Downtown Glendale is bustling. Here's a guide to every restaurant in the historic district

Glendale is one of the fastest growing cities in the West Valley. Tourism boomed in early 2023, with major events like the Super Bowl and Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour bringing increased foot traffic to State Farm Stadium and the adjacent Westgate Entertainment District. And just a few miles east toward Grand Avenue, downtown Glendale has also been experiencing a restaurant renaissance.

Longtime West Valley residents associate the quaint downtown area with some of its longstanding historical buildings and businesses, like The Spicery and Bitz-ee Mama's. In recent years, downtown Glendale has also welcomed an influx of new tenants, from hipster cafes to a taproom and live music venue as the city's efforts to revitalize downtown have made way for a plethora of new businesses.

Modern restaurants bring a breath of fresh air to the century-old town square, but still pay homage to the historic spaces they occupy.

Glendale was founded in 1892 as the Glendale Temperance Colony, a hub for agriculture and small markets. It was incorporated as a town in 1910. The bungalows of Old Town Glendale and Catlin Court date back over a century to the early 1910s.

While the historic buildings themselves have remained mostly intact, the small businesses they house have changed with the times. A former general store and boot barn is now a delightful bakery.

Here's your guide to all the bars, cafes and restaurants in historic downtown Glendale.

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The Black Sheep

The Black Sheep brings a completely unique and modern vibe to downtown Glendale. The casual and upbeat cafe is welcoming to students and workers alike. The interior is decorated with coffee-related murals on white brick walls and a chalkboard covers the length of the counter.

They offer an expansive selection of coffees, teas and smoothies, as well as bagels and sandwiches, which can be modified to be vegan or gluten-free. Specialty coffees include The Brooke, made with blueberry cold foam matcha, The Abby, described as a blueberry muffin latte and The Charlie, a salted caramel Irish cream latte.

Details: 5717 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. 623-703-1130, theblacksheepaz.com.

Blue Corn Cafe and Bakery

Blue Corn Cafe and Bakery is one of the newest additions to Old Town Glendale, after opening in October 2022. The cafe provides a cozy spot for coffee and mouthwatering baked goods like zucchini bread and coffee cake, and is popular with City Hall employees as well as downtown Glendale visitors.

The cafe is the second bakery from owners Hope Mendrin and Esai Bolderoff, who first opened Hope's Artisan Bread in Litchfield Park in 2020.

Details: 7015 N. 58th Ave., Glendale. thebluecorncafe.com.

Bitz-ee Mama's Mexican Restaurant

Bitz-ee Mama's is a Glendale landmark. The family-owned and operated restaurant opened in 1972, serving Mexican-American food in the heart of downtown.

The restaurant is best known for its menudo and pozole soup, tamales and most of all the friendly and welcoming customer service.

Details: 7023 N. 58th Ave, Glendale. 623-931-0562, facebook.com/bitzeemama.

Coyote Oaties Cookies

The building that now houses Coyote Oaties Cookies was built in 1919 as Cole's General Store. It then became Sprouse-Reits 5 & 10 Cent Store and Larry Glazman’s Bootbarn before Coyote Oaties opened in 2011.

The quaint shop prides itself on its cookies made with rolled oats and real cream butter, with no white sugar or flour, trans fat or preservatives. They also sell cake pops, cake slices, macarons, honey sticks and fresh jam. Drinks include coffee, tea and Italian soda.

The connected Coyote Mercantile next door sells unique antiques and collectibles.

Details: 7005 N. 58th Ave., Glendale. 623-939-3949, coyoteoaties.com.

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Cuff

Cuff is a prime example of the middle ground between modern dining and the historic vibe of downtown Glendale. The interior is light and airy, with dark wood accents that pay homage to the small downtown's history.

Cuff moved to its current location next door to Bitz-ee Mama's in 2021. The original location was just down the street near Drawn to Comics.

Menu items include pulled pork tacos, Baja fish tacos, jackfruit fries, fried brussels sprouts and a cannoli cream pie. Almost everything on the menu is gluten-free or can be modified to be.

Details: 7021 North 58th Ave., Glendale. 623-847-8890, cuffglendale.com.

Don Juan's Mexican Grill

Don Juan's Mexican Grill is a wildly popular Mexican restaurant that opened in downtown Glendale at perhaps the worst possible time, but managed to beat the odds and build a strong following.

On March 11, 2020, the restaurant's Instagram page posted a photo with the caption, "Grand opening announcement coming real, real soon." That same day, COVID-19 was declared to be a pandemic by the World Health Organization.

The grand opening was held in July 2020, when restaurants in Arizona were allowed to reopen. Only a limited number of patrons showed up per CDC guidance, and the business stayed focused on takeout orders.

Three years later, Don Juan's has become an essential stop in the heart of downtown Glendale. The restaurant's Instagram page has amassed over 10.6 thousand followers and the dining room is almost always bustling with hungry customers.

Don Juan's serves enchiladas, street tacos, chicken flautas, burritos, tamales and chimichangas.

Details: 7013 N. 58th Ave, Glendale. 623-440-7775, donjuansmexicangrill.com.

Grand Avenue Pizza Company

For nearly a decade, Grand Avenue Pizza Company provided late-night pizza, calzones, cheesy bread and salads until 4 a.m. in downtown Phoenix. But in May 2022, the Phoenix location closed and the space was sold to its current tenant, Snapback Pizzeria.

In March 2023, Grand Avenue Pizza Company reopened, farther west on Grand Avenue in downtown Glendale.

The pizzeria took over the 11,000-square-foot space that was briefly occupied by The Horny Toad after Desert Rose Pizza closed in February 2022.

Details: 6729 N. 57th Dr., Glendale. grandavenuepizzacompany.com.

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Haus Murphy's

Haus Murphy's opened in 1996 and has since become one of the most popular restaurants in downtown Glendale. The German restaurant serves mainly bratwurst, from German pork and rote beef with sauerkraut to currywurst with curry ketchup and onion mayo. The bar keeps ten German beers on tap.

Perhaps the biggest draw is the yearly Oktoberfest, featuring plenty of beer and live entertainment.

Details: 5739 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. 623-939-2480, hausmurphys.com.

La Perla Sports Cantina

La Perla Sports Cantina is a downtown Glendale destination for classic American food and live music. Opened in 2019, La Perla serves cheeseburgers, chicken tenders, enchiladas and over a dozen specialty cocktails and shots. The bar is open until midnight on weeknights and 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, making it an essential part of downtown Glendale's nightlife scene.

Details: 5723 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. 602-753-3896, laperlasportscantina.com.

La Piazza Al Forno

You might have seen La Piazza Al Forno on "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives" in 2020. To try the pizza that Guy Fieri raved about, visit the little pizzeria on the corner of 58th and Glendale Avenues, next door to Drawn to Comics.

The restaurant has been open for nearly 15 years and specializes in Neapolitan pizza. If pizza isn't your thing, they also offer pasta dishes including linguine and clams, arrabiatta and fruitti di mare.

Details: 5803 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. 623-847-3301, lapiazzafamiglia.com.

Little Saigon

Little Saigon has served Vietnamese cuisine in the Valley for over 25 years, first at its original location at Christown Mall and in downtown Glendale since 2005. Menu highlights include marinated pork chops, chicken pho, grilled pork com thit and egg noodle soup.

Details: 7016 N. 57th Ave., Glendale. 623-939-6136, facebook.com/littlesaigonaz.

Papa Ed's Ice Cream

Located in a delightful little Catlin Court home built in 1951, Papa Ed's transformed into an ice cream parlor in 2008. Much of the ice cream is provided by Karen's Kreamery, a local business based in Avondale. Other menu items include root beer and Dr. Pepper floats, organic acai sorbet bowls, a cookie ice cream sandwich and Papa's hot fudge peanut or five flavor parfaits.

Details: 7156 N 58th Ave., Glendale. 623-915-4438, papaedsicecream.com.

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The Pink Door Tea House

Located in historic Catlin Court in downtown Glendale, The Pink Door Tea House is basically a revamped version of its former tenant, Kimberly Ann's Tea Room and Cafe, which was open for 26 years.

When Kimberly Ann's went out of business due to the coronavirus pandemic and the struggles that came with it, neighbors in downtown Glendale were heartbroken by the loss.

"I would have never thought that a virus would have had me close my doors," owner Mae Collins told The Republic in 2020. "I wasn’t planning on going out that way."

That's when a neighbor stepped in to help keep the historic tea shop alive. The tea house reopened in March 2021 as The Pink Door Cafe, led by Collins and her neighbor-turned-business partner Lupe Encinas.

Menu items include chicken salad sandwiches with cranberries and walnuts, The Pink Door strawberry scone, blueberry bread pudding and iced coffee.

Details: 7153 N. 59th Ave., Glendale. 480-223-0872, facebook.com/thepinkdoorteahouse.

Pizza Old Roma

Pizza Old Roma is one of downtown Glendale's standby restaurants. The mom-and-pop pizza joint keeps it simple with its menu of pizzas, wings and mozzarella sticks. In the wintertime, it's a popular stop for families visiting Glendale Glitters.

Details: 5740 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. pizzaoldroma.com.

Saguaro Grill

Saguaro Grill opened in April 2022, and introduced its connected venue, The Ocotillo Room, in October of that year. It's already become a fan-favorite for live music and beer lovers and has hosted dozens of local musicians.

The restaurant offers burgers, steak, seafood and chicken. The bar offers nearly two dozen local craft beers, hand-crafted cocktails and imported wines.

Details: 5819 W. Glendale Ave, Glendale. 623-271-6283, saguarogrill.com.

Simple Machine Brewing Co.

The newest addition to downtown Glendale is the Simple Machine Brewing Co. taproom, which is expected to open in April 2023.

The space was once home to another bar, but the building was condemned a few years ago after a car drove through it and caused part of the structure to collapse, according to Simple Machine co-owner Frank Trotti. But after massive construction efforts to salvage the building, Simple Machine is ready to open.

The bar will have 15 beers on tap as well as plenty of canned beer, wine and cocktails available.

Trotti and co-owner Marshall Norris aim to have "something for everyone, all the time," Norris told The Republic. That means carrying light and dark beers, sours, lagers, fruit beers and more inside the small taproom.

By the end of the summer, the taproom plans to expand to include a small venue for live music inside the bar. Norris said most shows will be free to attend and they will pay all performing artists.

The brewery will not serve food, but Trotti and Norris suggest grabbing a bite from one of the neighboring restaurants and following it up with beer and entertainment at Simple Machine.

Details: 5745 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale. simplemachinebrewing.com.

The Spicery in Our 1895 Home

The Spicery is located in one of the oldest buildings in Glendale, built in 1895. The house was transformed into a cozy tearoom in the 1980s by Martha Campbell. Campbell then sold the tea house to Matt Borowski in 2012.

In July 2022, Borowski announced he was ready to retire. The Spicery closed its doors at the end of that month. But just a few months later, the restaurant reopened under new leadership and remains open in Catlin Court in downtown Glendale. The new owners, Lorraine and Bud Zomok, also own Memory Lane Trinkets and Treasures.

The Spicery serves soups, salads and sandwiches and three course afternoon tea options. 

Details: 7141 N. 59th Ave., Glendale. 623-937-6534. 1895spicery.com.

A Touch of European Cafe

This Polish cafe is located in the Catlin Court neighborhood. Opened in 2003 by owners Waldemar and Malgorzata Okula, the family-owned and operated restaurant serves pierogi, kielbasa platters, marinated pickle herring, Hungarian pork goulash, cheese blintzes and baklava.

The cafe has a bring your own beer or wine policy.

Details: 7146 N. 57th Dr., Glendale. 623-847-7119, atouchofeuropeancafe.com.

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Reach the reporter at endia.fontanez@gannett.com. Follow @EndiaFontanez on Twitter.

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