Mariposa

Mariposa is Lisa Dahl's Latin-inspired grill on a sandstone bluff off West State Route 89A in Sedona, Arizona. From its terrace the view takes in Airport Mesa, Cathedral Rock and Bell Rock.

Dahl grew up in Indianapolis and worked in fashion and design before teaching herself to cook. She settled in Sedona after the death of her son Justin, and she calls each of her restaurants a small shrine to him; her memoir, The Elixir of Life, tells that story. Her first place in town was Dahl & Di Luca, opened with Andrea Di Luca, followed by Cucina Rustica and Pisa Lisa. Mariposa came in 2015, and its name, Spanish for butterfly, occurred to her while she stood on the site with her mother, who helped design and decorate it.

Mariposa was built from the ground up, on a knoll set back so far that it is hard to see from the highway. Stone, rough-hewn beams and hand-riveted metal panels give it weight, and the front door is made of polished stones gathered in Africa and South America, with stained-glass butterfly wings lit through the night. Inside, a block of amethyst stands behind the host desk, and tall windows run from floor to ceiling. Outside, a lawn has telescopes for looking at the night sky, a fire pit is ringed with river rock, and herbs grown in the courtyard end up in the sauces. The design takes the red rock as its measure, which is why the food is meant to be just as bold.

The kitchen grills over wood, with beef from Allen Brothers and a chimichurri on the side. Handmade empanadas and ceviches open the meal, mussels are baked with chorizo in a tomato and white-wine broth, and a filet mignon comes with the house gorgonzola chipotle sauce. The cellar holds some 600 wines, most from Chile and Argentina with a few rare bottles from Uruguay, and in 2016 Wine Spectator gave it an Award of Excellence for the first time.