. "To make a long story short, if you demanded my recommendations for a week's worth of lunches in Mesa, Bistro a la Mode would be five of them. If I start listing *all* the things I liked about this hidden gem, well...you'd get too hungry and go someplace FAR less worthwhile. \n\nThe B. ala M. applies all the thoughtfulness and craft one could ask in a four-star nuptial plating to their public pop-up lunch service next to the Stonebridge Manor (which, in addition to hosting weddings, provides a sprawling backyard to the Bistro to walk off that marsala pot pie). Dishes are elegant, playful (see: \"adult\" grilled cheese), genuinely delicious, and in keeping with the a-la-mode theme, accompanied by some decadent chaser of asiago mashed potatoes, creamy beef salad, or the classic ice cream in the case of their stellar desserts.\n\nThe check (a scandalous bargain) is delivered, adorably, in the flyleaf of a vintage book. If nothing else, this flourish demonstrates that my native Seattle has lost its primacy in the art of the world-class dining experience. The *best* lunches are served in Mesa, five minutes off 202."^^ . "4"^^ . "5"^^ . "1"^^ . "0"^^ . "2015-02-19T00:00:00"^^ . . .