A beautiful courtyard styled as a Mexican mission welcomes guests into Minder Binder. The restaurant reopened on Oct. 16, 2014, after a successful two-year rehabilitation. (Nicholas Latona/The State Press)Tempe is not exactly renowned for its unique architectural flair. Much of the city is dotted with typical liquor store shopping malls and drab desert-toned walls that surround sprawling bedroom communities like suburban fortresses of the working class. Honestly, you’d be hard pressed to find much of a “wow factor” outside of ASU Gammage and the Mill Avenue Bridges at night.
However, tucked away off to the side of McClintock Drive sits an anomaly in Tempe’s landscape that’s been catching the eye of passersby since 1971 – a massive red barn completely uncharacteristic of anything around it. Minder Binder Bar and Grill has been a bona fide Tempe landmark for over 30-plus years, providing the infamously rowdy town with a cheaper alternative to the pricey Mill Avenue bar scene. In 2005, the popular hangout closed and was left vacated until 2012 when owner Kristen Bell, not to be confused with the celebrity, began an extensive restoration project.
Reopened Oct. 16 under the slightly new guise of The Mission @ Minder Binder, it’s clear the two-year rehabilitation was successful. A stunning courtyard behind a Mexican mission façade serves as guests’ first visual impression. Tree-lined fixtures plot the grounds and bring life to an area brimming with potential to host large gatherings. This scenery entices customers to purchase drinks and food at the walk-up bars.
The classic Mexican style ends at the front door, though, as the interior of the restaurant maintains a drastically different theme. Inside lays a trove of collectible Americana trinkets, oddities and magazine photo collages that cover every square inch from floor to ceiling. It’s as though Mike and Frank from A&E;’s American Pickers have been using this place as a storage unit for the last 30 years and found a way to adorn the multi-leveled building with retro flair. Not much can be said to properly describe the overwhelmingly chaotic and beautiful interior of the bar. It truly is a sight to behold in person.
After being seated with my two guests at a cozy wooden booth, a quick peruse through the single page drink menu yielded an order of four different cocktails. The Moscow Mule ($8) could have used a tad more vodka to even out the overpowering ginger beer and the Manhattan ($7) tasted pre-mixed and too heavy on the bitters. Thankfully, the Dark & Stormy ($7), basically a Moscow Mule with dark rum instead of vodka, was excellent, as was the Bell Steakhouse Margarita ($7).
The Wisconsin cheese curd appetizer ($5.95) was served in a standard bar-food basket with little attempt to present them in an appealing manner. But the presentation holds little importance in the casual atmosphere at Minder Binder – doubly so when you actually taste just how flavorful the little buggers are. The six deviled eggs appetizer ($6.95) shares a similar sentiment. Basically a lighter version of the American-standard loaded potato skins, each halved egg is generously topped with bacon and chives and tastes incredible. I definitely recommend both of these starters to anyone.
Simple entrée menus often emit a sense of focus and design. Overly large menus can show a head chef’s lack of faith in what he or she is serving. Minder Binder’s selection fortunately fits within the former description, although there is a missing aspect of creativity from the largely standard menu.
The King Leonidas 12" pizza sports both fennel sausage and pepperoni for toppings. There is a wide variety of pizzas to choose from their menu. (Nicholas Latona/The State Press)A wide assortment of pizzas populate the menu, of which the King Leonidas ($14) was ordered. Sourdough is used as the crust – an interesting, yet practical choice that allows for ample support to heavy fennel sausage and pepperoni toppings. While the pizza is by no means of artisanal quality, the ingredients and overall taste is far and above many Tempe restaurants serving the Italian staple. Call it a bar pie dressed with character.
The Swiss Alp Burger ($10.95), our final entrée, hit the spot with its medium-rare finish and delectable homemade honey barbecue sauce slathered on top of fresh Applewood bacon and Swiss cheese. The caramelized onions added a welcome acidity to the dish, and helped distract from the somewhat stale, albeit buttery, bun. The steak fries were underwhelming, under-salted and slightly under cooked – never a good sign for a bar-food establishment. There are plenty of better burgers to be had in Tempe and the price is much too steep for what you receive.
For dessert, the appropriately named Mothership carrot cake ($4.95) was simply astounding and positively decadent. Many restaurants claim to serve homemade desserts, yet rarely live up to the expectations. Our server explained that a woman on staff actually bakes the carrot cake every day from scratch, hence the limited availability warning on the menu. The mascarpone frosting is just sweet enough to balance the powerful flavor of the candied ginger and the cake itself is both moist and criminally delectable.
Service at Minder Binder is neither overbearing nor neglectful. Wait staff is knowledgeable of the menu and prompt with refilling drinks. Perhaps the only complaint about it is that the main courses were served in a staggered manner, rather than all at once as requested. A simple, but crucial, kitchen timing error caused the pizza to reach a lukewarm temperature before the burger showed up.
Minder Binder has a certain kind of inviting warmth permeating through it. When I took my first steps inside, I instantly imagined a few of the “good-ol’-boys” lounging at the bar, clanking their beers together and cheering to a night of hearty laughs and reminiscence. I could see a bartender who knows everyone’s names and plights by heart, taking care of her patrons like a concerned mother. A rowdy country-rock cover band was jamming to a crowd of drunken dancers who knew the words to every song. And despite this all being a hopeful day dream, I want to be a part of it. I want Minder Binder to bring that sort of local-party-bar attitude that Tempe sorely lacks.
Here’s to hoping it does.
The Mission @ Minder Binder is open Sunday to Thursday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Friday to Saturday 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Reach the reporter at nlatona@asu.edu or follow @Bigtonemeaty on Twitter.
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