As far as I'm concerned, the trendy, chic AZ88 has three things going for it:
1. There's a "Celebratory Champagne" cocktail that involves colored confetti sugar sprinkled in to the drink table-side (and, in fact, all of the cocktails are very good),
2. The cocktail prices here are beyond reasonable for the swanky vibe, and
3. The spot is open pretty damn late for being in an otherwise seemingly-dead part of town.
Located right behind the Saguaro, AZ88 was our go-to bar for late night shenanigans, as most of the other bars in the immediate area seemed to be closed. I was impressed by everything I consumed at this bar, and surprised at the resulting bill (having spent the prior days overpaying for drinks in hotel bars in Sedona and Scottsdale). $7 or $8 for a Buffalo Trace Manhattan is good by any standards.
Service here was on point during both visits, and did a solid job of splitting checks and keeping up with our ever-growing/changing crowd.
The food I sampled here was decent but nothing mind-blowing. However I'd come back in for drinks any time. And sing "WOOOOO" every time someone gets some confetti sugar sprinkled in their champagne cocktail.