A long-empty downtown Phoenix space will soon welcome a restaurant inspired by Arizona's bounty

Update: Because of the ongoing pandemic, Carcara has tentatively rescheduled its opening for January 2022.

The restaurant space at Sheraton Phoenix Downtown has been sitting empty since the hotel closed District American Kitchen and Wine Bar on Sept. 19, 2019. But come fall, Carcara, a restaurant inspired by the Southwest and its locally grown bounty, will fill the void at the newly renovated hotel. 

The ground-floor restaurant space will debut a new, modern look with statement plants and wood beam ceiling. Guests can take a seat in the main dining room, bar and lounge area or private dining rooms. There will also be a 2,000-square foot patio with a fireplace and two fire pits overlooking Van Buren Street.

Curating the new menu is executive chef Chaz Frankenfield, a 30-year industry veteran who has been with the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix since 2013. 

"It's great to see downtown start to light up again," Frankenfield said. "Over the last six months, I've been checking out what’s happening in our area. It’s very exciting to see new restaurants come on board, see travelers coming back."

Southwestern ingredients are at the heart of the Carcara menu

Carcara takes its name from Cara Cara, a red-fleshed navel orange variety that farmers typically harvest early to mid-December in southern Arizona. Frankenfield plans to incorporate ingredients from Arizona farms and producers, such as Singh Meadows, Crow's Dairy and Stern Produce, along with fish flown in daily from California.

And, as the name would suggest, there will be plenty of citrus elements, citrus being one of the five Cs of Arizona, industries that drove the state's economy and growth.

For the autumn opening, diners can expect to find starters and light plates such as green chile pork tacos, crab and cheese stuffed peppers, and a salad made with Hayden Flour Mills grains, sundried cranberries and golden berries. Mains will include the likes of seared sea scallops wrapped in prosciutto served with Ramona Farms red corn polenta, wilted spinach and tangerine cranberry sauce and a beef ribeye served with roasted fingerling potatoes, jalapeño cilantro chimichurri, shaved garlic and lemon broccolini.

Beverage options will include local craft beer and well as an international wine list that will include some Arizona wines. There will also be eight cocktails with a heavy citrus influence and seasonal flavors, as well as a signature canned cocktail produced in-house.

Carcara is scheduled to open in September.

Reach the reporter at Priscilla.Totiya@azcentral.com. Follow @priscillatotiya on Twitter and Instagram.

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