I initially learned to fly and then did some of my hour building in Arizona. I was on an CPL course which did not include a SEP rating so I rented a PA28 from Chandler to do a SEP skills test with an examiner. My experience of the flying club in Chandler is limited to this, but they seemed OK, reasonable aircraft and the rates were good.
I have landed at Chandler quite a few times and have plenty of experience of flying in Arizona. Most of the bigger airports have good cafes, with one of the best being at Chandler. GA is very well catered for around Phoenix with loads of airports, most of which are free to land at and are generally quite busy. There are lots of light aircraft around and many are flown by fairly inexperienced students on solos so keep your eyes peeled!
In general the Phoenix area is a great place to build hours quickly as the weather is very reliable. The downside is that you won't build up the same experience of making more complex wx decisions and flying in the more challenging wx that characterises UK flying. The only significant wx issue I encountered in Arizona was the occasional crosswind and an even less occasional and normally distant CB. Oh and I did once divert around a duststorm on a solo!
Another thing to be aware of is that the RT is a little different from the UK and some would say a little less standardised. Check out
All Airport Feeds | Live Air Traffic Control Audio Feeds | LiveATC.net where you can listen live to one of the Chandler Tower frequencies, as well as nearby Goodyear and also Phoenix International. Have a listen to them during local daylight hours to get an idea of what US RT is like and you'll also hear how busy the frequencies can get at times.