Anthony Bourdain

10 Favorite Summer Cocktail Tips from Chow Bella's Resident Bartender, JK Grence

For more than a year now, Shady's bartender and regular Chow Bella contributor JK Grence, has been providing invaluable advice to the alcohol-infused masses with his "Last Call" column. Considering this grand milestone, we decided to take a look back at some of his best tips as we head into the summ ... More >>

Jacques Qualin of J&G Steakhouse On Lori Hashimoto, Anthony Bourdain and the Difference Between French and American Cooks

This is part two of my interview with Jacques Qualin, chef de cuisine at J&G Steakhouse at The Phoenician Resort. If you missed part one, where Qualin talked about head cheese, being an apprentice, and working for Daniel Boulud, read it here. See also: -- Hana's Lori Hashimoto Dishes on Brazilian L ... More >>

Jacques Qualin of J&G Steakhouse on Head Cheese, Being an Apprentice, and Daniel Boulud

Jacques Qualin J&G Steakhouse The Phoenician Resort 6000 East Camelback Road, Scottsdale 480-214-8000, jgsteakhousescottsdale.com See also: -- Matt Pool on Chris Bianco, Andreoli Italian Grocer, and Phoenix as a Food Town -- Chef Kevin Binkley a Finalist for James Beard Award This is part one of ... More >>

Pho Fight in Phoenix: Pho Thanh vs. Da Vang

There are few things more comforting than a big bowl of soup on a cold(ish) winter night. The great thing about pho (pronounced like fuh, not foh fo' the n00bz) is that you don't have to sacrifice flavor and spice for that comfort. This Vietnamese staple has blown up in the Valley over the past few ... More >>

Epic Chef: A Cooking Competition Meets a Drinking Game

The first episode of Epic Chef, the brain child of extreme cooking show Epic Meal Time, hit the internet last week. If you're already familiar with the work of Epic Meal Time and the Sauce Boss, then nothing here should be surprising besides the amount of verbal abuse the team seems ready to dole ou ... More >>

7: Snir and Kierstin Mor

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

Chris Bianco Writing Pizza Cookbook with Local-Food Movement Guru Gary Nabhan

See also: Pizzeria Bianco Makes Food & WIne's 25 Best Spots for Pizza in America See also: Behind the Design of Pizzeria Bianco, Italian Restaurant and Pane Bianco with Chris Bianco Word's been out for a while that Chris Bianco's writing a book -- but Chow Bella just got the scoop on his co-author: ... More >>

35: Jason Asher

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

66: Dave Anderson

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

72: Johnny Chu

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

76: Anthony Patafio

From now 'til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers -- Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you'll know; for others, it'll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you're here, check out our 100 Creat ... More >>

Chow Bella's Top Phoenix Food Stories of the Week

Every week, there's a cornucopia of new Phoenix food news, features, and reviews to report here at Chow Bella. If you're like most people, you probably just don't have the time to get to all of it. It's kind of like those burgers at Old Town Whiskey; it just won't all fit in your mouth ... or in thi ... More >>

Chef Josh Hebert Dishes on Eric Ripert, Anthony Bourdain and the Cheat Ingredient

Josh Hebert Posh Improvisational Cuisine 7167 E. Rancho Vista Drive, Scottsdale 480-663-7676 www.poshscottsdale.com How long has Josh Hebert been obsessed with food? Let's put it this way: one of his first words was "breakfast." It's an elaborate family story his mother loves to tell, he says, addi ... More >>

Chow Bella Book Club January Selection: Blood Bones and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton

​We're starting the year in style by choosing the memoir  so stellar, it inspired us to create Chow Bella Book Club. We're reading Blood Bones and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef by Gabrielle Hamilton this month and it will be capped off with a visit from the author hers ... More >>

Mayhem: Murder, Arson, and Scottsdale Exorcisms With One of Norway's Darkest Bands

Man v. Food Nation Visits Big Earl's BBQ in Scottsdale: Chef James Porter Says Adam Richman Is "Juilliard School Meets Rachael Ray Meets Anthony Bourdain"

Chef James Porter with Man v. Food Nation's Adam Richman​Big Earl's BBQ got some mad TV love this weekend when Adam Richman and his 16-person crew of Travel Channel's Man v. Food Nation, (the evolution of Man v. Food, in which Richman recruits locals to take on food challenges instead of doing ... More >>

Flame On: 10 Spicy Dishes in the Valley That Really Bring the Heat

Billy Bessinger at RnR

​Billy Bessinger is probably more educated than you. An Arizona State graduate, he has a bachelor's in real estate as well as an M.B.A. -- but after trying his hand at the corporate world, he realized bartending was still the best gig in town -- luckily for us. Now a seven-year veteran of the ... More >>

Top Chef All-Stars Season 8, Episode 12 Recap: Ferry, Family, and For Serious?

Anyone seen the Doritos?​Only one step away from the finals, yo! Our episode begins with Blais lamenting about the loss of Dale which must mean Fabio is off his short list to Barbados. Note to Blais: One bromance at a time please, playa. Back at the house, the cheftestants are wondering wha ... More >>

Top Chef All-Stars Season 8, Episode 8 Recap: It's All-Stars, They're Gonna Do What They Want

Shameless flirting, shameful challenge.​Since Teen Wolf Marcel left last week with his facial hair grooming products and "You haven't heard the last of me!" exit line (until Top Chef All Stars: Foam and Rap airs), nine cheftestants are left to duke it out for the title. On last night's epis ... More >>

A Novel Approach to NaNoWriMo

Top Chef All-Stars Season 8, Episode 6 Recap: Fish 'n' Filler 'n' Boring Ahoy!

With last night's episode of Top Chef All-Stars, there was some serious hatin' going on in the aftermath of the dim sum elimination challenge last week where EVERYBODY ON THE PLANET thought Two-Stitch Jamie was goin' home. Nope. Still here. Still annoying. Plus, Dale and Teen Wolf Marcel are fighti ... More >>

Food Network's 24 Hour Restaurant Battle Is an Eternity of Boring

​Dreams are awesome. Especially the ones with zombies and double rainbows (oh my God!), but what about the waking dreams we have for our lives? Losing weight, running a marathon, starting a business. Those are cool, too. And for the most part, they take planning. Which is why Food Network's new ... More >>

Tracy Dempsey: Tracy Dempsey Originals

We recently caught up with Tracy Dempsey, pastry chef and business owner, scooping samples of Tracy Dempsey Originals ice cream at The Phoenix Urban Market and Wine Bar. We got the scoop from the scooper. Tracy Dempsey at Phoenix Urban Market and Wine Bar​Tracy Dempsey grew up traveling the ... More >>

Hell's Kitchen Season 7 Opener: Continued Abuse, Crazy Contestants, and a (Yech!) Chef Ramsay Make-Out Session

Another Hell's Kitchen, another ride on the Chef Ramsay roller coaster. In last week's first episode, it didn't take long for Gordo to send food flying all over the kitchen, repeatedly kick defenseless stainless steel appliances, and shout out such gems as, "You're gonna blow someone's mind off!" ... More >>

Tranzit Screens His Chronicles of a DJ Documentary Tonight at Cream Stereo Lounge

​Few DJs in the Valley pimp themselves as hard as Tranzit.  Every time the award-winning house mixmaster has an event to promote, my cell phone, Facebook, and e-mail seem to blow up with announcements aplenty from the dude. This week was no exception, as the 29-year-old has been promotin ... More >>

8 Places for President Obama to Try on His Next Phoenix Visit

Call me a shameless arugula eater, but I still can't get over the Obama family's choice of dinner destination when they were in Phoenix this past Saturday night: Macayo's Mexican Kitchen on Central Avenue, the flagship among the Southwestern chain's 18 locations. Seriously? Sure, Macayo's has b ... More >>

Beach Bites: Cooking Dirty

Here's a juicy summer read we can't wait to dig into: Cooking Dirty by Jason Sheehan. Sheehan happens to be the food critic at Westword, New Times' sister paper in Denver, but long before he launched his award-winning career as a food scribe, he worked his way through kitchens across the ... More >>

Behind the Bar: J.K. Grence at Trader Vic's

Lauren Gilger J.K. Grence, behind the bar at Trader Vic's.​J.K. Grence has big dreams. He's planned out the ideal bar -- the one he would like to open one day in the distant, fuzzy future. "I'd want it to be some tropical hideaway," he says. "You just sink into the atmosphere of it and hav ... More >>

Man Bites Dog

If we had it to do over, would we publish the satirical saga of Chef Kaz Yamamoto? Hell yes! Punk you, if you can't take a joke!

Xtreme Cuisine

Arizona's cunning culinary wizard Chef Kaz Yamamoto prepares taboo illegal moveable feasts for the elite and über-rich

Dragon Catcher

Chow yum