Some things are just life-changing.
The first time you drive a car. The first time you get married. Or, that first trip to a dine-in movie theater.
Imagine, watching a flick while eating real food — not nachos and Sour Patch kids — but bonafide entrees like burgers and street tacos.
That’s what you get at the new Roadhouse Cinemas.
The theater, which opened in October, took over the space that was Grand Cinemas Crossroads 6, at 4811 E. Grant Road. The old lobby’s been transformed into The ‘Stache, a restaurant with lunch and happy hour specials even if you’re not there for a movie. The old movie theaters have been revamped with fewer seats, much wider aisles, cushy recliners equipped with small, swiveling, personal table trays and wait staff.
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It’s every bit as awesome as it sounds.
“This is sweet!” one of our kids shouted, sinking into the electric recliner and automatically popping out the footrest.
Roadhouse was already a hit — and we hadn’t even looked at the menu, let alone ordered any food.
So what is it like? Is the food any good? Is it expensive? Is it possible to enjoy dinner at the same time as a show?
Keep reading.
The set-up
The minute you sink into a faux leather chair and punch the button to recline back, you’ll feel like one of those squishy, babylike grownups from “Wall-E” — and you’ll love it. It’s a niiiiiice seat. A wooden divider between chairs offers a little low lighting, menus along with paper and pencils for writing down requests after the movie starts. A swivel tray with built-in drink holder serves as your table.
The lights are dim enough that they don’t interfere with movie viewing, but it can be tricky to read the menu — or see if there’s still anything left to nibble on your plate.
Surprisingly, food service doesn’t interfere with watching your featured presentation. You end up fairly oblivious to the wait staff flitting among the chairs for the other customers. There’s just the occasional clink of fork to plate. Or, on the night we visited, some lady who snapped flash pictures of her friends during the movie. Rude.
If you have kids who find it impossible not to talk during movies — ahem, not that I would at all know what that’s like — this may well be the ticket to the quietest movie-going experience ever: They can’t jabber away if they’re putting food in their mouths.
The food
Reminiscent of a brew pub menu, Roadhouse’s chef, Gina Durocher, has created easy-to-chew-and-view entrees like wraps, mac and cheese and pizza. Of course there’s popcorn, but of a more gourmet variety. Try the Glazed & Confused ($7.95), a light-as-air, sweet-and-salty caramel confection that’s nearly impossible to stop eating. A great starter is The Big R ($4.95), a pretzel twisted into the letter and baked to a deep-dark brown. It’s crisp and chewy on the outside, soft inside. This is a winner, people. The accompanying Cheddar-ale sauce didn’t pack much punch and was a touch grainy, and, at the time of this review, Durocher was already tweaking the recipe. But honestly, it’s an insult to dip this pretzel into anything. It is fine all on its own.
If your movie is not exactly an Oscar contender, it’s nice to know you can dull the sting of a flop with a froufrou cocktail or perhaps a beer or two. Roadhouse offers only a few wines, but mixed drinks are varied and the beer selection — devoted to Arizona microbrews — is great and, even better, a reasonable $5.50 for 16 ounces.
Juno and Bleeker’s Mac and Cheese ($9.95) featured penne rigate slathered in a smooth and mild cheese sauce. The ridges hugged every dribble of the extra creamy sauce while the top was a crispy shell of Panko bread crumbs tossed with Parmesan and baked to toasted perfection.
The hefty Blockbuster burger ($9.95) could’ve used a thicker bun to contain its beefiness. The one-third pounders are made with short rib for a richer burger. The thin, ciabatta-like bread started falling apart on the bottom from the thick patty smothered with melted cheese and topped with tomato and onion. The accompanying waffle fries were thick, crisp and well-seasoned.
Roadhouse’s version of a gyro, the Perseus ($9.95), tasted like it came from a Greek restaurant with tender gyro meat tucked alongside red onion, crisp romaine, tomato, salty feta and creamy tzatziki sauce. The thick but tender wrap held things together through to the last bite.
Pizzetas feature grown-up combos like barbecue sauce and chicken (Blazing Saddles, $10.95) while kiddo versions (Home Alone, $7.95) come plain cheese or with pepperoni and doused in a just-zingy-enough sauce to elevate it from the standard, ho-hum fare you typically find on the kids’ menu.
Roadhouse serves locally-made Allegro gelato ($3.50-$5) and sorbet ($4.50) — which is wonderful in any flavor — on its dessert menu along with some house-made treats. The cheesecake special ($8.50) was a lovely, light-as-air pumpkin confection with a cinnamon-graham cracker crust, just perfect for fall. Robert Brownie Jr. ($6.95), aside from being our favorite of all the goofy movie-related puns, was a built-for-two warm, fudgy chocolate square with a crackly top and a ginormous scoop of vanilla bean gelato. A fluffy mound of chocolate-sauce-dribbled whipped cream crowned the whole shebang. I am not one to leave even a bite of good dessert behind, but this was so big, even three people could not finish it.
The kid thing
Dinner with a movie sounds like the perfect family outing, right? But, a look at the website shows you that Roadhouse isn’t geared toward kids, especially young ones. If you’re 18 or older, you’re good to roll in any time. Because of the electric chairs, Roadhouse restricts kiddos under 6. Young ‘uns up to 12 are allowed only at “family designated” films and must be accompanied by an adult. Older teens also need to be with an adult.
There’s not necessarily always a family-friendly movie option since owners Vincent Mast and Scott Cassell say they’ll only bring in top-flight flicks, like “Big Hero 6.”
It may not be geared for kids, but if they go, look out. Mine adored their Roadhouse experience. They’ll never again be satisfied with a traditional movie theater where only every other row reclines, and they’re forced to eat smuggled snacks out of my purse.
The service
This was the only area where we encountered hiccups. Food came out super fast when it was ordered before the movie, but there were issues getting the correct entrees to their rightful orderers. It wasn’t a big deal to pass plates down, but still.
Orders placed while the flick was running failed to arrive as snappily. Also, servers ask you to write down any requests once the movie starts to keep the noise level down. Perfectly reasonable.
If you need something, you press a “call” button. Sometimes, someone was quick to respond; other times not. But servers were consistently pleasant and attentive and hopefully, they make enough tips to cover regular chiropractic care or massages since they hustle in all hunched over so they don’t interfere with the view. Great for movie-goers, not so great for backs.
The bottom line
As a general rule, going to the movies isn’t cheap. A ticket’ll cost you $10, and Roadhouse, at its peak times, charges $12.50 for adults, $7.95 for kids. Roadhouse’s food prices are reasonable, but seeing the tab for movies and dinner together might cause a little sticker shock.
Still, we all decided that when it comes to movie theaters, once you go Roadhouse — with its every seat reclines and killer pretzels and Robert Brownie Jr. sundaes — it’s hard to go back.