Megalopolitan Life >>

• BEST PLACE TO SEE AND BE SEEN ON A FIRST FRIDAY
  monOrchid Gallery
  With fresh white walls, great lighting and a dramatically high ceiling, this cavernous warehouse turned gallery space not only does justice to the intriguing art on display, but also to the downtown pretty things who turn up in droves on First Fridays to check out the work as well as each other.... More >>
• BEST ART HOUSE MOVIE THEATER
  Harkins Camelview 5
  Aside from the experimental, no-budget "microcinema" events that have popped up in downtown art spaces, the best chance Valley cinema lovers have of seeing the edgiest indie films is at this jewel box of a theater, tucked in the shadow of Scottsdale Fashion Square. While some competition has... More >>
• BEST ONLINE BULLETIN BOARD
  Craig's List
  Craig's List is a free Internet bulletin board system where you can buy, sell and trade just about everything, as well as cruise personal ads, find a job, or enter into one of many community discussion forums. Created in San Francisco in 1995, Craig's List came to Phoenix in May 2003 and has... More >>
• BEST BASEBALL STADIUM
  Maryvale Baseball Park
  Noted baseball architects Ellerbe Beckett designed this beautiful facility that serves as home to the Milwaukee Brewers. Built in 1998, and originally planned to house two spring training teams, the Maryvale park is not Bank One Ballpark, and that's why we love it. Sure, you can't see... More >>
• BEST POLITICIAN
  Senator Linda Binder
  The British-born Binder threw the state Legislature into a tizzy last spring when she elected to take her long-planned vacation during the final days of a contentious debate on the budget. Binder already had balked at draconian cuts urged by Republican leadership, and her departure forced the Rs... More >>
• BEST SEINFELDIAN EXPERIENCE
  Being Waited On by the Lamp Nazi at Modern Lighting
  For fans of all things light-giving, Modern Lighting is the only place to shop. This Phoenix mainstay is as much a gallery of great lamps of all eras as it is a shining shrine that proves how illuminating art can be. It also proves that Seinfeld's Soup Nazi has nothing on Phoenix, where surly... More >>
• BEST REASON TO GET UP IN THE MORNING
  The Loser Line
  The Loser Line is arguably the cleverest bit of radio in the Valley, brought to you by the DJ duo of Kid and Ruben S who handle this too-short segment of the morning show perfectly. The premise is simple. Girls can call the station and get a phone number to give to guys -- total losers, of... More >>
• BEST SCARY MARQUEE
  Mr. Lucky's
  As if the northwest section of Grand Avenue isn't scary enough after dark, there's that giant Mr. Lucky's vintage marquee that's been putting the "yeeeeeeee" in "yee-haw" for coulrophobiacs (that's clown fearers to you) since the mid-'60s. For the mime dreaders, jack-in-the-box shunners and... More >>
• BEST ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE VENUE
  The Paper Heart
  In its two prolific years of existence, this performance space/art gallery/espresso bar has graced downtown Phoenix with a wonderfully weird, unpredictable lineup of free or cheap entertainment and cultural happenings, making it a magnet for local creative types. On any given night of the week,... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR PUBLIC INFORMATION
  Maricopa County Clerk of the Superior Court Records Office
  The records office used to be in a tiny basement room in the county courthouse building at First Avenue and Jefferson. So if you needed, say, a copy of your divorce file, you had to circle the block a few times for an open parking space, then find the basement office, then brave the gridlock of... More >>
• BEST BOWLING CENTER
  AMF Christown Lanes
  From its retro angular roof to its neon lights, Christown Lanes looks like a throwback to bowling's 1950s heyday. But once inside, the 48 shining synthetic lanes designed to enhance the "hook and spin" bowler's game boldly proclaim that Christown is still at the forefront of the Valley's bowling... More >>
• BEST WOMEN'S GUN CLUB
  Annie Oakley Sure Shots
  There are not many things more annoying than being hit on at a shooting range, or being offered help shooting "that cute little gun." This is why we love the Ben Avery Shooting Facility's Annie Oakley Sure Shots program, and the Thursday "ladies' night." Created to provide a safe atmosphere for... More >>
• BEST ODE TO RACING
  Penske Racing Museum
  The Penske Racing Team has been awarded the most wins in the history of racing. So what do you do when you've done everything? Build an 8,000-square-foot museum, of course. At Penske Racing Museum, diehard fans can experience some action in two full-size simulators, on a custom-designed... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO PEOPLE-WATCH
  Mill Avenue, Tempe
  Mill Avenue is the heart of downtown Tempe, and there's no better place to see the pulse of living than this urban strip. Arizona State University brings college kids in proximity, but it's also a popular spot for cruising and hanging out. The voyeur within us likes to sit back and watch the... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR AMERICAN IDOLATRY
  Karaoke Superstore
  Rather than killing us softly with your song, why not swing into this store and set yourself up for private, in-home karaoke humiliation. A mere $67.99 scores the most basic setup, but -- as Britney is well aware -- the more money one invests in equipment, the better one sounds. Fancier systems... More >>
• BEST POST-OP STOP
  The Recovery Room
  Why did the Phoenix Baptist Hospital patient cross Bethany Home Road? To get to the Recovery Room. No joke. After enduring a hospital stay with $23 gelatin cups and flavorless IV drips, dischargees will liken this tavern's food specials to deep-fried manna from heaven. Free chili from noon to 5... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO HOOK UP IF YOU'RE GAY
  Bally Total Fitness
  It seems that the traditional places to pick up men or women have become tired. That ultimate classic, the bar, has become stale and it tends to carry a Cheers quality to it -- you know, "Everyone knows your . . . name." The second is a shot in the dark and scary: the personals. How many... More >>
• BEST PRO ATHLETE
  Brandon Webb
  Six months ago, nobody in Phoenix -- make that nobody in Major League Baseball -- knew the first thing about Brandon Webb. And while Phoenix has yet to realize what a rare gem he is, the rest of the country has jumped on the B-train. Brandon Webb is one of the country's few legitimate rookie... More >>
• BEST WAY TO EAT IN THE CAR
  Cuisine Limousine
  The last time someone took us on a car-dinner date, we were 15, and it involved window service at a roller skating waitress-service hamburger shop. Well, these days, we're substantially older, and our tastes are substantially ritzier. The only vehicle vittles we'll be munching on are the ones in... More >>
• BEST GALLERY FOR EMERGING ARTISTS
  Art One Gallery Inc.
  Contrary to popular belief, downtown Phoenix isn't the only place to see what up-and-coming Valley creative types are up to. In fact, right in the midst of Scottsdale's prestigious gallery row lies Art One, a cutting-edge art space showcasing the work of talented student artists from area... More >>
• BEST NEW GALLERY
  Perihelion Gallery and Bookstore
  Since it opened less than a year ago, Perihelion has brought the Phoenix art scene to a whole new level. Sure, we already had plenty of spaces for experimental work, and Scottsdale long ago covered the bases on upscale art establishments. But when Perihelion owners Amy Young and Doug Grant came... More >>
• BEST MOVIE SNACKS
  Madstone Theaters
  We rarely answer the costly call of movie snacks, but at Madstone, we make concessions. Boasting biscotti, imported chocolate and an espresso bar, this theater of seduction offers the substantial (turkey and Brie on sourdough) and the sweet (fresh-baked carrot cake, brownies and lemon bars from... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR SCOOBY TO SCAMPER
  Horizon Park
  Our barker hates to park it. His energy is endless, he absolutely adores other dogs, and on weekends, when we want to take a nap, he wants to run, run, run with his buddies. So it's been a godsend for us both that the City of Scottsdale recently wised up and deemed Horizon Park a permanent... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO GET YOUR DOG A DRIVER'S LICENSE
  Fetch Doggie Store
  Having a dog is like having a kid. We need to drive him to the vet, to the doggy park, to the groomer, and on trips out of town (he likes vacations to the forest and the beach). We have to drive to the pet store for kibble and toys. It gets time-consuming. So Fetch Doggie Store has come up with... More >>
• BEST TELEVISION NEWS REPORTER
  Mike Watkiss
  "I've been fired from every job I've had and I'll be fired from this one too," Phoenix's best in-your-face television reporter says with obvious pride. Eschewing cell phones, pagers, and, most incredibly, computers, Watkiss relies instead on his quick wit and the timely thrust of his... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO BE A PUNK
  www.AZPunk.com
  Thanks to a local league of punks, all the news punks need to know is advertised on a Web site. And it's got so much information, we have to wonder how its creators even find time to punk (yes, it's a verb, too). There's punk mail, as in a chat room. There are punk classifieds and punk radio... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO SCARE UP A GARGOYLE (1 Comment)
  Black Hearts, A Bazaar Noir
  You're looking for a gas mask and a taxidermied chipmunk and a ceramic candleholder shaped like a nun. Wal-Mart has failed you; even Osco doesn't carry black candles. What to do? Race for Black Hearts, where it's Halloween every day. Open at the crack of noon Friday through Monday, this... More >>
• BEST INDOOR RACING
  Speedway Indoor Kart Racing
  The smell of exhaust is in the air at Speedway, the Valley's premier indoor kart racing facility. Residents who feel the need for speed can burn rubber on the 75,000-square-foot track -- a challenge for seasoned racers and novices alike. The technical and four-wheel drift turns will test your... More >>
• BEST RADIO TALK-SHOW HOST
  Charles Goyette
  Charles Goyette is well-informed, a bit goofy and often irreverent, but that's not why he made the final cut for this award. What made Goyette stand above the madding (and maddening) crowd that populates the Valley's talk-show scene was his unexpected take on the war in Iraq. He was against it,... More >>
• BEST PLACE FOR HIGH-FLYING ROMANCE
  Bomber Boudoir
  We already have our Valentine's Day mapped out for next year. We're going to rent the "Bomber Boudoir" and take our sweetie on a trip to the clouds. The BB is a private plane owned by a local doctor, and he takes couples on flights 1,000 feet above the Valley (hint: sunset is awesome). The plane... More >>
• BEST USE OF TAXPAYER MONEY
  Freestone Recreation Center
  In a time when most of our tax dollars go into things we can't use (like corporate loopholes and kickbacks), the City of Gilbert has built what is by far the best rec center in metro Phoenix, and offers its use to all Valley residents for a fraction of what it costs to work out anywhere else. At... More >>
• BEST SPANISH-LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER (2 Comments)
  La Voz
  Each week, La Voz and Prensa Hispaña duke it out for Spanish-speaking readers. And nearly every week, the edgier, flashier La Voz comes out on top, often breaking stories of importance not only to the Hispanic community but the Anglo world as well. This year has been a particularly successful... More >>
• BEST PRO SPORTS TEAM
  Arizona Diamondbacks
  Just when you thought the ride was over indeed, just when the ride should have been over the Arizona Diamondbacks once again provided Valley sports fans with a pleasant surprise: the overachieving, hard-charging "Baby-Backs." When they should have been losing with a stable of injured... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO WATCH PEOPLE TICKLE THE ORGANS
  Organ Stop Pizza
  Who wouldn't love a giant organ, especially when it comes with a pizza? Organ Stop Pizza in Mesa prides itself as home to a massive 5,000-pipe Wurlitzer, the largest Wurlitzer theater organ in the world. Built in 1927 and revamped and put to use again in 1975, the thing, powered by four huge... More >>
• BEST NAZI ARTWORK AT A STATE BUILDING
  Arizona State Office Building
  What's in a name? A lot, we learned, during last spring's brouhaha over Squaw Peak. But what do our state leaders do if the offending symbol is actually part of a state building? Not much, apparently. There they are -- swastikas -- carved right into the façade of the Arizona State... More >>
• BEST PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER
  Sergeant Randy Force
  The Valley has many dedicated professionals who are very good at dealing with the public and the press. And we should know; the media are their biggest customers and often their biggest headaches. But the Phoenix PD's Randy Force has taken the concept of public information to a new level. Three... More >>
• BEST LITTLE PLAYHOUSE THAT COULD
  Nearly Naked Theatre Company
  We'd sooner eat our playbill than employ that overused phrase "Broadway caliber," but we're struggling to come up with a better description of this teeny troupe's last season. With its letter-perfect production last August of Neil LaBute's humorous morality play The Shape of Things, Nearly Naked... More >>
• BEST ZEN EXPERIENCE
  Japanese Friendship Garden
  Leave it to the Japanese to create a serene oasis right in the middle of a desert metropolis. Situated at the south end of the Margaret T. Hance Park, this three-and-a-half-acre refuge is the perfect place for busy urbanites to slow down and contemplate simple beauties: a 12-foot waterfall, a... More >>
• BEST PLACE TO BUY NASCAR MEMORABILIA
  Action
  This is the place to get decked out in the latest NASCAR and racing gear while picking up precision models of your favorite race car. Billing itself as the “full service racing collectibles retail store,” Action has more gizmos with corporate logos than Richard Petty’s jump suit. Dressed out in... More >>
• BEST WORLDWIDE WARDROBE
  West Valley Art Museum's Ethnic Dress Collection
  Talk about fashion-conscious. Home to a 972-piece Ethnic Dress Collection, the West Valley Art Museum is the best-dressed museum in the Southwest. Comprising costumes, textiles and ethnographic artworks from more than 75 countries, "The Golden Thread" collection got its start in 1985, when Sun... More >>
• BEST RADICAL CHICANO CYBERPROPAGANDA
  Ladmo Park Chicano Chronicle
  Although production of the feisty and subversive e-zine has been slow this year, Ladmo Park Chicano Chronicle's recent return to cyber-activism is well-appreciated. The e-zine's mission since its inception four years ago has been "to research, inform, advocate, promote, protect and expose by... More >>
• BEST ESPRESSO BAR FOR DOGS
  In the Raw
  Do we come here for the fresh-baked muffins -- the carrot-ginger, corn-Cheddar and banana? No. Though the bakers pull the trays of treats from the oven and let them cool in a heady fog of aroma that makes us drool, we're not their customers. The real guests are dogs, here to snack on those... More >>
• BEST UNKNOWN TOURIST ATTRACTION
  Buffalo Museum of America
  If you're stuck with relatives or friends in town, especially in the warmer months, it's tough to find inexpensive and "unique to Phoenix" things to do that don't include shopping. But this gem of a museum, dedicated (yes, we're serious) to the American buffalo, is nestled in the strip mall at... More >>