RFK Rankings · Scottsdale
Best Restaurants for Family-Friendly in Scottsdale (2026)
Family-friendly dining · Scottsdale · 6 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published May 2, 2024 · Updated June 9, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
Scottsdale is an easy town with children: warm nights, big patios, Old Town within a short walk, and a deep bench of casual rooms that actually want kids at the table. The trick is picking the ones where the cooking is worth the trip and the parents eat as well as the children. These six, ranked, are where the kids' menu is real and the patio does half the parenting.
1.Oregano's Pizza Bistro
Generous Chicago-style pizza and skillet cookies kids inhale; book the Old Town patio for a loud family dinner.
Oregano's runs its Old Town room at 3102 North Scottsdale Road, an Arizona-born pizzeria built on big Chicago-style pies and a retro, kitsch-filled dining room. A pizza feeds a small table around $20 to $26, the pizza cookie comes in a skillet, and the kids' menu keeps cheese pizza and buttered noodles.
The room is loud, busy and forgiving, the kind of place a noisy child disappears into. High chairs are easy and the patio holds a stroller; come early or book the Old Town location to skip the worst of the weekend wait.
2.Barrio Queen
Tableside guacamole and house tortillas in lively Old Town; book the patio for an early family dinner.
Barrio Queen has cooked traditional Mexican food at 7114 East Stetson Drive in Old Town Scottsdale since 2011, with guacamole made at the table and tortillas pressed in-house. Tacos run about $5 to $8 each and there is a kids' plate of quesadillas and tacos for the table's youngest.
The colourful, lively room and the patio make it an easy family booking, and the tableside guacamole is a small show for a child. Book an early sitting on the patio before Old Town fills, and let the kids watch the avocado get mashed.
3.Culinary Dropout
Pretzel fondue, lawn games and a huge patio kids love; book The Yard for a relaxed family night.
Culinary Dropout at The Yard in Old Town Scottsdale is a scratch-kitchen gastropub with a sprawling patio, lawn games and live music. The famous soft pretzels with provolone fondue run about $13, mains sit around $18 to $26, and the kids' menu covers burgers and grilled cheese.
The patio and the games do half the parenting, keeping children busy between courses while the adults eat and drink well. Book a patio table early in the evening, order the pretzels for the table, and let the kids loose on the lawn.
4.The Sugar Bowl
A 1950s soda fountain with towering sundaes; walk in with kids for burgers and ice cream after Old Town.
The Sugar Bowl has run its pink soda fountain at 4005 North Scottsdale Road in Old Town since 1958, an ice cream parlour and luncheonette frozen in the 1950s. Burgers and sandwiches run about $12 to $16 and the towering sundaes are the reason children beg to come.
The retro room, the counter stools and the giant ice cream are a small event for a kid, and the menu keeps real food before the dessert. Walk in after a wander through Old Town for an easy early dinner that ends in a sundae.
5.The Mission
Modern Latin cooking with a glass tortilla machine kids watch; book an early family table in Old Town.
The Mission, on a side street in Old Town Scottsdale beside a church wall, cooks modern Latin food with a glass-walled tortilla machine in the dining room. Tacos and mains run about $18 to $30, the guacamole is made tableside, and the kitchen will plate simple tacos or quesadillas for a child.
The dim, stylish room is more grown-up than the rest of this list, but an early booking with children works, and the tortilla machine is a draw for young eyes. Come at the start of the evening before it turns into a date-night room.
6.Hash Kitchen
A loud all-day brunch with a cereal bar kids raid; walk in any morning before the weekend line builds.
Hash Kitchen runs a high-energy all-day brunch with Scottsdale rooms in Old Town and North Scottsdale, a loud, music-driven breakfast spot. The over-the-top hashes and pancakes run about $15 to $19, there is a cereal bar children love, and a simple kids' plate.
The bright, busy room is forgiving with children, and the cereal bar buys parents a few quiet minutes. Walk in on a weekday morning to beat the weekend brunch line and get a table and a high chair without a wait.
Not for everyone
Great rooms, wrong for kids
Quiessence at The Farm. The candlelit farm room south of Old Town runs a long, romantic, seasonal tasting built for adults. Book a sitter and keep it for a date night, not a family dinner.
Mowry & Cotton. The Phoenician's polished resort dining room is a dressed-up, grown-up evening rather than a family one. Bring the children to Oregano's or Culinary Dropout instead.
Bourbon Steak. Michael Mina's clubby steakhouse at the Fairmont is a dim, expensive adult room. The steaks are excellent, but it is the wrong booking with kids at the table.
How to eat out with kids in Scottsdale
Almost everything family-friendly clusters in and around Old Town, which is walkable and flat: Oregano's, Barrio Queen, The Sugar Bowl, The Mission and Culinary Dropout's Yard are all within a short stroll of each other. Hash Kitchen covers the morning, and the warm nights make every patio a play space.
Book or arrive early. Old Town fills on weekend evenings, so an early patio sitting at Barrio Queen or Culinary Dropout beats the wait and the heat. For a no-booking meal, Oregano's, The Sugar Bowl and Hash Kitchen take walk-ins, and the games and the sundaes keep children busy while the food comes.
Frequently asked
What are the best family restaurants in Scottsdale?
Oregano's Pizza Bistro on North Scottsdale Road leads, an Arizona-born pizzeria with generous Chicago-style pies and a real kids' menu. Barrio Queen in Old Town makes guacamole and tortillas at the table, and the 1958 Sugar Bowl is the soda-fountain institution every child wants to finish the night at.
Which Scottsdale restaurant is best for picky eaters?
Oregano's is built for picky eaters, with cheese pizza, buttered noodles and a skillet cookie. The Sugar Bowl's burgers and sundaes and Hash Kitchen's cereal bar are the other safe bets when a child will only eat the simple thing.
Are Scottsdale restaurants good for kids?
Yes. Scottsdale is walkable, warm and casual, with Old Town full of family rooms a short stroll apart. Spots like Oregano's, Barrio Queen and Culinary Dropout welcome high chairs and strollers, and several pair the meal with a patio, lawn games or an ice cream counter.
Where can kids eat and play in Scottsdale?
Culinary Dropout at The Yard is the answer, a gastropub with a big patio, lawn games and live music that keeps children busy between courses. The Sugar Bowl's retro soda fountain and Hash Kitchen's cereal bar are the other kid-pleasers.
Do Scottsdale family restaurants take reservations?
Some do and some do not. Barrio Queen, Culinary Dropout and The Mission take bookings, so reserve an early patio table before Old Town fills. Oregano's, The Sugar Bowl and Hash Kitchen are walk-in, so arrive early with children to skip the line and the wait for a high chair.
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