Unique food or restaurant to Scottsdale / Phoenix Area

I'd say you should check out some various regional Mexican options you wouldn't easily be able to get in Vegas. Most of the good stuff I can think of is more Phoenix than Scottsdale, but a few thoughts:

* Sonoran style - I love Carolina's for cheap, no-frills Sonoran-style Mex. Their entire menu is very good (breakfast and lunch only IIRC), but I think my single favorite thing is just one of their paper-thin homemade tortillas with butter. You might also check out the Phoenix outpost of El Guero Canelo (a Tucson institution), a loud and bustling Sonoran fast food place and a great bet for Sonoran-style hot dogs; sorry to tell you it would be a shlep out to 51st Ave and McDowell, but then again, that's what highways are for.

* New Mexican style - New Mexico is a big state away, but Phoenix is close enough that there are a few real-deal options. I think the best is probably Richardson's, a semi-upscale, "man-cavey" place in north central Phoenix; anything with green chile is worth a try, as is the adovada. I used to be a bigger fan of Los Dos Molinos' notoriously spicy food, but since I moved to New Mexico I've come to think they're using heat as a crutch and not quite nailing the flavor; but don't get me wrong, the food is good and the margaritas are potent. I haven't been to Carlsbad Tavern in south Scottsdale but it's purported to be pretty good too, and of course unlike the other stuff I've listed it's actually, you know, in Scottsdale.

* Southern Mexican/Mexico-city Mexican - I'm not sure if you have this more refined, southern style of Mexican in Las Vegas or not, but it's pretty hard to beat Barrio Cafe near downtown Phoenix. It's really a hodgepodge of regions including Veracruz, Poblana, and Yucatan, but everything (mole, pipian, cochinita pibil, etc.) is really outstanding and the digs are fun. Don't miss the churros con cajeta for dessert.