The grand opening of The Mission at Epicenter in Gilbert isn’t just a milestone for chef-owner Matt Carter.
The modern Latin American restaurant is the realization of a dream he shared with his late business partner, Terry Ellisor. The duo walked Agritopia’s Epicenter site during the early phases of its construction. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the original Agritopia space they’d hoped for was taken by someone else.
Ten years later, Agritopia founder Joe Johnston reached out again.
“One of the spaces became available,” Carter said. “It was just perfect timing. We were ready to do something again.”
Ellisor didn’t get to see it built at 3150 E. Ray Rd. When Carter unlocked the doors on Feb. 9, he was sentimental.
“He would’ve really appreciated seeing the thing we all built together,” Carter said.
“We really liked Gilbert. I’d already been friends with Joe for a long, long time.”
Reflecting its roots
The Mission, which opened its first location in Old Town Scottsdale in 2008, is somewhat of a detour for Carter. In his late teens, he knew he wanted to work in the F&B industry, but he wasn’t sure in what capacity. The internet wasn’t a thing yet, so research was difficult.
“Nobody in my family was in the restaurant business,” Carter said. “I didn’t know anybody in the restaurant business. I just kind of fell in love with kitchens, working in them, the camaraderie, and everything else. I bounced around, working at hotels, corporate restaurants, and freestanding places.”
He landed a job at La Chaumiere.
“That’s where I realized that I wanted to cook French cuisine,” he said. “I walked in and [the owner] started yelling at me. I thought, ‘I am home.’ I knew that French food was the direction I wanted to go in.”
Carter moved to Paris for two years and worked in several “little bistros.” Upon his return in 1992, Carter, a Scottsdale Culinary Institute graduate, was mentored by renowned chef/restaurateur Christopher Gross.
“I really fell in love with the culture, the cuisine, the food and everything else,” he said. “When I moved back to the States, I worked for Christopher Gross for six years, and that’s really where I developed my touch on French food and French cuisine. He’s my mentor and still a great friend of mine.”
After Christopher’s for six years, he moved on to French Laundry with Thomas Keller in Napa. The culinary destination is in the upper echelon of the nation’s restaurants. Missing Arizona, he returned to the Valley as executive chef at Michael’s at the Citadel, a mélange of European influences.
After two-and-a-half years at Michael’s, Carter left to collaborate with Ellisor to found Zinc Bistro, a New York-style Parisian bistro at Kierland, in 2001. Zinc Bistro has been making its mark for more than 25 years.
“Zinc Bistro is a very classic French bistro with pâtés, steamed mussels, oysters, onion soup. The whole time, I was roasting pigs and making handmade tortillas. That’s how The Mission started,” Carter said.
He opened The Mission Old Town Scottsdale with entrepreneur Brian Raab. The upscale restaurant leans heavily on the south and east — Mexico City, Peru, Argentina and Cuba — filtered through Carter’s French training and his obsession with technique.
The French-Mexican influence shows up in the menu, plating and in the Gilbert design. The original Mission is cozy and dark; the Kierland location is bright and two‑story. Gilbert blends the two — a front room washed in light, a back room with mood and shadow.
“The Mission Gilbert reflects the unmistakable hallmarks of the brand, including a dramatic Himalayan salt brick wall, warm wood accents, and an immersive, moody atmosphere designed for lingering meals and lively gatherings,” Clark said.
Inside the kitchen, Carter posts positive reviews on the wall so the team sees them — a counterweight to the daily grind of clogged drains, late cooks, and long ticket times. “You hear more negativity than you do positivity,” he said. “When it does come, we try to really wrap our arms around it.”
What guests can expect
Guests can expect the restaurant’s celebrated menu featuring daily housemade tortillas, the tableside guacamole, and standout dishes such as pozole, roasted pork shoulder tacos for two, and the “whole roasted pig out” brunch feast.
The theatrical and customizable tableside guacamole ($18) is a blend of more than 10 ingredients: Hass avocado, jalapeño, red onion, fresh garlic, sea salt, lime, tomatoes, serrano, chipotle puree, cilantro, cotija and roasted pepitas.
Among his favorite dishes is Almejas Al Vapor ($23), a Peruvian clam stew with rock shrimp, chorizo, aji Amarillo, roasted corn, chile oil, and grilled bread.
“I took the basics of paella and bouillabaisse — more classic southern French-Spanish techniques — and used ingredients from the Peruvian side to make our own little version,” Carter said. “It reflects the restaurant as a whole.”
The Mission in Scottsdale is frequently mentioned as a favorite spot among sports stars. But Gilbert is a different audience — families, young professionals, and people who live minutes from Agritopia and want something chef‑driven without having to drive to Scottsdale.
“When the restaurant opened, locals immediately recognized how rare it was to have a concept like this in their backyard,” Carter said.
“We love the area, wanted to come out so bad… it all worked out. It was amazing.”
Carter and Raab run their restaurants without investors and the expansion pressure of a corporate group. “We move a little slow, but we’ve been very, very happy with our success,” he said.
