Spooky Season, Pumpkin Spice & Our Favorite Mesa Hotspot 🎃

Fall is finally here!! Even though it’s still hitting 100 degrees in Arizona, I refuse to let that stop me from fully embracing spooky season. The calendar says fall, so we are doing fall things. Sweaters? Not yet. Pumpkin spice? Absolutely.

So,I started the weekend with the one and only beverage that officially kicks off fall season: The Pumpkin Spice Latte. 🎃☕

Pumpkin Spice Season at Peixoto

Our first stop was Peixoto Coffee Roasters, the perfect excuse to embrace fall, even if Arizona hasn’t gotten the memo yet.

Peixoto is a local favorite for good reason. Their coffee program is tied to the Peixoto family’s farm in Brazil, and they roast their own coffee, so even a seasonal latte starts with really good coffee. This year’s pumpkin spice latte, Save Me a Seat order: iced, with oat milk and maple cold foam was exactly what I wanted to kick off fall. (Peixoto)

The pumpkin spice brings that familiar cozy combination of pumpkin and warm fall spices, while the oat milk gives the latte that creamy texture I love without feeling overly heavy. Save Me a Seat tip: the maple cold foam, this was the perfect addition (tipping my hat to the barista who suggested this sweet little addtion) this was the perfect sweet-addtion. That maple flavor that made the whole drink taste like fall in a cup. The cold foam slowly works its way into the latte as you drink it, so every sip gets a little bit of that maple goodness.

And yes, I realize I am drinking a pumpkin spice latte while it’s approximately the temperature of the surface of the sun outside. I don’t care. It’s fall.

Saturday Night at The Guad 🌮🍹

If you find us on a Saturday night, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll find us at The Guadalupe on Main, aka The Guad

And for those of us who live around here, we’re talking DTM: Downtown Mesa. 😉

Guadalupe On Main has quickly become one of our favorite spots for Mexican food, cocktails and gluten-free dining that doesn’t feel like an afterthought.

One of the reasons we keep coming back, the menu! So much of the menu is naturally gluten-free, which makes ordering easy. I’m not scanning the menu looking for what I can eat. I’m trying to decide what I want first.

If you are curious about the details behind the menu: The restaurant serves Jalisco-inspired Mexican food, with recipes and traditions connected to Chef Jhomeny Ramos’ family roots in Guadalajara. The restaurant itself is named after his grandmother, Guadalupe. (Visit Mesa)

What We Order

There are several things that have become our regular orders, starting with the Street Corn Queso. It’s creamy, cheesy and full of that Mexican street-corn flavor that makes it dangerously easy to keep eating even after you’ve told yourself you’re just going to have “a little.”

Then there’s my personal favorite: the Chile Relleno. And if you’re gluten-free, you know a good Chile Relleno can be hard to find. So when I find one I can actually enjoy, it gets my full attention. It’s flavorful, comforting and easily one of my favorite dishes on the menu.

Let's keep going through more of the menu: Birria Braised Short Rib is a standout, especially if you’re looking for something rich, tender and packed with flavor. And becuase tacos are never an afterthought: if you’re in the mood for tacos, you can’t go wrong with any of them.. At this point, ordering at The Guad usually involves trying to decide which favorite we’re in the mood for that night.

I can't leave this topic without mentioning another big menu highlight: the restaurant’s Jalisco-style mole, which has become one of Chef Jhomeny Ramos’ signature dishes. Chef Ramos was named Phoenix Magazine’s 2026 Best Chef, and his mole won Best Mole at the 2025 Sunday Dinner at The Duce competition. (Visit Mesa)

We’ve heard about the mole many, many times. There is just one little problem: we’re waiting for Chef to perfect a gluten-free version. This speaks loudly that he’s working on it, just one of the things that makes The Guad so special. The chef isn’t just checking a gluten-free box, he’s thinking about how to make the food accessible without sacrificing the imprtant flavors of the dish itself.

So yes, Chef. We’ll be waiting for that mole. Patiently.😉

We Must Talk About the Bar

Let’s highlight one of my favorite things about The Guad: the bartenders.

These are some of the best. Not only are they friendly and incredibly knowledgeable about the menu, but they are genuinely helpful when you’re trying to decide what to eat or what to drink.

Save Me a Seat Tip: Sit at the bar. Or grab one of the high-top tables right next to the bar.

The bar area is actually a little quieter than the main dining room, which makes it much easier to have a conversation. And because you’re right there with the bartenders, you can ask questions, get recommendations and watch all the cocktail magic happen. We’ve officially become regulars, which means the bartenders now recognize us, and I’m pretty sure we’re getting dangerously close to the point where they’ll know my drink order before I even sit down.

That drink? Mango margarita. Reposado tequila. Tajín on the rim.

That’s my order. Every time. If you haven’t tried it yet, I highly recommend it.

The combination of the food, the drinks, and the people keep us coming back. It doesn’t really feel like we’re going out to dinner, it feels like we’re going to The Guad, and there’s a difference.

Final Fall Verdict 🍂

Fall in Arizona may look a little different than it does everywhere else. We’re drinking pumpkin spice lattes while it’s 100 degrees, we’re wearing sandals instead of boots, and “fall weather” is more of a concept than an actual temperature.

Give me the pumpkin spice latte. Give me the margarita. Give me the tacos. Give me spooky season.

And most importantly…Save me a seat. 🍂🎃🌮

This Week’s Worth a Seat Rating

☕ Peixoto Pumpkin Spice Latte with Oat Milk + Maple Cold Foam⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5

🌮 The Guadalupe on Main⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5/5