Ncounter on Mill Avenue has been open just shy of two weeks and has already become a huge hit with a LOT of people. Yes, I am definitely one of those people. In fact, I have been to Ncounter the last two days in a row and can tell you that the place serves up some mighty fine grub. Check out this grilled cheese sandwich called the Melt Down. I can assure you, my photo doesn’t do it any justice. They take jack, cheddar, swiss, american and cream cheese, add jalapenos, BACON, tomato and grill it on 12 grain bread. Oh, so good for a cheese freak like me!
The Melt Down at Ncounter
Breakfast at Ncounter is something we all need to make a regular part of our lives. I know this because I have been to T.C. Eggington’s in Mesa a BUNCH of times because of their stellar food and awesome service. The people at Eggington’s are involved with Ncounter so you know they have engrained their know how of a good thing. Another reason I know the breakfast at Ncounter rocks is because I have just about drooled over the plates of food I have seen this week. The pics on their web site also tell a pretty sweet story. It won’t take me long to verify this, I can assure you.
In addition to my Melt Down, I have tried the focaccia roma-chicken, the natie bomb and the tuna melt. Yes, it’s good to go with some of the cool chicks from work so that you can steal mooch off of their plates. My buddy Paul had the ham stack but wasn’t gonna let me anywhere near it. 🙂
The rest of the menu needs to be explored a little more, as well. Smoothies, salads, omelettes, etc. all sound great. The “breakfast cocktails” part of the menu hasn’t gone unnoticed, either. ( Bloody Marys, Mimosas and more )
Oh, they have coffee and pastries, too. The red velvet cupcake really doesn’t suck. My friend Bill ordered one yesterday when we were there and I had to snag a taste. Nothing says manly like two dudes sharing a red velvet cupcake, right?
Located at 310 S Mill Avenue, Ncounter is one of the most light rail friendly locations along the line. In fact, it’s directly across from the light rail station at 3rd and Mill, you can’t miss it. If driving to Mill, you can park in the garage just West of Ncounter or on Mill OR in the parking lot on the East side of the road.
Having a good breakfast and lunch spot is something many people have been wanting for a long time, and from the crowd I saw at lunch today, it looks like this place is going to do just fine.
Once the weather breaks again, I am pretty sure we will be organizing some more “hikes” up A Mountain. For those of you unfamiliar with the drill, we meet at what was once Mill’s End Coffee and is now the MUCH improved NCounter, and then hike A Mountain with a bunch of friends. I’m pretty jazzed to have a cool spot to hang out with friends.
More info:
See Ncounter on Facebook:
310 South Mill Avenue – Southwest corner Mill and 3rd St
Tempe, AZ 85281
Ph: 480.968.9288
Hours: Monday – Sunday 7am – 3:05pm
I have added Ncounter to our “Light Rail Drinks” map which shows cool places for a drink or a cup of coffee. Seems like a good fit. 🙂
View Light Rail Drinks in a larger map
How would you feel if you and your friend went into a restaurant and set at an art deco bar, ordered a glass of wine at the bar and the bartender took your food order and you and your friend went to sit on the restaurant’s neat patio to feel the sun beam and the cool morning breeze while glancing at a mountain top. The manager brings you your breakfast on nice white modern deco dishes and as he walks away you are ready to dig into your food and you immediately realize there is no silverware for you to eat. As the manager walks away you mention that there is no silverware and HE TELLS YOU TO GO GET YOUR OWN SILVERWARE because he has to go get the rest of your food?
I had no idea where to go get the silverware so I made no attempt, yet my friend decided to go on a short journey to locate silverware to only learn from the bartender that she had provided silverware to the manager for us, YET IT NEVER MADE IT TO OUR TABLE.
My friend and I had decided to hike the Buttes mountain and one of the mountain climbers suggested we make a left at the light and go two blocks down for service at a restaurant. As we headed out the parking lot we told Lance the Director of Security of the Hotel that we were going to eat breakfast further down the street. He suggested we go to NCounter instead when I really wanted to go down the street for a longer walk as the hiker suggested. NCounter had not opened for business, it was 6:43 a.m. May 5, 2012, and fortunately, they had a really interesting menu on the outside of the building for us to view. So we sat on a bench outside waiting for the door to open. No one else but us were in the vicinity who was waiting for the door to open for service. My friend had mentioned wine for breakfast before we had read the menu outside and she was very excited that Mimosa was on the menu. The bartender provided great service and even offered a glass of water to go with our glass of champagne. However, she did say that we needed to pay our bill upfront and my friend suggested she will decide the tip based on the service provided and the outcome of the food. I had not heard of that one, so I went along with her. Wow! What an outcome and her decision to wait for tipping later actually made sense after the complete service. Especially after the service that the manager had provided.
It is interesting when you are the first customer to open the door, order your food and notice that you did not receive your silverware, but when you look around at all the other tables that were being served you noticed that silverware was brought to them…it may not make you think….but it made me think about why did I not receive that same kind of customer/quality/friendly/manager service.
After analyzing my environment, it made me not want to order another glass of wine, made me not interested in my food, made my conversation with my friend not positive, made my friend not tip anyone after I had given a tip to the bartender, made us not want to recommend no one to the restaurant, made us go and tell Lance about the service he suggested, made me not want to tell my co-workers at US Airways about the restaurant.
It is not the big things that customers like me complain about…it is usually the small things that seem so big and it makes me wonder should I had taken that longer walk down the street for better service.
To Mrs. Moses and All Who May be Misled by her Comment,
At Ncounter you get your own silverware. The first time I went I didn’t know that, and they kindly brought it to me. But if Mrs. Moses had not disdained to look for silverware, merely walking inside the restaurant would have revealed to her that it is located in a prominent position right next to the drink machine, sugar, sauces, etc.
They should have brought Mrs. Moses silverware when she asked for it, but it wasn’t a special slight that they didn’t. This is more a case of the (excusable) ignorance of Mrs. Moses than poor customer service on the part of the restaurant staff.