Chef Kevin Binkley to close Cave Creek location, focus on refined Phoenix concept

Renowned Arizona chef Kevin Binkley will close the doors of his Cave Creek restaurant this summer to focus on reinventing his Phoenix location.

Binkley said the shutdowns will help him focus on his new flagship restaurant, in which guests eat in different areas of the 1928 home. The chef/owner plans to “tear down the wall” between the kitchen and the dining room at his midtown location, both figuratively and literally.

“It’ll still be Binkley’s food, because I think that’s the truest form of what I love to cook,’’ Binkley told AZCentral.com‘s Dominic Armato. ‘‘But the refinement is going to go through the roof. It’ll be higher than you’ve ever experienced from me.’’

Each of his locations are profitable, but Binkley said the expansion began to limit his personal growth.

“I didn’t get into this business because I love business,” Binkley said. “I want to cook food, and the more locations we have, the less I get to do that, and that’s not OK. It isn’t about money. It’s about passion and filling a hole that’s been growing in my heart, because I don’t love running the business. I love cooking food.”

The four-time James Beard Award finalist is known for hosting dramatic and memorable dining experiences uncommon in Arizona, such as his famous Pig’s Head Dinners.

The name of his new concept, set to open this fall, is yet unknown. Binkley said the details are not finalized, but he plans to serve 20-40 guests a night. Reservations might cost $130 to $150 per person.

Binkley said he believes that Phoenix needs and deserves a higher level of restaurants, and that he wants to be the one to provide that.