18 March 12th-March 18th, 2026 phoenixnewtimes.com PHOENIX NEW TIMES | NEWS | FEATURE | FOOD & DRINK | ARTS & CULTURE | MUSIC | CONCERTS | CANNABIS | Questions? Feedback? Email me at [email protected] • Follow me on RATING (out of 5 McFly’s) 2026 SUBARU OUTBACK LIMITED: THE OFFICIAL VEHICLE OF ‘LET’S JUST TAKE THE DIRT ROAD 2026 SUBARU OUTBACK LIMITED The 2026 Subaru Outback The 2026 Subaru Outback is what happens when a station is what happens when a station wagon decides it’s tougher than wagon decides it’s tougher than most SUVs in the parking lot. Priced most SUVs in the parking lot. Priced at $43,165, it comes standard with at $43,165, it comes standard with Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Subaru’s Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive, which basically means bad Drive, which basically means bad weather and sketchy dirt roads weather and sketchy dirt roads don’t get the final say. The base don’t get the final say. The base 2.5-liter flat-four puts out about 2.5-liter flat-four puts out about 180 horsepower, which isn’t going 180 horsepower, which isn’t going to pin you to your seat, but it will to pin you to your seat, but it will reliably haul people, gear, and reliably haul people, gear, and your optimistic weekend adventure your optimistic weekend adventure plans. Step up to the turbo and you plans. Step up to the turbo and you get 260 horsepower, which makes get 260 horsepower, which makes highway passing feel a lot less like highway passing feel a lot less like asking permission. asking permission. Fuel economy stays Fuel economy stays respectable at around 25 city / 31 respectable at around 25 city / 31 highway MPG, which is impressive highway MPG, which is impressive considering the Outback also packs considering the Outback also packs 8.7 inches of ground clearance. 8.7 inches of ground clearance. Translation: potholes, dirt trails, and Translation: potholes, dirt trails, and those random gravel roads near the those random gravel roads near the mountains don’t scare it. This thing mountains don’t scare it. This thing has quietly been getting people into has quietly been getting people into the wilderness for decades while the wilderness for decades while most crossovers are still trying to most crossovers are still trying to figure out how to look rugged in a figure out how to look rugged in a Target parking lot. Target parking lot. Inside, the Outback feels like Inside, the Outback feels like a rolling base camp. The cabin is a rolling base camp. The cabin is roomy, the cargo space is massive, roomy, the cargo space is massive, and the tech is simple enough and the tech is simple enough that you don’t need a software that you don’t need a software engineering degree to change engineering degree to change the temperature. It’s comfortable, the temperature. It’s comfortable, practical, and built for people who practical, and built for people who actually use their cars for stuff. actually use their cars for stuff. The Outback isn’t flashy and it’s The Outback isn’t flashy and it’s not trying to be cool. But when the not trying to be cool. But when the weather turns, the road ends, or weather turns, the road ends, or the weekend plans get ambitious, the weekend plans get ambitious, it’s usually the vehicle everyone it’s usually the vehicle everyone wishes they brought. wishes they brought. Comfort: Value: Fuel Economy: Looks: The Drive: Safety & Security: Overall: Sound System: Bells & Whistles: Marvelous Mezze Levantine flavors shine through shareable small plates at Noor. BY SARA CROCKER W hen the team behind Noor began teasing its arrival in Phoenix late last year, it promised to bring “a new light to Mediterranean dining.” Noor, which means light in Arabic, opened at the northeast corner of Tatum and Shea boulevards in December. The restaurant draws inspiration from Levantine cuisine of the Middle Eastern region that abuts the Mediterranean Sea. Syrian chef Dima Al-Chaar crafted Noor’s menu. She is a “Top Chef Middle East” semifinalist who consults on restau- rants around the world. Local cocktail expert Maxwell Berlin developed Noor’s drink menu. Berlin previously helmed the dual downtown lounge Quartz and is no stranger to curating drinks inspired by cuisine — he formerly tended bar at the revered Thai restaurant Glai Baan. Noor has found its home in a space that, in recent years, housed sports bars. The previous two occupants were the upscale lounge Vintage XIV and an outpost of the casual brewpub Uncle Bear’s Grill & Tap. In its evolution to become Noor, the restaurant received layers of luxe updates throughout. Elements nodding to the restaurant’s Syrian inspiration now adorn the dining room. There’s an octagonal fountain covered in intricately arranged geometric stone tile. It quietly bubbles in the heart of the space, shaded by a faux olive tree. A mural across the room depicts a village square with a fountain at the center. Those pieces sit amid sleek-lined tables and booths that fill with couples and groups out for girls’ nights. Woven textiles drip from the ceiling like chandeliers, while brass lights cast a soft glow from above and tableside. Cocktails to try at Noor Noor’s list of tipples highlights classics — martinis, margaritas and old fashioneds — infused with fig, Medjool date, rose, pomegranate and other Middle Eastern flavors. Signature sips range from $16 to $18. At the table, we chatter over the drink options and peruse the large menu of salads, hummus and dips, raw dishes, flatbreads, hot and cold mezze and entrees. It’s the front-end of the dinner rush on a recent weeknight, and the restaurant is beginning to fill, but it’s by no means packed. Servers move swiftly by us to other tables. We wait several minutes until eventually ours arrives. Apologetic, he promptly takes our drink order and brings out a cup of crisp crackers to dip into a dish of labneh studded with pome- granate arils and a half-moon of zaatar- laced olive oil. The cocktails, a riff on a southside and an old fashioned, arrive with social media-approved pomp and circumstance. The Medjool Thief Old Fashioned is tucked away in an ornate box. When the server flips the lid open, smoke rolls out, revealing a crystal rocks glass. The roasted aroma lingers after the server departs. Date, cinnamon and cherry reinforce the warmth of the rye that is the backbone of this boozy tipple. A date garnish balances on the massive ice cube in the glass. The Souk Southside, meanwhile, is a refreshing honeydew gin sipper. Noor’s mezze selections include salads, dips and flatbread. (Sara Crocker) >> p 21 ▼ Food & Drink
