The Dutchman’s Inn

Jacob Waltz, known as the Old Dutchman and remembered in Arizona lore as a celebrated scoundrel, was portrayed as a notorious liar, drunkard, and miscreant who avoided gainful employment. He was said to have spent much looking, walking, and digging to find the rich Peralta gold mine in the one hundred twenty-five thousand acres of the Superstition Mountains, and to have killed men who tried to follow him back to it. Those exertions supposedly gave him a strong appetite, and he was reputed to appreciate fine food. According to a young Phoenix widow who ran a small confection shop and restaurant and was described as his love of life, the only thing he liked more than sin was a good meal. Dissatisfied with local dining rooms, he built his own place and made sure liquor was included. Though he covered the mine entrance before he died, he left behind both a legend and this eatery.

Arizona · United States