Americanized spins on Asian food scares me. There. I said it. Maybe it makes me seem like a spoiled brat, but I need the real authentic stuff. So, with much trepidation I made my way to Ling & Louie’s in Scottsdale. But, what makes Ling & Louie’s different is that they own up to the fact that they know they are not authentic and fully embrace making food that is more of a fun spin on Asian-inspired than any real attempt of authenticity.

We began with what might have been the best fried calamari I’ve ever had. No, seriously. It was topped with spicy aioli and sweet chili sauce, but perhaps more important than that they were fried in a way that kept them tasting both fresh and crispy. And, again, those sauces were pretty delicious.

For my main course I went with the Big Burger in Little China. The patty was marinated wagyu (which I always think is a waste), topped with candied bacon, cucumber salad (which I ordered without), Chinese BBQ sauce and spicy aioli. It also came with a side of garlic parmesan fries.

The results was a dish that looked more like fries with a side of burger than the other way around, but the burger was still sizable. The flavors were intense, and at times overwhelming, but I enjoyed it all. The patty itself was plenty juicy, but even if it hadn’t been there was enough sauce to make up for it. I probably could have handled a little more salty to balance out the sweet. And also the grind of the burger was kind of funky. In the end, the burger lived up to every expectation of it. Oh, and the fries were really tasty despite not being Asian in any way.

Ling & Louie’s surprised me. I really expected to not enjoy my meal, and, well, it turned out to be pretty good. It’s no substitute for authentic Asian food, but it’s smart enough to not even try.

There was a weird time in history when revolving restaurants became popular. Only one of these, at least as far as I understand, also was a Playboy Club back in the day, and that was the Compass Arizona Grill on top of the Hyatt in Downtown Phoenix. Today, it serves as kind of a throwback steakhouse, there to remind you how cool rotating restaurants once were, while trying to adapt to the modern palette.

Thus, we began with a couple of appetizers – the calamari and the meat and cheese board. One turned out well and the other left a little to desire. Surprisingly, I have to give kudos to the calamari. It was lightly fried and tasted fresh. I probably could have done without the accompanying veggies, but this was exactly the kind of calamari you want at a more upscale place. As for the meat and cheese board, both the meat and cheese were delicious, as you might expect. The trouble was that there was only one type of each. Variety is key for a charcuterie like this and this rotating restaurant didn’t provide it.

As for my main course, I ordered the Bone-In Niman Ranch Ribeye in honor of Hef, because I assume that is what he would have ordered. It came with a black garlic demi-glace, which is not something I would have expected at such a place and was eager to try out. After watching the sun set in the full 360 degreees, the steak arrived a surprisingly perfect medium-rare, and I set to work on spreading the black garlic evenly over the meat. The meat wasn’t quite as marbled as I would have liked, with sort of uneven bursts of fat and meatiness, but that’s really the only complaint I had. I thought the black garlic was a nice modern touch to bring out some extra umami that pretty much every meal could use.

I should also mention that the steak came with a choice of a side and I went for the bacon-brie mac and cheese. My only wish from this was that there could have been more of it, because it was perfect in every way.

Considering the gimmicky nature of the revolving restaurant and it being in a hotel, my expectations were pretty low for my meal. Lucky for Compass Arizona Grill, those expectations were exceeded. It may not be the best steak in the Phoenix area (I’m still partial to Mastro’s and waiting to be convinced that a better steak exists), but it did a good job. Like its Playboy roots, you may come for the views, but you’ll stick around for the articles.