Walking into the Hotel Valley Ho is like going back in time to another era — specifically, the late 1950s, when the legendary Scottsdale resort was a favorite gathering place for Hollywood celebrities and East Valley trendsetters.

Nearly a half-century later, having been renovated and reopened in December 2005, the Valley Ho is a restored masterpiece of post-World War II Modernism, and its pool and courtyard again are magnets for the young, beautiful and hip.

Just off the courtyard, the resort’s Café ZuZu specializes in American comfort food with a contemporary twist, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner to guests and locals alike.

After leaving our vehicle with the valet (the front parking lot is closed because of the high-rise condos being built next door), a friend and I are seated in one of the circular booths.

True to the resort’s retro motif, the restaurant features a curved lunch counter, a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the courtyard, brown carpet with a pattern of indented circles, large spherical lights suspended from the ceiling, and an orange-and-mustard color scheme.

As we look over the lunch menu, I have flashbacks to every motor lodge my family stayed at during vacations in the ’60s. About the only thing that doesn’t fit the era is the clothing of today’s diners and staff.

ZuZu’s menu lists a “blue plate special,” but when I ask what the day’s selection is, our server informs us, “Sorry, we don’t have a blue plate special today.” Oh, well. Instead I go with something basic, the Famous ZuZu Burger ($10.50).

Topped with bacon, blue cheese and stewed onion, the burger looks great. Unfortunately, it tastes nowhere near as good as it looks. The pungent blue cheese completely overwhelms the otherwise tasteless patty, which quickly falls apart.

As I try to spear the marble-sized pieces of hamburger with my fork, they break into even smaller pieces. Eventually, I just give up.

My friend is unimpressed with his grilled chicken breast ($14), two pieces of so-so poultry served on a small spinach salad with asparagus and slightly deflated cherry tomatoes.

He orders a side of cheesy grits ($3.25), but neither of us can discern any cheesy flavor. The only redeeming part of our meal is a side of tasty onion rings ($4), which come in a paper funnel.

For dessert, we get a slice of lemon meringue pie ($5.25) and butterscotch bread pudding ($6), both just average.

As we walk out of the Valley Ho, I’m reminded that the knock against mid-century Modernism is that while it may look cool, it ultimately lacks substance.

It’s a perfect way to describe our lunch at Café ZuZu.

Café ZuZu
Where: Hotel Valley Ho, 6850 E. Main St., Scottsdale (one block west of Goldwater Boulevard)
Open: Breakfast 6 a.m. to 11:15 a.m., lunch 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., dinner
5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.; limited menu from 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and after 10 p.m.
Prices: Appetizers $6-$15, salads $5.75-$14, burgers and sandwiches $8-$11, entrees $9-$15.50, desserts $5-$6.50.
Info: (480) 248-2000 or hotelvalleyho.com