Two Scottsdale restaurants.

Two very different interpretations of coastal Mediterranean dining.

And two places that can make you forget, at least for a couple of hours, that you are sitting in the Arizona desert.

This week’s Fork in the Road puts Élephante Scottsdale at Fashion Square against PINYON Coastal Mediterranean in Old Town.

Élephante leans into the Italian coast with a big, glamorous room, wood-fired pizzas, pasta, cocktails and a see-and-be-seen atmosphere.

PINYON goes broader, pulling inspiration from more than 20 Mediterranean countries, with fresh pita, hummus, crudos, charcoal-grilled seafood, spritzes and a park-side setting.

Same general escape?

Not really.

And that is what makes this one interesting.

This week’s question:

Élephante gives you the bigger scene.

PINYON gives you the more relaxed Mediterranean meal.

One feels like a trip to southern Italy with a Scottsdale nightlife budget.

The other feels like a long lunch somewhere along the Mediterranean where someone keeps bringing warm bread and another spritz.

Let’s break it down.

Élephante arrived at Scottsdale Fashion Square in December 2024 as the second location of the restaurant created by Nick Mathers and Wish You Were Here Group.

The concept began in Santa Monica and draws on Mathers’ travels through southern Italy, especially Pantelleria and the Aeolian Islands. The Scottsdale restaurant echoes that coastal Italian escape, with natural stone, greenery, warm desert colors, and handcrafted details.

And it is big.

The Scottsdale restaurant spans roughly 12,000 square feet, with room for several hundred guests and an outdoor patio.

This is not a hidden neighborhood restaurant.

You notice Élephante.

The room is part of the experience.

So are the people in it.

And that is absolutely intentional.

PINYON takes a much different route.

Opened along Scottsdale Civic Center Park, the restaurant comes from Hi Noon Hospitality, the same group behind Buck & Rider and Ingo’s Tasty Food.

The concept draws on travels across the Mediterranean basin, including Spain, Italy, Greece, Turkey, France, Malta, and Morocco.

Rather than recreating one country or coastline, PINYON pulls from the entire region.

That shows up in everything from hummus and house-baked pita to crudos, whole fish, pasta, grilled meats, and cocktails.

Chef Erika Gonzalez currently leads the kitchen.

The restaurant sits directly along Scottsdale Civic Center Park, and that setting gives it a completely different personality from Élephante.

It feels open.

Relaxed.

Walkable.

More European sidewalk café than Scottsdale destination restaurant.

This is where the difference becomes very obvious.

Élephante is really a coastal Italian restaurant first.

Its current dinner menu is built around:

Whipped Eggplant with Puccia

Grilled Octopus

Big Eye Tuna Tartare

Vodka Sauce Canestri

Cacio e Pepe

Ragu Bianco

Soppressata Pizza

Branzino

Diver Scallops

and premium steaks including a 20-ounce bone-in ribeye.

The whipped eggplant and puccia remain among the restaurant’s signatures, and the pizzas and pastas give the menu a strong Southern Italian identity.

There is seafood.

There are vegetables.

There are Mediterranean ingredients.

But this is not trying to represent the entire Mediterranean.

It is much more focused.

PINYON is broader and, if you like sharing, arguably more interesting.

The restaurant’s current menu moves through multiple regions and cooking styles.

You will find:

Yellowtail Crudo

Greek Ceviche

Gambas al Ajillo

Seared Feta & Tomato

Pan con Tomate

Cacio e Pepe

Linguine & Clams

Saffron Risotto

Lamb Shakshuka

Charcoal-Grilled Loup de Mer

and a lineup of steaks and skewers cooked over a Josper charcoal grill imported from Barcelona.

Then there is the Hummusiya.

That rotating selection of hummus and dips, paired with warm, in-house baked pita, has become one of PINYON’s signatures.

Coastal Italian pasta + pizza → Élephante

Broader Mediterranean flavors + sharing → PINYON

Both restaurants use fire, but in different ways.

At Élephante, wood-fired pizza is central to its identity.

Long-fermented dough, a blistered crust, and toppings like soppressata, chili oil, and honey give the restaurant some of it’s most recognizable dishes.

PINYON leans harder into charcoal.

Its imported Josper oven gives seafood, steaks, and skewers that smoky, live-fire character that runs throughout the menu.

Whole fish, shrimp, and meats benefit especially from that approach.

Pizza → Élephante

Charcoal-grilled seafood + meats → PINYON

Both restaurants understand that the Mediterranean fantasy works better with something cold in your hand.

Élephante is much more cocktail-driven.

The current drink menu includes:

Fiori Spritz - $17

The Élephante - $19

Watermelon Mezcal Margarita - $20

Martini - $21

Espresso Martinis - $20

and a long list of bright, refreshing cocktails, Negronis and spritzes.

Then there is Bar Bambino.

Exclusive to the Scottsdale location, it is a separate cocktail lounge inside Élephante and can hold more than 100 guests for cocktail-style events.

That gives Élephante an obvious nightlife edge.

Dinner can turn into drinks without leaving the building.

PINYON feels more like a spritz-and-wine bar.

There are two full bars, one upstairs and one downstairs, with the upstairs space offering indoor and outdoor seating overlooking Civic Center Park.

The current cocktail program includes drinks such as:

Hugo Spritz

Sant’ Andrea Spritz

Hotel de Paris Martini

Saffron Gin Sour

and 6000 Miles, built with mezcal, Lebanese arak, pomegranate, and lime.

PINYON also has a legitimate advantage here:

Daily.

3-7 p.m.

Spritzes and signature cocktails are currently $11, wines $8, drafts $7, oysters $2.75 each, plus discounted hummus and shareables.

Cocktails + late-night lounge energy → Élephante

Spritzes + wine + excellent happy hour → PINYON

This category may sound obvious.

But it is not.

Élephante has outdoor dining, but the overall experience still feels connected to the Fashion Square environment.

The restaurant says the space is fully enclosed, with designated outdoor patio seating equipped with heaters and misters when weather allows.

The design is beautiful.

The room feels transportive.

But you still know you are at a major luxury shopping destination.

PINYON has a stronger outdoor sense of place.

It sits directly on Scottsdale Civic Center Park, with indoor-outdoor areas and upstairs views across the park.

There is greenery.

People walking through the park.

A more relaxed rhythm.

Because the restaurant is woven into the Civic Center setting rather than a mall, the outdoor experience feels more natural.

Polished indoor-outdoor design → Élephante

Park-side Mediterranean atmosphere → PINYON

Élephante is the more glamorous restaurant.

Big room.

Big crowd.

Big energy.

The Scottsdale location is lively, loud, and scene-driven, and that is not necessarily a criticism.

Go here if dinner is part of the night.

You dress up.

You order cocktails.

You stay longer than planned.

Then you might end up at Bar Bambino.

PINYON feels more relaxed and grounded.

The interior still looks expensive.

The marble floors, warm wood, red leather booths, olive trees, and European design are all intentional.

But it does not feel like it is trying quite as hard to be a nightlife destination.

It feels more food-first.

More conversation.

More lingering lunch or early dinner.

More:

And less:

See-and-be-seen Scottsdale → Élephante

Relaxed Mediterranean escape → PINYON

This is one category where both restaurants make a serious case.

Weekend brunch currently runs:

Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m.- 3 p.m.

Current dishes include:

Ricotta Pancakes

Eggs Benedict & Rosti

Steak and Eggs

Breakfast Pizza

Green Eggs

and Avocado Toast.

Cocktails range from mimosas and Bloody Marys to spritzes and the regular Élephante cocktail list.

This is definitely the more energetic brunch.

PINYON also serves weekend brunch:

Saturday 11 a.m.-3 p.m.

Sunday 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

The advantage here is the park setting.

If the weather is good, PINYON feels more like a leisurely Mediterranean brunch where you sit outside and forget what time it is.

Energy + scene → Élephante

Relaxed park-side brunch → PINYON

Both restaurants are operating in the polished, full-service end of Scottsdale dining.

But again, the style is different.

Élephante handles huge volume.

Large parties.

Brunch.

Lunch.

Dinner.

Nightlife.

And a separate lounge.

That requires a much bigger hospitality machine.

PINYON feels smaller and more restaurant-driven.

Recent coverage has praised the cordial service and accessible experience.

For a big celebratory dinner?

Élephante.

For a slower meal where you want to ask questions about the menu?

PINYON gets the edge.

You want:

✔️ A glamorous Scottsdale night out

✔️ Coastal Italian cooking

✔️ Wood-fired pizza

✔️ House-made pasta

✔️ Big cocktails

✔️ Weekend brunch

✔️ Fashion Square energy

✔️ A late-night cocktail lounge

✔️ The restaurant to feel like part of the entertainment

You want:

✔️ A broader Mediterranean menu

✔️ Fresh pita and hummus

✔️ Raw bar seafood

✔️ Charcoal-grilled fish and meats

✔️ Spritzes and Mediterranean wine

✔️ Daily happy hour

✔️ A park-side patio

✔️ A more relaxed meal

✔️ Better value without sacrificing atmosphere

This one comes down to what you mean by:

If you mean:

Choose Élephante.

It is bigger.

Louder.

More glamorous.

And Bar Bambino gives you somewhere to keep the evening going after dinner.

But if what you mean is:

We would choose PINYON.

It feels a little less manufactured.

A little more food-driven.

And sitting along Civic Center Park with a spritz and a table full of hummus, crudo, grilled fish, and warm pita probably feels closer to how we actually want to spend a Scottsdale fall afternoon.

So our Fork in the Road looks like this:

And if we had to pick just one for:

Élephante may win the party.

But PINYON wins the meal.

It gives us more of what we picture when we think of actually sitting somewhere along the Mediterranean coast:

Fresh bread.

Seafood.

Charcoal.

Wine.

A spritz.

A table full of shared dishes.

And nowhere else we need to be for a while.

7014 E. Camelback Road, Suite 601
Scottsdale, AZ 85251

📞 480-576-8168

Monday-Thursday: 12 p.m.-11 p.m.
Friday: 12 p.m.-12 a.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m.-12 a.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m.-11 p.m.

Saturday-Sunday: 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

🌐 Website:
https://www.elephanterestaurants.com/location/scottsdale/

📅 Reservations:
https://www.elephanterestaurants.com/reservations/

Élephante accepts reservations online and by phone.

7363 E. Scottsdale Mall
Scottsdale, AZ 85251

📞 480-863-8990

Monday-Thursday: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.
Friday: 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m.
Saturday: 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m.-9 p.m.

Saturday: 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
Sunday: 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Daily: 3-7 p.m.
Available in the upstairs and downstairs bar areas.

🌐 Website:
https://pinyonrestaurant.com/

📅 Priority Seating Reservations:
https://www.opentable.com/r/pinyon-coastal-mediterranean-scottsdale

PINYON also welcomes walk-ins. For parties of eight or more, the restaurant recommends calling directly.