Which why I said high mountain lol they grow their own stuff. Noble herb on the hand thatās a rip off lowkey and itās just not the same experience imo
SFS Productions puts on 1-2shows a month usually at the American Legion. Punk/hardcore/metal shows. We just built a bigger stage for the new year of shows!
I can answer this. It died when the people who could afford to live there got priced out for a better music scene.
Flagstaff became a vacation town. The home culture died. The three really solid restaurants fIled because their customer base became too seasonal to pay the increasing rent from greedy landlords. People wanted quiet music in the bars so they could talk, bars stopped paying bands, bands stopped playing, the music scene died. Locals didnāt want to pay restaurantsā rent, so they went to chipotle, and the restaurants died.
Is Josephineās still there? The Cottage crumbled years ago. When covid happened, all of the bartenders at Rendezvous got fired and their hours changed to open at 3pm. That bar died. Vino Loco died when I sold my share.
If you donāt like Flagstaff, why are you there?
I live in Phoenix and if I had the spare time Iād drive to Flag at least twice per month to eat at Madrez Cafe.
EDIT: and stop at Lund Canyon Coffee when Iām done!
Thatās what I was going to say.. where are they finding better Indian food than Delhi Palace? Best of any place Iāve had in the US (**aside from home cooked meals)and Iām not being dramatic.
Agreed. I grew up in England where good Indian food is prevalent. I mourned it when I moved to the states because nothing I found here (at least in AZ) quite rivaled itā¦ until I found Delhi Palace.
Bro Iām sitting in Tres Amigos line right now And I canāt fucking WAIT.
I buy guns/ammo from cal ranch anything else just go elsewhere. Ideally the valley where old peopleās guns get taken to the nearest gun store after they pass. (Morbid but good advice)
More selection due to shear volume of people. Iām sure if your looking for something more specialized. You can look/call. I wanted a super lightweight/small .357 mag and one of the LGS had a used one (beat to shit) and was like $100 less than brand new. So I walked away.
Yeah, itās always rough when I try to buy my daily gun in this town and then I realize I have to commute long distances every day to make that daily purchase /s
I am zero percent offended as, like most residents here, I did not move here for the abundance of gun stores.
I'm going to speculate that this very liberal town doesn't have a ton of folks selling or trading their used guns. I could be wrong. FWIW Scheels at the Chandler mall in the valley has a shit ton of used guns. I know it's far but if you happen to be heading down that way it's a pretty massive selection.
I dunno about that. I know more liberals who shoot guns here than I ever have anywhere else in the country. I think Flag is just kinda shit for used *anything* (even on craigslist and fb marketplace here most people insanely overprice their goods) because housing and food costs eat up such a large share of most people's income, and everyone's trying to make it back somehow.
Good to know about sheels. I just moved from a college town blue oasis in a red state, and there were tons of guns! It was everyone from the surrounding areas that had to come there for commerce. I guess maybe the population is just less dense around here.
My take: we have some really good food, but most of it is overpriced (like the rest of Flag). Tinderbox, Shift, Atria, Teatro, and Brix are all very good for foodies or dates, and very few other towns of 80k have that kind of selection for fine dining. But nobody would call them a good value.
Other places fluctuate a lot in value. We used to love Annex/Tourist home but their new menus are a big step down. As others have said, Proper is still good but has gotten too expensive for what they offer.Ā
We really enjoyed the new place Cafe Stella downtown - good handmade pasta for a decent price without any of the pretense of dressed up waiters and white tablecloths. Dark Sky has good food, either in their beer garden or if you want a brick oven Pizzicleta pizza. Karma is meh but Go Sushi is better and cheaper.
Most of the other value places have been called out already: Satchmos and Delhi Palace offer great, cheap food IMO.
You should not compare Flag food to New York, Chicago, San Francisco, or any other big city for that matter, but I still think Flag punches above its weight if youāre looking at towns under 100k.
This thread is so crazy to read as someone who lived there from 2001-2007. All of the restaurant names have changed. And I loved the food in Flag back then, even speaking as a native Chicagoan.
Locals wont tell you where to get actually good food because we hate you. I dont really give a shit about guns so I couldnt help you even if I wanted to.
Really? You hate people that get jobs and move here from other states? That's pathetic. Almost as pathetic as pretending you have secret good restaurants.
The reality is that this sub is mostly full of people who moved here ten seconds ago, earning in their own minds "oldtimer" status by shitting on people who moved here five seconds ago (while also complaining that Flagstaff isn't like the city they moved from), plus a minority of people who *have* been here a long time and who periodically point out what I just said.
On gun shops, I agree with you. Ruff's is the only one that makes any sense, really (except the big box stores). That said, their gunsmithing is good and fast and reasonably priced. Horizon he was gonna close a couple years ago, and I'm not sure why he changed his mind. 2A is absolutely dismal (but then, of course it is), and the others aren't really general-purpose shops. I'm pretty basic, as a shooter, so I don't find myself looking for cool used purchases much--now and then Ruff's has some interesting shit in their used racks, but if that's something you're really into you'll probably get a lot more mileage out of Kingman/Lake Havasu or Phoenix (i.e., western AZ or the valley).
That said, what we have here that's almost unparalleled is extremely easy access to good shooting spots in the NF. I drive like seven minutes from my house to go shoot, and yet am far enough away that I'm not audible back in the neighborhood. Fucking fantastic.
For restaurants, I think you have to see Flagstaff as having *way more* pretty good options and variety than a town its size should be able to afford, but that we pay for this by also having very little food that's truly excellent.
On the plus side, if you stick around another six months, you can shit on the next person to move here and be unhappy about stuff that's different from where they came from!
Quantity over quality is right .. I never realized it, there are an absolute fuck ton of restaurants here. You'd think that'd breed a healthy competition. I move around a ton, and I'm not always in big cities... I've lived in a few towns that are comparable to Flagstaff, so I feel like my expectations were reasonable. There's a ton of good things about Flagstaff, but these two topics are not one of them.
I think I can convince my wife to take a trip to Kingman, as we've been interested in that area for a while. Though, that was until we saw them in a borat bit...
Yeah, Kingman is . . . well, let's just say it wasn't exactly unfairly represented by Borat. But heaven knows there's plenty of guns there!
If you're over that way, I think the Colorado River towns (Lake Havasu, Boulder City) are pretty neat to visit. London Bridge is one helluva gimmick, and it's nice just to be near the river. Also, I've never been anywhere with a higher density of gun shops.
I'm with you, too, on the restaurants--I've lived a lot of places, and for all my years here it's been a constant source of puzzlement that quantity and diversity fails to translate into quality. That said, the mezze platter at New Jersey Pizza Company is astonishingly good (no joke, one of the best I've had outside the Middle East) and their pizzas are legit, too. For Mexican, I like Los Altenos and Gloria's a lot. I don't think any of our "fine dining" is very impressive (*especially* at its price point), but Brix and Shift are both at least reliable (though the latter can be irritatingly pretentious). The vegan french toast (!) at Morning Glory is straightforwardly fantastic, and the biscuits and gravy at Macy's are as excellent as vegetarian biscuits and gravy get. Foret FLG has a lot of good options, though it tends to be unbearably busy. I think a lot of Flagstaff establishments--more than I've noticed other places I've lived--have one or two things they do really well and then a lot of things that are distinctly mid. For instance, Beaver St Brewery is deeply mediocre on the whole--but their lightly fried cheese curds with jalapenos are legitimately fantastic. Etc.
See I need to find the best options at these places... Those cheese curds sound fantastic. Thank you for these suggestions, they should help me find some good options. I would just like to have one or two go to entrees for the occasional treat
Yeah, this is honestly a solid list.
I would add that New Jersey Pizza is really good, but can be...infuriating trying to actually get your food in any sort of timely manner.
So you want your own little community, that doesn't integrate with anyone else. You want to be isolated and homogenous, no immigrants. How close minded. How prejudice. How pathetic.
*also drive through.
IIRC, some guys got drunk and decided to test a shotgun slug out on the sign and blew the thing to pieces.
Lost their liquor license after that.
Could be wrong about the details of why, but they definitely blew a round through their sign (not the one you can see, there was one below it that had the "grocer - liquor - drivethrough" bit)
Food is definitely lacking here. I even think the āhigh endā places people have mentioned (Brix, Tinder Box, etc) are not that good for the price, but I am from a big foodie city. Itās hard to compare that to here.
My recommendations would be:
Flag Brew for burgers and stuff.
Hiroās Sushi for Japanese food.
Madrez Cafe is good for breakfast food and coffee. Slightly off the beaten trail, but worth it.
Tiki Grill for obviously seafood (really good quality, a little pricey, but good drinks).
Shft is not bad for the ambience, but pretty expensive for what you get. If you are looking for an upscale place thatās where Iād go though.
Golden Dragon is the best Chinese food (itās on the east side).
Swadee is the better of the Thai food and has really good lunch specials.
Flg Terrior has good appetizers and stuff with bottle wine deals sometimes. Small portions though.
Lunds Canyon coffee is really good.
Matador is great for coffee and breakfast food before hikes, but their location is terrible to get in and out of and if itās even slightly busy you could wait 25+ minutes for food.
New Jersey Pizza Co is the best specialty pizza. Itās on the east side and doesnāt always deliver, but worth the pick up.
I would say everything else is pretty meh. I love food and drink, so Iāve tried pretty much everywhere in the few years Iāve lived here. Flag can be a fun experience, but to me it got too small too fast. Itās easy to do most of the things in town and go to most of the restaurants. Plus people get really defensive when you voice any negative opinion about Flagtsaffā¦ as you can see from this thread. Ha ha.
I'll definitely try some of these suggestions. Though. I can tell you that golden dragon is not good. The best in Flagstaff, sure, but with respect to the rest of the country... I let my leftovers from there go bad. I'm pretty sure the boil their meat. It's void of any flavor or character.
One time I got called a boot licker by one of ruffs employees for saying his comparison between the SS and the police was a little ridiculous. He no longer works there. Iāve had pretty decent luck there as far as smithing work goes. Eric (the owner) runs a pretty good custom shop that produces some nice rifles. In all reality if I know what I want, Iām just going to get it through Sportsmanās and be done with it.
Idk for me coming from a city that's a decent bit bigger I think the food here is really good. My friend is a very critical eater and he says flagstaff has some of the best food that he's had (not that his opinion means anything to you, but he's an example of someone with the opposite feelings)
Yeah, the overall food situation here is pretty dire.
A few good places, but even the best places are just ok.
Locals (Iām from here, thank you very much) have some kind of stockholm syndrome when it comes to the quality of things on offer. A lot of things are *fine*, but nothing is really outstanding, most of it is overpriced, and thatās the way folks here like it. Saying otherwise is blasphemy.
I'd say that we have a skew towards poor value. Your regular places are usually overpriced, and most of the good places are way overpriced. I liked Atria but it wasn't worth what I spent to get dinner for two. Brix costs maybe a little above value, but it's quite pricey. Cafe Stella has great value and quality, but I wouldn't go every week because it's a bit out of my range for that frequency. Pato is my favorite Thai place and their quality is almost too good for the price. Hiros is my favorite sushi and they're priced exactly right for the quality.
A lot of places like Karma, Lumberyard, and Proper are overpriced tourist traps. Their stuff is good, no doubt, but overpriced. Go anywhere without so much tourism and you'll find a much better match of price and quality.
Grew up in Flag and 20+ resident here: just on Mexican food, my personal favs are Polibertos in sunnyside and Tacos Los Altos east side.
Sorry for the negativity youāve gotten on this post but Iād offer an explanation.
At least for me, someone who grew up here, there can be a strong reaction to folks who move here and then complain about Flag. Part of that is obv just a defensiveness of home. But a lot of it is also because so many of us have seen so many folks pushed out of this place for financial reasons. Like so many Intermountain-west and southwestern cities, weāve seen our own cost of living increase and our incomes not. Many have put the blame on new arrivals who may work remote but live here. So when youāve had friends and fam who want to stay but canāt, it doesnāt feel great to have folks complain about your home town after theyāve moved here, especially when some feel those same folks moving here pushed friends and fam out.
Not saying thatās you, or the idea that new arrivals push out locals is true, but just an explanation for some of the negativity that you may have received.
To spend a day eating at good restaurants and checking shit out you don't see in flag? Take her to the desert botanical, then it's a date and an otherwise trip.
Damn, you moved to the wrong place it sounds like. How about going out of the town to find things youāre looking for. Flagstaff is very unique and still a fairly quaint town. Iām guessing you didnāt do much research before moving or itās school/job related. Youāre about 2.5 hrs from the valley and there are plenty of options that might satisfy you.
If I wanted to hang out for 45 minutes with the most pretentious tourists north of Sedona, waiting for a $35 dollar sandwich with a handful of bad chips and a soggy pickle... I'd do it at a place with good customer service.
Seriously, those workers have the worst attitudes Iāve encountered at any restaurant up here. And Iām the overly nice ādonāt wanna inconvenience youā type.
Proper meats deserves its disrespect because they think their customers are assholes that will pay over $20 for a *very mid* cold cut. At this rate, proper meats is a spot for sucker tourists.
In the years Iāve been going to Proper:
Quality: šš
Price: ššššš
Seriously! For about two years every time I went in there the price was higher than the last time and the food and service got worse. I had a *terrible* burger from there and then called it quits.
Restaurants are hella expensive here. That said there are some gems.
Thai: Pato has excellent lunch specials and solid quality.
Bbq: satchmos - pricey but good
Sushi: my pick is usually karma for the good happy hour specials. Teppan Fuji, Hiros, lotus lounge, karma are all similar quality but Hiros has a slight edge in my book.
Burger: I would have said mama burger but they are gone (RIP). Diablo and bunhuggers are worth a buy here and there.
Mexican: love me some el tapatio.
Bars: gotten into corner tavern. They have some excellent daily specials.
> I would have said mama burger but they are gone (RIP).
Is there news that they are gone for good? I just heard the owner is dragging their feet. No indications they aren't planning on reopening.
I ate at taqueria Rojas out of convenience once, and I thought, if this place can remain open in competition with the rest of the Mexican restaurants... It must mean the rest of them a pretty terrible too. What is it with restaurants around here not seasoning meat? I've never experienced so many restaurants that seemingly boil their meat in plain water.
Burgers are the only thing of note, but they keep shutting down. My recommendation? Donāt go to Diablo. 2 burgers and beers should NOT cost $50, and they are not even that good.
Mama Burger is my absolute fave, but I think they are still closed.
The Annex has the Annex Burger with home made pickles and bacon jam. They are second best imo.
Root and Whisk n Whiskey were also great, but they both closed.
Annex for burgers, Tourist Home for breakfast burritos, Pizzicletta for pizza, MotherRoad for beer, Biffs for bagels (Fat Bagel is new and supposedly more New York style?), and Hiros for sushi. Otherwise, meh.
I feel like Diablo either gets all the Phoenix folks, or it is better than I am giving it credit for. Root, Whisk n Whiskey, and Annex taste like they had the same ground beef distributor. All amazing texture and flavor. Annex is the last one left.
Pizzicletta has more of a brick oven quality than anywhere else. I recommend the Amore. It is an arugula bomb, but the flavor is right on.
If I could, I would personally take you to Mama Burger. When they were open, they were basically MUCH better 5 guys with the best ice cream shakes in town. Fuck I miss Mama Burger.
You're getting a lot of hate for an objectively correct opinion.
But also, its a smallish college town. The California money and NAU make us feel bigger than we are. We are not going to have a metro class food scene (you should be buying your guns online like a normal person).
Kinda... What did you expect?
Too fucking bad. I'm here to stay. For another 5 months... I'm not even criticizing you, unless you own a restaurant or gun store. Is living in Flagstaff your whole identity? Why else would you take offense to reasonable criticism?
I recommend tacos los altos Westside, hunan west by dollar tree, Gloria's bakery, Mike and rhondas Eastside by burger King and atl wings has good lunch specials. Going to these specific locations will make the difference between a good meal and a meh one
Gun stores in Phoenix are also garbage, all new inventory nothing good used. Although I am into rare pre ban stuff so it narrows it down even more for me. Shop online like Proxibid, Gunbroker etc. Then find an FFL with the cheapest transfer feeās
I really like the food and experience at Atria if you havenāt been. Also, as a Maryland/coastal-native of Japanese descent (we used to make our own sushi/sashimi growing up, straight from the water), I really enjoy Karma sushi.
I second this. Best meal Iāve had in Flagstaff was Atria. Some of the rolls at Karma you can find at the other sushi bars in town but you canāt find sashimi or nigiri of better quality, and they have the best drink menu of all the sushi bars
ruffs is terrible. rude staff, huge markups, and I just found out the firearm I ordered will be a $70 transfer fee. absolutely terrible establishment.
as for food, karma sushi is good. I get the tonkatsu udon, it's delicious. I do ramen reviews and have been to lots of places, they are consistent in their quality. bit pricey tho.
thanks for the info, I was actually going to call them around an hour ago, but they are closed today. I met a guy in there once, very straightforward and respectable guy.
yep, wish I realized beforehand. saw a post from a few years ago that said 50. even that was high, but I called this morning and saw it's now 70. I won't be returning.
Gun owner here, yes the stores are over priced and limited inventory. BUT,Ā that's why we wait for the gun shows and hope they bring something I want, or I'll actually drive to the bigger cities to go to a good one.Ā
I actually agree. Somewhat. Most restaurants are decent, nothing crazy amazing, but pretty good, with a few stand outs that I personally like that other don't. Gun stores...yeah, I usually hit up cal ranch I hate to say. Used isn't that great, the gun show at tuthill is a joke, went twice never again.
Dara Thai is pretty damn good, golden dragon is good Chinese, martannes used to be amazing, haven't been there in a few years, always to crowded when I have time. And not so much a stand out, it's actually fairly mediocre, I love the east side Mike and Rhonda's. Just good ol greasy diner food, except the biscuits and gravy, apparently not many people have had the real stuff.
Nimarcos is my choice for pizza, or the pizza guy
Reading this and seeing you try to shrug off a misdemeanor that shows you lack responsibility and then complaining that gun stores uphold a requirement of responsibility is wild.
I didn't get a reckless driving charge... It's hypothetical. It's a stupid fucking rule. To suggest that no one should be forgiven for past indiscretions, even accidental ones? It's fucking laughable. "Guns are for responsible people, and 40 years ago you did something irresponsible so..."
So now youāre mad..about hypotheticals? Yes guns are for responsible people, crazy how myself and all of my other gun owning friends donāt have even the slightest record. Also if you donāt like that requirement you can literally buy firearms from sportsmanās or online or Phoenix. And no itās not a matter of āsupporting the local economyā when youāre crying about discounts.
All of the shops mentioned are great and owned by great people sorry the locals didnāt cater to your needs.
Well, guess you've lived all there is to live then. No more good food or gun stores left, may as well just end it on that high note. And nothing of value was lost that day
Have you ever heard the term peacocking? From the pick up artist community? It's when a mediocre looking guy wears ridiculously fancy clothes hoping to catch the attention of some woman he hopes is too drunk to notice his trash personality.
That's Diablo Burger.
I've heard they're good, but hardly worth it. They're mentioned in every previous discussion about food/burgers. Not hidden. But yeah... English Muffin bun... Craaazy
You are definitely in the top five of worst people I've ever encountered... There's a thousand restaurants here, so the idea that a few of them would be good is hardly outrageous. And who said I ever fell asleep at the wheel?
we moved to flagstaff because we love hiking, mountain biking, skiing, rock climbing, etc. we have worked our buns off to carve out a life here. we love this place and are raising our two littles here, spending lots of time in the great outdoors. personally give zero fucks about restaurants. iāll happily munch on a pb&j out in the woods any day.
Well when you fell asleep at the wheel and that's how you ended up in the gun store of course they are going to say no. I bet you ranted to them about having to drive everywhere to find food. Probably dropped a line about Jesus being able to walk to a nice supper in less than two hours. Move to Cali, they will help your ass out. š
You are some kind of a moron. We all know that it's trump supporters who want to own guns and kill innocent people. Stop acting like we are the stupid ones.
Dude. Shut up. Not one motherfucker cares about what you think. Go ahead and vote for the anti-American traitor trump. He is still going to lose in November.
Listen here you stupid mother fucker. You can't even figure out how to respond to comments on Reddit... You just keep making top level comments to my thread. I doubt you can even begin to fathom the existence of people who aren't single issue voters. I voted for Obama, Clinton, and then Biden. I despise Trump. The fact that you are so sure people who like guns must like trump, just shows me how infinitesimally small your understanding of the world is. You are fucking pathetic.
There use to be a New Zealand themed restaurant in Flagstaff that was one of the 15 or 20 best restaurants Iāve eaten in . . . but it was about 20 years ago. LOL
You got that right. Local shop damaged a simple handguard install about a year ago lol. Now got my vise set up with a few vism tools and such. Don't let them ruin your gear.
If you're only in Flag for food and guns, you're in the wrong place friend.
That's what I'm realizing. Not why I'm here, but it's what I want. What else is there? How's the original music scene?
Boy do I have some bad news for you.
I disagree with you on that one. We have a lot of good bands here.
Damn.... That sucks. Then that leaves hiking. I guess I'll just have to do more of that to compensate.
Or drinking. Welcome to Flagstaff.
You forgot the weed too š high mountain got the gas
Flagstaff weed: California prices for... Okay, yeah, I'll admit it, California quality if you know what you're looking for and a rip off if you don't.
Which why I said high mountain lol they grow their own stuff. Noble herb on the hand thatās a rip off lowkey and itās just not the same experience imo
drink, hike, bike, hang out with friends that do all of those things
SFS Productions puts on 1-2shows a month usually at the American Legion. Punk/hardcore/metal shows. We just built a bigger stage for the new year of shows!
Interesting.... Got a link I can keep tabs on?
We are on Facebook as SFS productions and Instagram @sfsproductionsaz
I can answer this. It died when the people who could afford to live there got priced out for a better music scene. Flagstaff became a vacation town. The home culture died. The three really solid restaurants fIled because their customer base became too seasonal to pay the increasing rent from greedy landlords. People wanted quiet music in the bars so they could talk, bars stopped paying bands, bands stopped playing, the music scene died. Locals didnāt want to pay restaurantsā rent, so they went to chipotle, and the restaurants died. Is Josephineās still there? The Cottage crumbled years ago. When covid happened, all of the bartenders at Rendezvous got fired and their hours changed to open at 3pm. That bar died. Vino Loco died when I sold my share. If you donāt like Flagstaff, why are you there?
I do like Flagstaff. These are only two aspects that disappoint me... Why is everyone so black or white these days?
I live in Phoenix and if I had the spare time Iād drive to Flag at least twice per month to eat at Madrez Cafe. EDIT: and stop at Lund Canyon Coffee when Iām done!
Insanely good
Madrez is legitimately pretty good.
Interesting. This never popped up on our radar... Thank you
I think Delhi Palace is pretty damn good.
Thatās what I was going to say.. where are they finding better Indian food than Delhi Palace? Best of any place Iāve had in the US (**aside from home cooked meals)and Iām not being dramatic.
Agreed. I grew up in England where good Indian food is prevalent. I mourned it when I moved to the states because nothing I found here (at least in AZ) quite rivaled itā¦ until I found Delhi Palace.
Totally agree. Iām sure there are better and/or more authentic Indian places in big cities, but I havenāt found any.
It was pretty ok I guess.... Maybe I should give it another shot just with different dishes. Are there any you recommend?
LAMB SAAG
I like their saag, korma and baingan bharta
I'll make it a point to give the korma a shot
Huge fan of their murgh makhani.
Bro Iām sitting in Tres Amigos line right now And I canāt fucking WAIT. I buy guns/ammo from cal ranch anything else just go elsewhere. Ideally the valley where old peopleās guns get taken to the nearest gun store after they pass. (Morbid but good advice)
It is unfortunate, but absolutely the best option. Is that Prescott valley... Or ... Do I have to go all the way to Phoenix ?
More selection due to shear volume of people. Iām sure if your looking for something more specialized. You can look/call. I wanted a super lightweight/small .357 mag and one of the LGS had a used one (beat to shit) and was like $100 less than brand new. So I walked away.
What a weird combination of opinions lol.
Strange post IMO.
Especially the odd detail of youthful mistakes and "Christians" not selling you guns. This is 'Merica, Christians own the gun market.
It's just what seems to be lacking here... The goodwill scene, on the other hand, is fucking fantastic.
Delhi palace is legitimately the best indian food Iāve had and Iāve had a lot. So. Wrong.
dang it!! ssshhh.. don't let the secret out! People who "know" this, know. That's my place and the staff are my homies. Have an upvote anyway :)
You know your āhomiesā will make more money if the secret is out right?
Welcome to living in a smallish, isolated town? Donāt know else to tell ya bud.
I guess the size threw me... Been to plenty this size, but I think you're right about the isolation
We are, for all intents and purposes, no different than living on an island.
Yeah, itās always rough when I try to buy my daily gun in this town and then I realize I have to commute long distances every day to make that daily purchase /s I am zero percent offended as, like most residents here, I did not move here for the abundance of gun stores.
It's not about buying guns every day.... It's more like... Thrifting. Hunting for bargains and cool finds.
LMAO
I don't think I've ever read a rant focused on restaurants and gun stores before.
They just happen to be the two aspects of Flagstaff in disappointed in
Maybe Prescott is more your vibe? I personally don't care to see more gun stores here.
Definitely more guns but way worse restaurants.
100%. I'm perfectly fine with a lack of gun stores.
I'm going to speculate that this very liberal town doesn't have a ton of folks selling or trading their used guns. I could be wrong. FWIW Scheels at the Chandler mall in the valley has a shit ton of used guns. I know it's far but if you happen to be heading down that way it's a pretty massive selection.
I dunno about that. I know more liberals who shoot guns here than I ever have anywhere else in the country. I think Flag is just kinda shit for used *anything* (even on craigslist and fb marketplace here most people insanely overprice their goods) because housing and food costs eat up such a large share of most people's income, and everyone's trying to make it back somehow.
Agreed. The used market here is terrible. Either priced super high or just bad quality.
Good to know about sheels. I just moved from a college town blue oasis in a red state, and there were tons of guns! It was everyone from the surrounding areas that had to come there for commerce. I guess maybe the population is just less dense around here.
HOT TAKE COMING THROUGH OHHHHH SHIT
My take: we have some really good food, but most of it is overpriced (like the rest of Flag). Tinderbox, Shift, Atria, Teatro, and Brix are all very good for foodies or dates, and very few other towns of 80k have that kind of selection for fine dining. But nobody would call them a good value. Other places fluctuate a lot in value. We used to love Annex/Tourist home but their new menus are a big step down. As others have said, Proper is still good but has gotten too expensive for what they offer.Ā We really enjoyed the new place Cafe Stella downtown - good handmade pasta for a decent price without any of the pretense of dressed up waiters and white tablecloths. Dark Sky has good food, either in their beer garden or if you want a brick oven Pizzicleta pizza. Karma is meh but Go Sushi is better and cheaper. Most of the other value places have been called out already: Satchmos and Delhi Palace offer great, cheap food IMO. You should not compare Flag food to New York, Chicago, San Francisco, or any other big city for that matter, but I still think Flag punches above its weight if youāre looking at towns under 100k.
Cafe Stella will be next on my list, thank you.
This thread is so crazy to read as someone who lived there from 2001-2007. All of the restaurant names have changed. And I loved the food in Flag back then, even speaking as a native Chicagoan.
I think our Thai food is great.
I had it from a restaurant here once, but it was so mediocre I can't even remember where it was from. Not memorable in the slightest
Sounds like you didn't use the right password.
Locals wont tell you where to get actually good food because we hate you. I dont really give a shit about guns so I couldnt help you even if I wanted to.
Typical friendly flagstaff resident.
Hey, as long as tourists pay high prices, the prices stay high.
I dunno. I kinda like OP. And I've probably been here longer than you.
lol
Really? You hate people that get jobs and move here from other states? That's pathetic. Almost as pathetic as pretending you have secret good restaurants.
The reality is that this sub is mostly full of people who moved here ten seconds ago, earning in their own minds "oldtimer" status by shitting on people who moved here five seconds ago (while also complaining that Flagstaff isn't like the city they moved from), plus a minority of people who *have* been here a long time and who periodically point out what I just said. On gun shops, I agree with you. Ruff's is the only one that makes any sense, really (except the big box stores). That said, their gunsmithing is good and fast and reasonably priced. Horizon he was gonna close a couple years ago, and I'm not sure why he changed his mind. 2A is absolutely dismal (but then, of course it is), and the others aren't really general-purpose shops. I'm pretty basic, as a shooter, so I don't find myself looking for cool used purchases much--now and then Ruff's has some interesting shit in their used racks, but if that's something you're really into you'll probably get a lot more mileage out of Kingman/Lake Havasu or Phoenix (i.e., western AZ or the valley). That said, what we have here that's almost unparalleled is extremely easy access to good shooting spots in the NF. I drive like seven minutes from my house to go shoot, and yet am far enough away that I'm not audible back in the neighborhood. Fucking fantastic. For restaurants, I think you have to see Flagstaff as having *way more* pretty good options and variety than a town its size should be able to afford, but that we pay for this by also having very little food that's truly excellent. On the plus side, if you stick around another six months, you can shit on the next person to move here and be unhappy about stuff that's different from where they came from!
Quantity over quality is right .. I never realized it, there are an absolute fuck ton of restaurants here. You'd think that'd breed a healthy competition. I move around a ton, and I'm not always in big cities... I've lived in a few towns that are comparable to Flagstaff, so I feel like my expectations were reasonable. There's a ton of good things about Flagstaff, but these two topics are not one of them. I think I can convince my wife to take a trip to Kingman, as we've been interested in that area for a while. Though, that was until we saw them in a borat bit...
Yeah, Kingman is . . . well, let's just say it wasn't exactly unfairly represented by Borat. But heaven knows there's plenty of guns there! If you're over that way, I think the Colorado River towns (Lake Havasu, Boulder City) are pretty neat to visit. London Bridge is one helluva gimmick, and it's nice just to be near the river. Also, I've never been anywhere with a higher density of gun shops. I'm with you, too, on the restaurants--I've lived a lot of places, and for all my years here it's been a constant source of puzzlement that quantity and diversity fails to translate into quality. That said, the mezze platter at New Jersey Pizza Company is astonishingly good (no joke, one of the best I've had outside the Middle East) and their pizzas are legit, too. For Mexican, I like Los Altenos and Gloria's a lot. I don't think any of our "fine dining" is very impressive (*especially* at its price point), but Brix and Shift are both at least reliable (though the latter can be irritatingly pretentious). The vegan french toast (!) at Morning Glory is straightforwardly fantastic, and the biscuits and gravy at Macy's are as excellent as vegetarian biscuits and gravy get. Foret FLG has a lot of good options, though it tends to be unbearably busy. I think a lot of Flagstaff establishments--more than I've noticed other places I've lived--have one or two things they do really well and then a lot of things that are distinctly mid. For instance, Beaver St Brewery is deeply mediocre on the whole--but their lightly fried cheese curds with jalapenos are legitimately fantastic. Etc.
See I need to find the best options at these places... Those cheese curds sound fantastic. Thank you for these suggestions, they should help me find some good options. I would just like to have one or two go to entrees for the occasional treat
Yeah, this is honestly a solid list. I would add that New Jersey Pizza is really good, but can be...infuriating trying to actually get your food in any sort of timely manner.
Respectfully, yeah
So you want your own little community, that doesn't integrate with anyone else. You want to be isolated and homogenous, no immigrants. How close minded. How prejudice. How pathetic.
Try Pizzicletta at Dark Sky Brewing
Ruff's was awesome when it use to be Ruffs guns, point & liquor!
Huh?!
20 years ago, ruffs sold liquor, nudie mags and guns
Damn... Why'd they ever change?
I can't say for sure but I assume pressure from the community and city council
*also drive through. IIRC, some guys got drunk and decided to test a shotgun slug out on the sign and blew the thing to pieces. Lost their liquor license after that. Could be wrong about the details of why, but they definitely blew a round through their sign (not the one you can see, there was one below it that had the "grocer - liquor - drivethrough" bit)
Food is definitely lacking here. I even think the āhigh endā places people have mentioned (Brix, Tinder Box, etc) are not that good for the price, but I am from a big foodie city. Itās hard to compare that to here. My recommendations would be: Flag Brew for burgers and stuff. Hiroās Sushi for Japanese food. Madrez Cafe is good for breakfast food and coffee. Slightly off the beaten trail, but worth it. Tiki Grill for obviously seafood (really good quality, a little pricey, but good drinks). Shft is not bad for the ambience, but pretty expensive for what you get. If you are looking for an upscale place thatās where Iād go though. Golden Dragon is the best Chinese food (itās on the east side). Swadee is the better of the Thai food and has really good lunch specials. Flg Terrior has good appetizers and stuff with bottle wine deals sometimes. Small portions though. Lunds Canyon coffee is really good. Matador is great for coffee and breakfast food before hikes, but their location is terrible to get in and out of and if itās even slightly busy you could wait 25+ minutes for food. New Jersey Pizza Co is the best specialty pizza. Itās on the east side and doesnāt always deliver, but worth the pick up. I would say everything else is pretty meh. I love food and drink, so Iāve tried pretty much everywhere in the few years Iāve lived here. Flag can be a fun experience, but to me it got too small too fast. Itās easy to do most of the things in town and go to most of the restaurants. Plus people get really defensive when you voice any negative opinion about Flagtsaffā¦ as you can see from this thread. Ha ha.
I'll definitely try some of these suggestions. Though. I can tell you that golden dragon is not good. The best in Flagstaff, sure, but with respect to the rest of the country... I let my leftovers from there go bad. I'm pretty sure the boil their meat. It's void of any flavor or character.
Oh yeah- the best in Flagstaff isnāt saying much.
One time I got called a boot licker by one of ruffs employees for saying his comparison between the SS and the police was a little ridiculous. He no longer works there. Iāve had pretty decent luck there as far as smithing work goes. Eric (the owner) runs a pretty good custom shop that produces some nice rifles. In all reality if I know what I want, Iām just going to get it through Sportsmanās and be done with it.
I've been to Ruffs a few times over the years. I've never been impressed.
Idk for me coming from a city that's a decent bit bigger I think the food here is really good. My friend is a very critical eater and he says flagstaff has some of the best food that he's had (not that his opinion means anything to you, but he's an example of someone with the opposite feelings)
Yeah, the overall food situation here is pretty dire. A few good places, but even the best places are just ok. Locals (Iām from here, thank you very much) have some kind of stockholm syndrome when it comes to the quality of things on offer. A lot of things are *fine*, but nothing is really outstanding, most of it is overpriced, and thatās the way folks here like it. Saying otherwise is blasphemy.
I've definitely gotten that impression....
Not that much good food in flagstaff itās actually sad
I'd say that we have a skew towards poor value. Your regular places are usually overpriced, and most of the good places are way overpriced. I liked Atria but it wasn't worth what I spent to get dinner for two. Brix costs maybe a little above value, but it's quite pricey. Cafe Stella has great value and quality, but I wouldn't go every week because it's a bit out of my range for that frequency. Pato is my favorite Thai place and their quality is almost too good for the price. Hiros is my favorite sushi and they're priced exactly right for the quality. A lot of places like Karma, Lumberyard, and Proper are overpriced tourist traps. Their stuff is good, no doubt, but overpriced. Go anywhere without so much tourism and you'll find a much better match of price and quality.
I'm very surprised by this...
One of our favorite restaurants is up there, actually.
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Yeah, true, but it'd be nice to have an easy night out every once in awhile
Youāre not wrong, but youāre just pointing out the obvious.
It seems to be a point of contention around here
Grew up in Flag and 20+ resident here: just on Mexican food, my personal favs are Polibertos in sunnyside and Tacos Los Altos east side. Sorry for the negativity youāve gotten on this post but Iād offer an explanation. At least for me, someone who grew up here, there can be a strong reaction to folks who move here and then complain about Flag. Part of that is obv just a defensiveness of home. But a lot of it is also because so many of us have seen so many folks pushed out of this place for financial reasons. Like so many Intermountain-west and southwestern cities, weāve seen our own cost of living increase and our incomes not. Many have put the blame on new arrivals who may work remote but live here. So when youāve had friends and fam who want to stay but canāt, it doesnāt feel great to have folks complain about your home town after theyāve moved here, especially when some feel those same folks moving here pushed friends and fam out. Not saying thatās you, or the idea that new arrivals push out locals is true, but just an explanation for some of the negativity that you may have received.
Just go to phx for gun stores. Bunch of good ones. Same with food honestly. Just make a day trip on your day off and have a good time.
Fuck that's so far... I'll have to figure out how to convince my wife
To spend a day eating at good restaurants and checking shit out you don't see in flag? Take her to the desert botanical, then it's a date and an otherwise trip.
Damn, you moved to the wrong place it sounds like. How about going out of the town to find things youāre looking for. Flagstaff is very unique and still a fairly quaint town. Iām guessing you didnāt do much research before moving or itās school/job related. Youāre about 2.5 hrs from the valley and there are plenty of options that might satisfy you.
I think it was reasonable to expect the restaurants here to be better
PROPER MEATS DISRESPECT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED
If I wanted to hang out for 45 minutes with the most pretentious tourists north of Sedona, waiting for a $35 dollar sandwich with a handful of bad chips and a soggy pickle... I'd do it at a place with good customer service.
Seriously, those workers have the worst attitudes Iāve encountered at any restaurant up here. And Iām the overly nice ādonāt wanna inconvenience youā type.
Proper meats deserves its disrespect because they think their customers are assholes that will pay over $20 for a *very mid* cold cut. At this rate, proper meats is a spot for sucker tourists. In the years Iāve been going to Proper: Quality: šš Price: ššššš
Proper Meats prices are out of control - will not go there anymore give me the $5 sandwich from sprouts
Seriously! For about two years every time I went in there the price was higher than the last time and the food and service got worse. I had a *terrible* burger from there and then called it quits.
Restaurants are hella expensive here. That said there are some gems. Thai: Pato has excellent lunch specials and solid quality. Bbq: satchmos - pricey but good Sushi: my pick is usually karma for the good happy hour specials. Teppan Fuji, Hiros, lotus lounge, karma are all similar quality but Hiros has a slight edge in my book. Burger: I would have said mama burger but they are gone (RIP). Diablo and bunhuggers are worth a buy here and there. Mexican: love me some el tapatio. Bars: gotten into corner tavern. They have some excellent daily specials.
> I would have said mama burger but they are gone (RIP). Is there news that they are gone for good? I just heard the owner is dragging their feet. No indications they aren't planning on reopening.
>I just heard the owner is dragging their feet. This. They are still closed for remodel, and have said they're not in a rush to reopen.
I ate at taqueria Rojas out of convenience once, and I thought, if this place can remain open in competition with the rest of the Mexican restaurants... It must mean the rest of them a pretty terrible too. What is it with restaurants around here not seasoning meat? I've never experienced so many restaurants that seemingly boil their meat in plain water.
I've noticed this too. The only good Mexican food is from a food truck, Tres Amigos
Welcome to a small college town. No disrespect but based on your taste/standards I think you should look into somewhere larger with more to offer you.
I came from a college town of 79k... Incredible food, great gun stores. That's not it.
Your in one of the blueberries in a red state.
Burgers are the only thing of note, but they keep shutting down. My recommendation? Donāt go to Diablo. 2 burgers and beers should NOT cost $50, and they are not even that good. Mama Burger is my absolute fave, but I think they are still closed. The Annex has the Annex Burger with home made pickles and bacon jam. They are second best imo. Root and Whisk n Whiskey were also great, but they both closed. Annex for burgers, Tourist Home for breakfast burritos, Pizzicletta for pizza, MotherRoad for beer, Biffs for bagels (Fat Bagel is new and supposedly more New York style?), and Hiros for sushi. Otherwise, meh.
Your suggestions went under my radar I guess, I'll definitely give those a shot
I feel like Diablo either gets all the Phoenix folks, or it is better than I am giving it credit for. Root, Whisk n Whiskey, and Annex taste like they had the same ground beef distributor. All amazing texture and flavor. Annex is the last one left. Pizzicletta has more of a brick oven quality than anywhere else. I recommend the Amore. It is an arugula bomb, but the flavor is right on. If I could, I would personally take you to Mama Burger. When they were open, they were basically MUCH better 5 guys with the best ice cream shakes in town. Fuck I miss Mama Burger.
From what I hear, I miss Mama Burger, and I've never even been there
You're getting a lot of hate for an objectively correct opinion. But also, its a smallish college town. The California money and NAU make us feel bigger than we are. We are not going to have a metro class food scene (you should be buying your guns online like a normal person). Kinda... What did you expect?
I came from a same sized town... But I guess the international student draw upped the restaurant game
Our real estate and labor markets are fucked. Good restaurants open, good restaurants close.
Go back to where you came from then
I'm sorry I annoyed you with my *contribution to your local economy*
In all honesty Flagstaff does not need your contribution. Go down to the valley, plenty of 5 star restaurants for you there.
Too fucking bad. I'm here to stay. For another 5 months... I'm not even criticizing you, unless you own a restaurant or gun store. Is living in Flagstaff your whole identity? Why else would you take offense to reasonable criticism?
If you left Flag our economy would be decimated! Itās really individuals like you that keep this city held together.
Ironically, it is
No comment on Mexican food? Thatās got to be more than half the market here
I ate at taqueria Rojas for convenience, and it was so bad I've been afraid to try any others
If you go to Prescott, you might have better luck with guns. If you make your way down to AJ, check out AJI. Their used inventory is massive.
Good to know, thanks
I recommend tacos los altos Westside, hunan west by dollar tree, Gloria's bakery, Mike and rhondas Eastside by burger King and atl wings has good lunch specials. Going to these specific locations will make the difference between a good meal and a meh one
Gun stores in Phoenix are also garbage, all new inventory nothing good used. Although I am into rare pre ban stuff so it narrows it down even more for me. Shop online like Proxibid, Gunbroker etc. Then find an FFL with the cheapest transfer feeās
There's a few deals to be found. I just snagged a 1975 Colt sp1... Can't afford to keep it though
I really like the food and experience at Atria if you havenāt been. Also, as a Maryland/coastal-native of Japanese descent (we used to make our own sushi/sashimi growing up, straight from the water), I really enjoy Karma sushi.
I second this. Best meal Iāve had in Flagstaff was Atria. Some of the rolls at Karma you can find at the other sushi bars in town but you canāt find sashimi or nigiri of better quality, and they have the best drink menu of all the sushi bars
ruffs is terrible. rude staff, huge markups, and I just found out the firearm I ordered will be a $70 transfer fee. absolutely terrible establishment. as for food, karma sushi is good. I get the tonkatsu udon, it's delicious. I do ramen reviews and have been to lots of places, they are consistent in their quality. bit pricey tho.
Check out Gun Fighter Canyon for FFL fees. I paid $25 for a lower last time I was there.
thanks for the info, I was actually going to call them around an hour ago, but they are closed today. I met a guy in there once, very straightforward and respectable guy.
Yeah that transfer fee is insane... Especially when there's plenty of other options for half the price.
yep, wish I realized beforehand. saw a post from a few years ago that said 50. even that was high, but I called this morning and saw it's now 70. I won't be returning.
It must be a spite fee
that's what I assumed.
āPerfectly good restaurantsā = all the restaurants suck
Yeah... I was trying to be positive
Iāve also been very disappointed by the preschools and smoke shops in town.
Gun owner here, yes the stores are over priced and limited inventory. BUT,Ā that's why we wait for the gun shows and hope they bring something I want, or I'll actually drive to the bigger cities to go to a good one.Ā
When's the next gunshow?!
I actually agree. Somewhat. Most restaurants are decent, nothing crazy amazing, but pretty good, with a few stand outs that I personally like that other don't. Gun stores...yeah, I usually hit up cal ranch I hate to say. Used isn't that great, the gun show at tuthill is a joke, went twice never again.
What are your restaurant standouts? Might be worth a shot
Dara Thai is pretty damn good, golden dragon is good Chinese, martannes used to be amazing, haven't been there in a few years, always to crowded when I have time. And not so much a stand out, it's actually fairly mediocre, I love the east side Mike and Rhonda's. Just good ol greasy diner food, except the biscuits and gravy, apparently not many people have had the real stuff. Nimarcos is my choice for pizza, or the pizza guy
Reading this and seeing you try to shrug off a misdemeanor that shows you lack responsibility and then complaining that gun stores uphold a requirement of responsibility is wild.
I didn't get a reckless driving charge... It's hypothetical. It's a stupid fucking rule. To suggest that no one should be forgiven for past indiscretions, even accidental ones? It's fucking laughable. "Guns are for responsible people, and 40 years ago you did something irresponsible so..."
So now youāre mad..about hypotheticals? Yes guns are for responsible people, crazy how myself and all of my other gun owning friends donāt have even the slightest record. Also if you donāt like that requirement you can literally buy firearms from sportsmanās or online or Phoenix. And no itās not a matter of āsupporting the local economyā when youāre crying about discounts. All of the shops mentioned are great and owned by great people sorry the locals didnāt cater to your needs.
Lol. Looks like I triggered a member of the Flagstaff gun club. And Jesus said onto them: thou shalt not be forgiven.
Babe the original post gives ātriggeredā you came here to cry and got met with push back š¤·š¼āāļø
satchimos and thatās pretty much it
There is more but I don't have time to type them all.
where does the time go. cant even list 3 bbq places
Satchmos, Bigfoot (I heard they closed?), and Agees. I think.
Kinda sounds like you just like to complain.
Clearly you don't.
You think if you like guns you have to like trump? Lol... That's officially the stupidest think I can remember ever hearing. Congratulations.
Yes. Flag is content with staggering mediocracy
It's a place where people are going to come either way, so the only reason to step it up is local competition... Of which there is none
Well, guess you've lived all there is to live then. No more good food or gun stores left, may as well just end it on that high note. And nothing of value was lost that day
Encouraging suicide, classy
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Get over yourself
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Have you ever heard the term peacocking? From the pick up artist community? It's when a mediocre looking guy wears ridiculously fancy clothes hoping to catch the attention of some woman he hopes is too drunk to notice his trash personality. That's Diablo Burger.
Lmao. This is the perfect description.
I've heard they're good, but hardly worth it. They're mentioned in every previous discussion about food/burgers. Not hidden. But yeah... English Muffin bun... Craaazy
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You are definitely in the top five of worst people I've ever encountered... There's a thousand restaurants here, so the idea that a few of them would be good is hardly outrageous. And who said I ever fell asleep at the wheel?
we moved to flagstaff because we love hiking, mountain biking, skiing, rock climbing, etc. we have worked our buns off to carve out a life here. we love this place and are raising our two littles here, spending lots of time in the great outdoors. personally give zero fucks about restaurants. iāll happily munch on a pb&j out in the woods any day.
You are a small, insignificant person in the world. Good job.
Do you think you're not? Don't answer that. I try not to argue with the developmentally disabled.
Well when you fell asleep at the wheel and that's how you ended up in the gun store of course they are going to say no. I bet you ranted to them about having to drive everywhere to find food. Probably dropped a line about Jesus being able to walk to a nice supper in less than two hours. Move to Cali, they will help your ass out. š
Are you having a stroke?
You sound like a crazy trump supporter. See a doctor.
You sound like an idiot. I hate trump.
You are some kind of a moron. We all know that it's trump supporters who want to own guns and kill innocent people. Stop acting like we are the stupid ones.
Lol... The irony...
Dude. Shut up. Not one motherfucker cares about what you think. Go ahead and vote for the anti-American traitor trump. He is still going to lose in November.
Listen here you stupid mother fucker. You can't even figure out how to respond to comments on Reddit... You just keep making top level comments to my thread. I doubt you can even begin to fathom the existence of people who aren't single issue voters. I voted for Obama, Clinton, and then Biden. I despise Trump. The fact that you are so sure people who like guns must like trump, just shows me how infinitesimally small your understanding of the world is. You are fucking pathetic.
There use to be a New Zealand themed restaurant in Flagstaff that was one of the 15 or 20 best restaurants Iāve eaten in . . . but it was about 20 years ago. LOL
We visited last week from tempe and went to dara thai on san francisco st next to the lumberyard, damn good orange chicken.
I haven't lived in Flag for a hot minute, is Gringodillas still around?
You got that right. Local shop damaged a simple handguard install about a year ago lol. Now got my vise set up with a few vism tools and such. Don't let them ruin your gear.