ALMA Reopens on Pinnacle Peak Road, Picking Up Where Little Snitch Leaves Off

"Barbwire was a boutique that I had years ago, and I've really wanted to bring that back," Sheila Bryson told What Now Phoenix this summer, describing the plans for ALMA's new home. The boutique is one part of ALMA's move to The Citadel. That's the center at 8700 E. Pinnacle Peak Road, near Pima Road, which many people north of Happy Valley drive past on the way to everything else. ALMA's reopening there was scheduled for Monday, Nov. 2, in the space that was Preston's Steakhouse for a decade. Bryson's counter-service café, Little Snitch, is next door. The café's hours end just as the steakhouse's begin, so with both running, this corner covers the whole day.

The handoff happens at 3 p.m.

Little Snitch is open Tuesday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., and it doesn't take reservations. Starting Oct. 1 it began staying open an extra hour for a happy hour from 2 to 3 p.m., with discounted snacks, drinks, pastries and merchandise.

ALMA's OpenTable listing shows the steakhouse opening at 3 p.m. every day. It closes at 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and at 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. Happy hour runs daily from 3 to 6 p.m.

Put those schedules side by side and Tuesday through Sunday at this address runs like this:

1. 7 a.m. Little Snitch opens for counter-service breakfast and coffee.
2. 2 p.m. Little Snitch's happy hour starts.
3. 3 p.m. Little Snitch closes and ALMA opens, with its own happy hour.
4. 6 p.m. ALMA's happy hour ends and dinner service continues.
5. 10 or 11 p.m. ALMA closes, depending on the night.

From 2 to 6 p.m. there's a happy hour running at one of the two doors, with no break in between. On Mondays Little Snitch is closed, so the corner starts in the afternoon. Treat ALMA's posted hours as opening-week figures for now. The same listing says entertainment is "not offered at this time," but the rooftop described in earlier coverage is built around live music.

What moved north, and what is new

ALMA used to be in Old Town, where it closed earlier this year. Bryson told What Now Phoenix that she chose The Citadel to be closer to her group's other restaurants. Soul Hospitality Group runs Soul Café, Vic & Ola's, Pescada and Little Snitch. The nearest is Soul Café, at 7615 E. Pinnacle Peak Road, the same road that leads to The Citadel.

The restaurant moved and changed format along the way. It's now ALMA Southwest Steakhouse, serving premium cuts with flavors from Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Northern Mexico. ALMA's own dinner menu still calls the menu a work in progress, which is normal in an opening week. OpenTable lists the dress code as smart casual and parking as a public lot.

Anyone holding an ALMA gift card from the Old Town days can use it. The restaurant says its gift cards are good at the new location and at its sister restaurants.

Three bars inside one restaurant

What sets this ALMA apart from the old one is that it's several rooms under one roof. The October 22 issue of Forking Scottsdale describes three bars, two of them lounges, in an open layout meant for date nights, business dinners and private events. Earlier reporting names the pieces:

• Copper Club, a rooftop lounge planned around live music and cocktails. Bryson told What Now Phoenix it began as an event space that opened briefly right before the pandemic and never had a real chance to host.
• A tequila bar for tequila and mezcal tastings, with chef-created tacos and small bites.
• Barbwire Western Couture, the Western boutique Bryson ran years ago, now back as a women's boutique inside ALMA.

Bryson also told What Now Phoenix that guests can order from ALMA's full menu in any of these spaces. That changes how the evening works. Tacos at the tequila bar, a steak in the dining room and a nightcap upstairs all come from the same kitchen. No Copper Club hours or music schedule have been posted yet, so call ALMA at 480-284-6736 before planning a rooftop night.

The late-evening piece is still coming

The last part of the plan is dessert. Little Scoops is an old-fashioned, counter-service ice cream parlor planned for the Little Snitch space at The Citadel. The Forking Scottsdale October 1 issue reported it will connect to Little Snitch and is designed to stay open later in the evening, as a dessert stop for people dining along the Pinnacle Peak corridor. It was expected to open around the same time as ALMA, but it hasn't announced an opening date, hours or flavors.

If it opens as described, The Citadel's day would get one more stop after dinner, and all three businesses would belong to one restaurant group. Until then, the day ends when ALMA closes.

How it fits the holiday calendar near Troon

The resort at the other end of Troon works differently. Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North, at 10600 E. Crescent Moon Drive, organizes its season around specific dates rather than daily hours. Its September 25 release lists these:

• Wednesday, Nov. 25, and Thursday, Nov. 26. Thanksgiving dessert pickup at Desert Orchard, before 2 p.m.
• Friday, Nov. 27. A free Holiday Market open to the public, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Dec. 12, 19 and 20. Gingerbread-house decorating for children under 12 at Proof, 2:30 p.m., $95 per child.
• Monday, Dec. 21. A Winter Solstice Celebration at 5:30 p.m., $25 per person.

For residents near Troon, that gives the season two kinds of plans. The resort has a short list of dated events, and The Citadel is open every day from late afternoon on. On Black Friday, for example, the Holiday Market closes at 3 p.m., the same hour ALMA opens for happy hour, about a 15-minute drive away on Pinnacle Peak Road.

We follow openings like ALMA's because a corner near Troon that has dinner and a rooftop lounge where it used to have a closed steakhouse matters to the people who live nearby. If you'd like to talk about how the Pinnacle Peak corridor is changing and what that means for your home, Bob Martz and The Martz Group are glad to meet. Request a Private Market Consultation.