NoRTH: the elite's direction of choice

North, 2995 E. Skyline Drive, is one of four restaurant/bars located at the roundabout driveway at La Encantada shopping center. Along with Ra Sushi Bar, Bluepoint Kitchen & Bar, and Firebirds Rocky Mountain Grill, this restaurant/bar has the atmosphere that college students seek for a nice night of dinner and drinks.


Before I was 21, North was the Friday night hangout for underage students with fake IDs. Now that I'm of age, I entered the doors with excitement to experience what I had missed out on the past year. The look of this place was one of a contemporary restaurant with a sleek and shiny design for those dressed to impress. My friend said it had a "Scottsdale wannabe" look. Scottsdale is known for being a little fancy schmancy (suprisingly enough, there is a North located in Scottsdale). North was the kind of place that even before we walked in the front door, we had a guy offering to buy a glass of champagne for the birthday girl (I guess a large group of women always attracts attention - but I am almost positive the birthday girl wouldn't have had a glass of champagne offered to her at the neighborhood bar at T.G.I. Friday's).

The interior brick walls and the metalic legs of the chairs surrounding the bar filled the place with a conservative look mixed with the sensation of shining luxury. My group sat in a room set aside from the rest of the area, which isolated us a little. However, we still managed to enjoy the bar scene from our table. Our room even had its own flat-screen television, just like the ones surrounding the real bar area. We ordered a variety of Frizzantes (a mixture of sparkling wine and fruit), wine and champagne (compliments of the man we spoke to when we entered the building) from North's Wine and Beer Drink Menu.

For a non-lover of wine, the frizzante was not that bad. It did not taste a whole lot like strawberries, but the fruit mixture did offset the usual sharp, biting taste of wine. The prices weren't cheap. The small glass of Frizante was $8, and it barely gives youa buzz (and I'm a lightweight). North is definitely one of the places where your money pays for the atmosphere. College students dub this place as "expensive" so usually it is one of the places where people go for special occasions, especially birthdays. So if you want a fun night at a special place, try North at La Encantada.





Learn more about Frizzantes and other wines


Check out other reviews of NoRTH:

DotComTucson Review

Insider Pages Review

Open Table Review