“Clark Gable joined us many times, and this is a handwritten thank-you card he sent to the Grubers,” general manager Ryan Prentiss told us as we passed the historic stationary around our table. Last August, the Gallery Room at El Chorro was filled with a sold-out crowd who had gathered for a special wine dinner commemorating its legacy. The menu by executive chef Charles Kassels featured such classics as vichyssoise, lobster thermidor, chateaubriand and cherries jubilee, culled from El Chorro’s recipe collection. Arranged around the room were photographs, paintings, and keepsakes, and throughout the evening Prentiss regaled us with stories and tales of bygone years.
El Chorro was originally built in 1934 as the Judson School for Girls. In 1937, Mark and Janet Gruber purchased the property, transforming it into a restaurant and bar with a 12-room lodge. An advertisement announcing its grand opening in 1938 proclaimed, “The attractive Spanish design of El Chorro Lodge will immediately attract those who seek secluded privacy on the famed desert surrounding Phoenix.” World travelers, the Grubers introduced the now-famous sticky bun recipe and collaborated on classics like beef stroganoff and trout almandine, and famous guests during this era included Clark Gable, John Wayne, and Zsa Zsa Gabor.
In 1973, the Grubers sold the property to Joe Miller, a bartender who had worked at El Chorro, along with his wife Evie, for over 25 years. The Millers retired in 2009 and the property was acquired by Jacquie Dorrance, who kept her vow to honor the legacy of El Chorro while restoring its grandeur and expanding its footprint. Under her tenure, changes included a new bar opening to the outdoors, a larger patio and striking entry courtyard and fountain. In 2021, Grossman Company Properties, a real estate and hospitality management company, took the reins and continues to maintain its historic character.
Today, El Chorro encompasses 4,800 square feet of dining and bar space and 7,500 square feet of picturesque patio areas, and is sought after for weddings and events (during the Super Bowl, the NFL rented out the entire property for 10 days). Executive chef Charles Kassels, an industry veteran of over 30 years, helms the kitchen and shapes its current culinary vision. I had a chance to sit down with Chef Kassels in the beautiful Landmark Room at El Chorro to learn more.
How did you choose the recipes for the legacy dinner?
There were probably about 200 recipes in the book, and I believe I took a menu from ‘58. Since it was summer, the vichyssoise, a chilled soup, made sense. A lot of the old recipes were really heavy, so I lightened that one and made it more modern. We could get fresh lobster, so that was the lobster thermidor, and for the chateaubriand and cherries jubilee, I long for the days of tableside carts. I wanted to have fun with it and for the dinner to be something guests couldn’t get anywhere else. It sold out in half an hour.
Besides the famous sticky buns, what are some other El Chorro classics?
The fried lobster, chicken livers, shrimp cocktails, beef stroganoff, and trout almandine.
How have you put your touch on them?
The shrimp cocktail is the original recipe, but the stroganoff used to be a lot heavier on the cream and sour cream and we’ve lightened that up. From red wine we went to sweet vermouth, and added a bit more demi-glace. It’s a great dish. We changed the trout to sustainable Ruby Red from Idaho. It’s a cleaner, really tasty fish.
How else has the menu evolved over the years?
We’ve made concessions to modern times. There’s a gluten-free chopped vegan salad. There’s more seafood on the menu. It used to just be the trout and salmon, and now we have a seafood pasta and a fish special. We now sell about 50/50 between fish and meat, and it’s worked out really well.
What’s it like to work here?
This place is so unique because in most places the chef’s or owner’s ego sort of makes the restaurant, but here I truly believe the property makes the restaurant what it is. It’s humbling. You can have fun, but the property is bigger than we are, and we try to keep within the framework. I really feel we’re a steward for the property for the next generation.
What do you enjoy most?
The people, and the atmosphere. It’s literally an oasis in the valley on 12 acres. You look that way, and you see Camelback, you look the other way and there’s Mummy Mountain. And the guests are great. People come here to show off Arizona. If you have an out-of-town guest, this is one of the places you need to take them to. This speaks Arizona.
Written by Christina Barrueta
Photography by Luke Irvin
5550 E Lincoln Dr, Paradise Valley, AZ 85253