Restaurant review: Joe's Farm Grill

If I were going to create the perfect East Valley restaurant, I’d have several criteria.

First, I’d want a menu of simple favorites like sandwiches, burgers, salads and pizza. All made with fresh ingredients, grown on a nearby farm if possible.

I’d make sure there are plenty of special twists. Like onion rings handmade every day with panko breadcumbs. Or a pineapple-serrano dipping sauce for the sweet potato fries.

Both inside and out, I’d want the restaurant to look different. No cookie-cutter designs or strip-mall spaces.

And it would be a casual place, somewhere where friends and families could relax. With lots of outdoor seating to take advantage of Arizona’s climate.

Sound too good to be true? Welcome to Joe’s Farm Grill.

Joe, of course, is Joe Johnston, who opened the restaurant with partners Tim and Tad Peelen in late 2006. Johnston’s empire also includes acclaimed Joe’s Real BBQ and newcomer Liberty Market, both located in downtown Gilbert.

Joe’s Farm Grill, on the other hand, was built several miles away on the site of Johnston’s family farm on Ray Road, about a quarter-mile west of Higley Road.

Although new homes have taken over much of the farm, 12 acres have been carved out for an urban farm called Agritopia, which grows everything from lettuce to dates to berries for the restaurant.

Joe’s Farm Grill’s exterior is both retro and futuristic, like a space-age burger stand straight out of the 1960s TV cartoon “The Jetsons.”

The indoor dining room looks like a vintage ’60-era rec room — which is exactly what it was when Johnston and his brothers were growing up in the slump-block ranch house.

Their former bedrooms are now the kitchen, where you stand in line to order at one window and pick up your food at another.

There are patios with bright blue tables in front and back, but preferred seating is at one of the many picnic tables scattered about the grounds beneath the canopy of large trees.

Small children roam freely, often trying to climb a tree when not bee-lining from dog to dog. In some respects, Joe’s Farm Grill is more like a city park than a restaurant.

When it comes to food, however, Joe’s is no mere concession stand.

Menu favorites start with the barbecue chicken pizza ($8.99, pictured at left), famously featured on the Food Network’s “Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives” last year. The thin crusts are cooked on a wood grill, then topped with ingredients, then grilled again.

The basic Farm Burger ($7.99, pictured forefront) is large and delicious, but spring for an extra buck and get the Fontina Burger with roasted red peppers, grilled mushrooms, Fontina and pecan pesto ($8.99, pictured above).

It’s no surprise the barbecue pork plate ($10.99) is just as good as the platters served at its more famous sister restaurant. The accompanying cole slaw, when I most recently tried it, was a bit dry, but that’s pretty much the only disappointment I’ve ever encountered at Joe’s Farm Grill.

My personal favorite on the menu is the chicken salad sandwich ($5.49, pictured at right), made with big chunks of cold, grilled chicken in a curry-coconut dressing. The slight spiciness of the curry is nicely balanced by plump, sweet raisins.

For a healthier option than fries, pair this outstanding sandwich with a side of diced red beets sprinkled with blue cheese and crushed pecans ($1.99). Where else in Arizona are you going to find such a combo?

One other piece of advice: Be prepared for a crowd. Maybe it’s just the nice weather the Valley has been enjoying lately, but I’ve been running into unusually long lines — even at 8 p.m. Sundays and Mondays.

I guess I’m not the only one who enjoys Joe’s Farm Grill.

Joe’s Farm Grill
Where: 3000 E Ray Road, Gilbert (quarter-mile west of Higley)
Open: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Prices: Salads $6.99-$11.99, burgers/sandwiches $5.49-$8.99, pizzas $7.49-$8.99, barbecue $7.99-$19.99
Info: (480) 563-4745 or joesfarmgrill.com.