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The Arcadia News features restaurant reviews each month.
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Wally's American Pub & Grill
5029 N 44th St ~ 602-954-2040

When it’s appropriate, I always enjoy having lunch or dinner sitting at the bar rather than at a table. For one thing, I like the higher seats and I like the immediacy of the service. There are plenty of places in Arcadia that let me do this, but there is a new spot that has won me over particularly for its lunch: Wally’s.

Wally’s American Grill at 44^th & Camelback is a lofty, open place; a long thin room with a cozy yet lively atmosphere. It’s a sports bar where you can watch a game looking over your beer, but you aren’t surrounded by the absurdness of sports paraphernalia or a 1000-watt stereo system bringing the commentary to an impossible din. It’s a happy hour spot where you can have appetizers and drinks with a crowd who seems a bit more settled in and confident. It’s a restaurant with familiar items, not a lot of things you have trouble spelling. Everything is well crafted and the owner, Wally Collins, is always wandering around and meeting people; he’s engaged.

My big meal of the day is lunch. I’m hungry around noon and eating a good lunch in a good place is my way of getting back at my wife for always spending our money on purses and shoes. Wally’s serves up a great Prime Rib for lunch. It’s the perfect size; if it were any larger the rest of my day would be shot. I would be home by 1:30, struggling with the hammock, asleep by 2 and waking up at 5 to drag my bloated frame to the TV for the evening news.

Moving on, Wally’s satisfies another important need for Arcadia. Beer and fried calamari -- the cosmopolitan combo if there ever was one. My favorite way to order them is well done with a bottle of Tabasco.

Wally’s has a good choice of beers on tap to accompany the dish, and if there’s a game on worth watching, Wally’s is tuned in. The dinner menu is versatile; some of the popular items are the Pot Roast, the Cobb Salad and the Fish and Chips. Each night includes a different seafood dinner and everything is a great value. The menu and more can be seen at Wallyspub.com.