RFK Rankings · Phoenix
Best Restaurants for Rooftop in Phoenix (2026)
Rooftop dining · Phoenix · 6 high-up tables ranked · Updated June 18, 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published April 18, 2024 · Updated June 18, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
The Compass turns a full circle on the twenty-fourth floor of the Hyatt Regency, the only revolving room in Arizona, while up on a cliff Different Pointe of View reads the whole valley from eighteen hundred feet. Phoenix takes its rooftops seriously, desert sunsets and city lights the main course. These six, ranked, are where to sit a table that wants the view as much as the food.
1.Compass Arizona Grill
Arizona's only revolving rooftop dining room, a full circle of the valley from twenty-four floors up; book the window.
Compass Arizona Grill turns slowly on the twenty-fourth floor of the Hyatt Regency Phoenix downtown, the only revolving restaurant in Arizona and a fixture since 1976. A full rotation takes in three-hundred-and-sixty degrees of the valley and the surrounding mountains over a New American menu.
The cooking is steak-and-seafood resort fine dining, but the room is the reason to come, every table getting the whole skyline in turn. Book a window seat for dinner, time it for sunset, and let the floor do the rest. Open Wednesday to Sunday from five.
2.Different Pointe of View
Arizona's longest-running Four-Diamond room, perched eighteen hundred feet up with floor-to-ceiling valley views.
Different Pointe of View sits on a ridge at the Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort in north Phoenix, eighteen hundred feet above the valley floor. Floor-to-ceiling windows give every table the desert panorama and the city lights, with a multi-level outdoor terrace and fire pits for cocktails before dinner.
It is Arizona's longest-running AAA Four-Diamond restaurant, cooking contemporary American with a Mediterranean accent and a deep wine list. Book a window table or the terrace, arrive for sunset, and let the cliff and the valley carry the evening.
3.Lustre Rooftop Bar
A third-floor pool-deck terrace over downtown with South Mountain views; book the Palomar deck for sunset plates.
Lustre sits on the third-floor pool deck of the Kimpton Hotel Palomar in downtown's CityScape, an open-air terrace with sofas, cabanas and a full bar. It looks out over South Mountain and the downtown skyline, a relaxed rooftop for coastal small plates and cocktails.
The menu is lighter than the fine-dining rooms, built around sharing and sundown rather than a long sit-down. Take the deck for early-evening drinks and plates, book ahead in the cooler months, and time it for the light over the mountains.
4.Floor 13 Rooftop Bar
Thirteen floors over downtown with skyline views and Hitchcock cocktails; book the rooftop for golden-hour plates.
Floor 13 crowns the Hilton Garden Inn Phoenix Downtown, thirteen storeys up with open-air views across the downtown skyline. The Rooftop Guide has named it a top Phoenix rooftop, its list of nine cocktails themed after Alfred Hitchcock and his films.
The food is upscale bar fare meant for sharing over drinks rather than a formal dinner, but the height and the view carry it. Book the rooftop for golden hour, order across the small plates, and stay for the lights coming up.
5.Skysill Rooftop Lounge
The Valley's highest open-air rooftop, panoramic over Tempe and Camelback; book the Westin deck for sunset bites.
Skysill tops The Westin Tempe, billed as the highest open-air rooftop in the Valley with panoramic views across Tempe, Camelback Mountain and the wider basin. Phoenix New Times has named it best rooftop bar three years running, with handcrafted cocktails and a stylish deck.
The kitchen sends globally inspired street food built for grazing over drinks, not a seated tasting. Take the deck for sunset, work through the small plates, and use the height for the long valley view. A short hop from downtown in Tempe.
6.Eden Rooftop Bar
An intimate downtown rooftop of Mediterranean plates and skyline views; book the Palomar terrace for an evening table.
Eden is the rooftop bar at the Kimpton Hotel Palomar in downtown Phoenix, a smaller, more intimate open-air space than its pool-deck sibling Lustre. It pairs a coastal-Mediterranean menu with signature cocktails and a view across the city's core.
The plates are made for sharing across a small group over drinks rather than a sit-down dinner, with the rooftop setting the draw. Book the terrace for an early-evening table, order broadly off the small plates, and time it for the skyline lights.
Not for everyone
Famous, but the wrong fit
Outrider Rooftop Lounge. The seventh-floor Camelback views at the Canopy by Hilton in Scottsdale Old Town are a genuine draw, but it sits well outside Phoenix proper and reads more lounge than restaurant. For a Phoenix rooftop dinner, the Compass or Different Pointe of View land harder.
Orange Sky. The fifteenth-floor room at Talking Stick Resort has real views, but it is out on tribal land in Scottsdale, not in Phoenix. Keep it for a Scottsdale night, not a Phoenix one.
Alibi Rooftop Lounge. The tropical Tempe rooftop pool and cabanas are fun, but the format is a party bar with street food, not a dining destination. Save it for a group drinks night, not a proper rooftop dinner.
How to plan a rooftop dinner in Phoenix
Phoenix's rooftops split between proper sit-down rooms and open-air bars. The Compass and Different Pointe of View are the two genuine fine-dining rooms with a view, both worth a window-table reservation and a sunset arrival. Lustre, Floor 13, Skysill and Eden are terrace bars where the height and the light matter more than a long menu, best taken for early-evening plates and cocktails.
Heat is the planning factor: the open decks come alive from October to April, while the enclosed, climate-controlled rooms at the Compass and Different Pointe of View hold up through summer. Book ahead for sunset either way, and aim for a west-facing table when you can.
Frequently asked
What is the best rooftop restaurant in Phoenix?
Compass Arizona Grill on the twenty-fourth floor of the Hyatt Regency is the standout, Arizona's only revolving dining room with a full three-hundred-and-sixty-degree view of the valley. Different Pointe of View, perched on a cliff at the Pointe Hilton, is the other top sit-down option.
Which Phoenix rooftop has the best view?
Different Pointe of View reads the whole valley from eighteen hundred feet up on a north-mountain ridge, while the Compass turns a full circle for a changing skyline. For an open-air deck, Skysill atop The Westin Tempe is billed as the highest in the Valley.
Are these rooftop spots good in summer?
The Compass and Different Pointe of View are enclosed, climate-controlled rooms, so they work year-round even in the desert heat. The open decks at Lustre, Floor 13, Skysill and Eden are best from October to April, or after sundown in the warmer months.
Where can I get a rooftop dinner rather than just drinks in Phoenix?
Compass Arizona Grill and Different Pointe of View are the two proper sit-down rooftop dining rooms, both with full menus and reservations. Lustre, Floor 13, Skysill and Eden lean toward small plates and cocktails over a formal dinner.
Do I need a reservation for Phoenix rooftops?
Yes for the dining rooms: book a window table at the Compass or Different Pointe of View, ideally for sunset. The terrace bars take walk-ins but fill quickly at golden hour in season, so reserving the deck is worth it.
Related rankings
More from RFK
Browse the full Phoenix dining guide, read the Different Pointe of View profile and the Vincent's on Camelback profile, compare the city's client rooms in the Phoenix impress-clients ranking and its date tables in the Phoenix first-date ranking, or open the full RFK rankings index.
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