Augie’s Restaurant Comes to Pine Ridge Marketplace

It will be welcome news for fans of Augie’s when it hosts a grand opening this month at Pine Ridge Marketplace (formerly the Prescott Gateway Mall), a modern, multifaceted regional shopping center at 3460 Gateway Boulevard.

The restaurant’s return was sparked in part by public demand. Loyal patrons were vocal in various reviews about how saddened they were about what they saw as the permanent demise of Augie’s.

Restaurateur Augie Perry, whose skills were honed through 40 years in the restaurant and hospitality industry, had fashioned the style at the beloved restaurant over time. His goal was to establish an upbeat American restaurant with classic fare enhanced with higher taste profiles and amazing presentations, all accompanied by a full bar, a lounge and a patio.

The local buzz on the streets was that Perry would open a new location when he found “the right time and place.”

Well, the right time and place have arrived. The all-new Augie’s is located in the popular Espire Sports, an all-weather pickleball and multi-sport complex that opened in July 2022 at the marketplace.

The sporting complex occupies the 100,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by Sears, with Augie’s located in a 7,000-square-foot area in the northeast corner of the building.

“Were very grateful because it really starts to make our destination resort vision pull together,” Espire Sports founder and CEO Jim Thomas. “Augie’s being a part of that is a huge deal for us, because people are going to come from around the world to visit with us.”

He said the marketplace vision is summed up by the motto, “Eat, Stay, Play,” with the “Stay” part of the vision soon to be furthered with a groundbreaking in the parking lot for a 108-room hotel.

The new location at the marketplace offers proximity to ample parking and access to a variety of shopping and dining opportunities, all set near the ponderosa pine forest, giant granite boulders and tranquil lakes.

“Pine Ridge Marketplace is a great location,” Thomas said. “I feel like we’re the center of everything in Prescott, Prescott Valley and Chino Valley.”

“I can’t wait to open,” he said. “People can come and eat there and if they want, they can play pickleball, use the golf simulator and bowl; there’s a lot to do.”

Thomas met Perry about a year ago. “He’s a new friend,” Thomas said. “He’s a wonderful, wonderful guy and I absolutely love working with him.”

Thomas is also working with his brother, Randy Thomas, as general contractors on the Augie’s project.

The spacious layout includes the three dining rooms that can seat 250 guests, an outside patio with seating for 30 to 40, a full bar and lounge and, finally, what Thomas calls, “the largest kitchen in the city, from what I can tell. It’s huge!”

Work on the new patio, the kitchen and bar were completed in April, as well as the work on the red entrance canopy on the north side of the building, displaying the familiar black handlebar mustache logo.

“Augie has a big, bushy mustache, so it’s become his go-to thing,” Thomas said.

With his bushy mustache, Perry has long been pictured supporting various Prescott area non-profit organizations as an active sponsor and donor, including Prescott Center for the Arts, Yavapai College Performing Arts, Western Heritage Center, Boys & Girls Club, Big Brother and Big Sister, Yarnell Fire Department Prescott, Shriners and Toys for Tots.

Perry is the current owner of Rock Springs Café and the past owner and operator of Augie’s Grill in Prescott Valley and Anthem, as well as Potbelly’s BBQ in Chino Valley and several restaurants in Scottsdale. Past positions included national, multi-unit operations at Madison Square Gardens Hotels, and Sambo’s restaurants, to name a few.

The content of the menu has always been central to the Augie’s food formula. A menu tasting was last month and the staff completed training before Easter.

Many favorite items from the previous Augie’s menu will return, such as starters of grilled artichokes, crab cakes and crispy calamari, soups of the day, salads like the famous chopped Cobb, as well as entrees of juicy burgers and sandwiches. New items are being added as well.

Thomas, who said that in April he especially enjoyed sampling the meatloaf sandwich and the Caesar salad, noted, “They were still working on the menu, making sure they’re getting everything right, preparing dishes for the staff and working on things.” QCBN

By Betsey Bruner, QCBN

The restaurant will be open for lunch daily, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner, Monday through Saturday, from 4 to 8 p.m., and for lunch on Sundays.

Courtesy Photo: The much-anticipated Augie’s Restaurant in Espire Sports is quiet now, but expected to be bustling with activity when it opens this month.