New light fixtures and tables were brought in and booths were reupholstered to give the dining room a more rustic, yet still sophisticated, feel, said Paul Rossi, hospitality executive at the resort. The most significant change involved turning a large banquet hallway into individual booths that directly face Camelback Mountain.

In the bar area, couches were replaced with wooden community tables. On the patio, they added stringed bistro lighting.

THE FOOD

Chef Chris Neff said Lincoln's fall menu has a southern influence to go along with the restaurant's ranch look.

Steaks have a prominent place on the menu -- New York Strip, filet, hangar, ribeye -- but there is also fish, chicken, and starter salads.

"I want [guests] to relax and have a good meal," said Neff, 29.

One of his favorite dishes on the menu is the Country Fried Mary's Chicken, which uses "chicken oysters" (two pieces of dark meat on the backbone).

Other dishes he highlighted was tuna tartare, Chef's Garden Tomatoes salad, Allen Brothers Hangar Steak and a side of potato wedges (additional photos in the player above).

THE DRINKS

While Neff developed Lincoln's menu, it was David Kent who developed Bar 1936's drink menu. Hand-crafted cocktails are the staple, a trend that has been bustling here in Phoenix and across the country, and bourbon, whiskey and scotch are the staples here.

It isn't written on the menu, but Kent said Bar 1936 will offering flights where guests can choose three whiskeys, bourbons or scotches to try.

He also pointed out the Barrel Aged 1936 Manhattan, the resort's signature drink, which features Basil Hayden Kentucky Straight Bourbon, Mandarine Napoleon and Madeira.

Bar 1936 is considered to be a "toasting bar." On each of the community tables you'll find a decorative metal bar that chimes when you tap a glass against it -- say for a toast.

IF YOU GO:
Lincoln and Bar 1936
5402 E. Lincoln Drive, Scottsdale AZ 85253
www.camelbackinn.com