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Two Scottsdale restaurants
headed up by Valley-favorite chef Aaron May celebrate their official
grand opening Tuesday by offering complimentary food and cocktails
between 6 and 8 p.m.
Both restaurants - Over Easy North and 18 Degrees - are housed within the Ice Den, the 120,000 square-foot ice skating and entertainment center that serves as a practice facility for the Phoenix Coyotes and other NHL teams.
The grand opening will include appearances by Phoenix Coyotes
players Petr Prucha and Martin Hanzal, who will sign autographs and
pose for photos. Howler, the Coyotes' mascot, will also be in
attendance.
The evening's activities also include drawings for Coyotes tickets,
autographed NHL gear, gift certificates for skating and dining, and
several other items.
Visitors can also play a little virtual golf, hockey, football or
baseball on the Visual Sports simulator, which features a giant,
150-plus square-foot screen.
Over Easy North, based upon the original Over Easy on Indian School
Road and 40th Street in Phoenix, serves breakfast and lunch; 18 Degrees
is open for lunch, dinner, happy hour and late evening dining.
"Over Easy has the look and feel of what I'd call a Midwestern
diner," said Mike O'Hearn, president of Coyotes Ice, LLC, which owns
the Ice Den. "It has a kind of retro feel."
Over Easy North serves a variety of omelets, waffles and pancakes
and egg breakfasts, as well as heartier fare such as the chicken fried chicken
and waffle ($9) and the Wolfpack, a signature dish consisting of two
eggs, bacon and cheese served between two layers of hash browns ($8).
The lunch menu features an assortment of paninis ($5-$8.75).
18 Degrees - the temperature of the ice on the twin rinks within the Ice Den - was conceived as a family-friendly sports grill, according to O'Hearn.
"It has a very comfortable, neighborhood feel, sort of like an English pub, but more family oriented," he said.
Guests at 18 Degrees can choose from a selection of soups ($6-$7),
salads ($7-$9), burgers ($8-$9.50), sandwiches ($6-$14.50) and pizzas
($8-$12), as well as entrees such as an herb and lemon marinated half
roasted chicken ($13), Scottish salmon ($16), fettuccine sautéed with
Caribbean sweet shrimp ($16) and an 18-oz. ribeye steak ($24). The bar
offers a good selection of cocktails, beers and wine (by the glass or
bottle).
Although Tuesday night marks their official grand opening, both restaurants have been serving guests since late September.
The Ice Den is a popular venue for national and international figure
skating shows and competitions. It also features public skating,
private instruction and hosts a variety of programs and hockey leagues.
It opened in 1998.
