Dining for a Good Cause at Phoenix, Arizona Resort

TEMPE, AZ--(Marketwire - Dec 20, 2012) - Eating well is good for you, but it can also do good for others. In November, the team at Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes' Top of the Rock, one of the top places for dining near Tempe, launched its Charity Dinner Initiative, inviting diners to enjoy a great meal for a good cause that goes on until December 30, 2012.

Each month the restaurant at this Marriott Rewards resort in Phoenix benefits an organization in need, and December helped out Habitat for Humanity. And in January 2013, hotel employees will put the funds they raised to good use by helping build a home for a deserving local family.

"Our commitment to the community runs deep," Gregory Wiener, Top of the Rock's executive chef, says. "Our restaurant is well known and beloved in Tempe, and we love giving back, so each month we offer a special menu to help raise funds for a local or handpicked charity."

December's Charity Dinner at this Phoenix, Arizona resort was created by chef Gavino Borquez. The menu featured American classics and included a wedge salad, surf-and-turf and caramel-apple walnut cheesecake. For every dinner sold, priced at just $34, the restaurant donated $5 toward the Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona project.

Nearly 400 diners took part in the dinner, according to Steve Eberhardt, general manager of this ASU hotel, and put the restaurant well on its way to reaching its $4,000 fundraising goal. The dinner is just one of the ways this Tempe resort restaurant gives back to the community, and past months have benefitted local chapters of national charities including Ronald McDonald House, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Hearing for Humanity and Special Olympics Arizona.

December's beneficiary, Habitat for Humanity Central Arizona, is a Christian-based organization that builds, renovates and repairs simple, decent and affordable homes in partnership with families in need. For more information on the organization, visit www.habitatcaz.org.

About the Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes Hotel
Arizona is known for its natural beauty, and the Phoenix Marriott Tempe at the Buttes hotel gives you a close-up view from its mountainside retreat. Offering resort-style luxury just minutes from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, this Tempe hotel features resort amenities including tennis and volleyball courts, a full-service Narande Spa, two heated outdoor pools with a waterslide, a fitness center, hiking trails and four hot tubs carved out of the mountainside. Allergy-friendly accommodations feature high-speed wireless Internet access, coffee/tea service, a plush bedding package, a desk with ergonomic chair and marble bathroom with luxurious bathrobes and amenities. Set on a 25-acre Valley landmark, this Arizona State University hotel is the ideal setting for weddings, receptions, meetings and more, with 40,000 sq. ft. of event space. Families will love this hotel's proximity to top attractions including Chase Ballpark, Desert Botanical Gardens, Phoenix Zoo and Tempe's Mill Avenue, which turns into a nightlife and dining hot spot in the evening. For meals closer to home, sample this hotel's menu of dining options including world-class cuisine and spectacular city views at Top of the Rock, a southwestern-style breakfast buffet at Market Café, family favorites such as burgers and hot dogs at Thirsty Cactus Pool Bar and Grill and casual drinks and meals at the Lobby Lounge.