Chris Curtiss

Nikki's Five Picks for Arizona Restaurant Week (May 18-27)

Arizona Restaurant Week -- the Spring 2013 Edition -- begins Saturday, May 18 and ends Monday, May 27 (which is Memorial Day, when most of us will be grilling burgers and drinking beer at home . . . but never mind). By the end of this week, ARW officially will be upon us: a 10-day eating extravaganz ... More >>

Matt Taylor of Market Street Kitchen on Robert McGrath, Brad Thompson, and the Trend He Hates (You'll Be Surprised)

Matt Taylor Market Street Kitchen 20825 N. Pima Road, Scottsdale 480-278-7044, marketstreetkitchen.com See also: -- Matt Taylor Becomes Head Honcho at Market Street Kitchen; Robert McGrath Stays On as Consultant -- Maple-Rye Creme Brulee at Market Street Kitchen This is part one of my interview ... More >>

Ehren Litzenberger of BLD in Chandler on Mario Batali and Why It's Hard to Be a Three-Squares Chef

This is part two of my interview with Ehren Litzenberger, executive chef at BLD in Chandler. If you missed part one, where Litzenberger dished about simplicity, chocolate-covered grasshoppers and his beef with "foodies," read it here. See also: -- 11 Great Cooking Supply Stores in Metro Phoenix -- ... More >>

Charleen Badman: On Lori Hashimoto, Chris Bianco's Mom, and the Kitchen Phrase That Gets Under Her Skin

Charleen Badman FnB 7125 East Fifth Avenue, Suite 31, Scottsdale 480-284-4777, www.fnbrestaurant.com See also: -- Charleen Badman and Pavle Milic to Open FnB on Craftsman Court on Tuesday -- FnB's Charleen Badman Tells Food & Wine Her Favorite Places to Eat, Shop and Sleep in the Valley -- 15 Met ... More >>

Todd Sicolo Dishes on Grant Achatz and His Short-Lived Las Vegas Marriage

Todd Sicolo T. Cook's at Royal Palms Resort & Spa 5200 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix 602-808-0766 royalpalmshotel.com See also: -- Josh Riesner of Scottsdale's Pig & Pickle Dishes on Bartending Bullshit and What He Ate That You Never Will - Keenan Bosworth of Pig & Pickle Dishes about Chrysa Robertso ... More >>

Chef Salad Highlights: The Funny, Astute and Provocative Comments Our Local Chefs Made in 2012

If you've been reading Chef Salad here at Chow Bella for a while, you've probably gleaned a few tasty nuggets about your favorite chefs: what they like to eat and where, the colleagues they admire, the mentors they've learned from and their views on trends and celebrity. As the interviewer, I've bee ... More >>

Cowboy Ciao's Lester Gonzalez Dishes on His Kitchen Pet Peeve and His Grandmother's Tortillas

This is part two of our interview with Lester Gonzalez, comfort food enthusiast and Executive Chef at Cowboy Ciao. To catch up on Gonzalez's food truck fantasies and his take on the bacon obsession, check out part one of interview. See Also: Peter Kasperski Considers Using FnB Name in San Diego Ni ... More >>

Aaron Chamberlin Dishes on (Not) Being a Celebrity Chef and the Hype Around St. Francis When It Opened

Aaron Chamberlin St. Francis 111 E. Camelback Road, Phoenix 602-200-8111 www.stfrancisaz.com See also: -- Update: Aaron Chamberlin Hopes to Open Cafe in Former Urban Grocery Space By Early Next Year This is part one of my interview with Aaron Chamberlin, chef-owner of St. Francis Restaurant. Come ... More >>

New Italian-American Restaurant in North Scottsdale Helmed By Ex-Sous Chef of Noca, The Parlor

From Grayhawk Golf Club, the public golf course that, in February, launched its very own food truck, comes a decidedly different and non-mobile place to dine: Isabella's Kitchen. Located in North Scottsdale, across the street from the main entrance of the club, the new Italian-American restaurant, ... More >>

Cullen Campbell Dishes on the Stupidity of a Certain Catch-Phrase and Shares His Feelings about Skinny Jeans

Cullen Campbell Crudo 3603 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix 602-358-8666 www.crudoaz. com See also: -- Crudo at New Location: Get. In. The. Car. -- Small-Batch Spirits Dazzle at Micah Olson's Bar Crudo This is part one of my interview with Cullen Campbell, chef-owner of Crudo. Come back on Tuesday ... More >>

16: Bernie Kantak

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 Curtiss Dishes on Phoenix as a Restaurant Town and Why Working for a Jerk Isn't Always a Bad Thing

This is part two of my interview with Chris Curtiss, executive chef of NoRTH Arcadia. You can read part one of my interview with Chef Chris Curtiss here. You seem so serene. What's great about your life right now: I got married in March. I live in a neighborhood I love, and I ride my bike to work e ... More >>

Chris Curtiss Dishes on His First Phoenix Gig and Why Food Network Sucks

This is part one of my interview with Chris Curtiss, executive chef at NoRTH Arcadia. Come back tomorrow for part two. Chris Curtiss NoRTH Arcadia 4925 N. 40th Street, Phoenix 602-324-5600 www.foxrc.com Chris Curtiss looks happy. He's making pasta at a wooden table in NoRTH Arcadia's sparkling exh ... More >>

Sam Fox to Open Second Culinary Dropout in Phoenix

From hiring ex-Noca chef Chris Curtiss to run his new NoRTH location in Arcadia last November, to taking over the Oakville Grocery Co. space at CityScape in October to open Chloe's Corner with co-owner Ashly Young last week, restaurateur Sam Fox has been a busy boy indeed -- and just a month into 20 ... More >>

Laura Hahnefeld Looks at the Year of the Food Truck

Five Awkward Moments in the Phoenix Food Scene, 2011

  ​Well, folks, 2011 has come and (just about) gone and we're left to chew the fat. It was a year filled with great new restaurants and some fun moments -- and some awkward ones, too. Let's look back on a few high low points in what's now Phoenix food history.     ... More >>

Sam Fox's NoRTH Featuring Chef Chris Curtiss Opens In Arcadia

​The sixth location of NoRTH, the modern Italian restaurant chain from Fox Restaurant Concepts, opens today at 925 North 40th Street with one big difference: It's headed up by former Noca chef, Chris Curtiss. "The Arcadia NoRTH has a very different feel and really is a complete departure from ... More >>

New Noca Chef Matt Taylor in the Kitchen Since Sunday: Did Southern Simple Supper, Created a "Nocawich," Working on Bar Bites

NocaSouthern Simple Supper second course: chicken fried Berkshire pork loin, white grits, pickled watermelon rinds, chicory glace.​New Noca chef Matt Taylor, the 27-year-old who's worked with four James Beard award winners and was previously at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas with ce ... More >>

Chris Curtiss, Former Chef at Noca, Not Doing Much -- Just Training Chefs in Moscow and Cooking With Barbara Fenzl and Pascal Dionot

​Yeah, he didn't stay quiet for long. Chris Curtiss, the former chef at Noca who left his position in June and is now the catering director for One Step Beyond Inc., a community-outreach program in northwest Phoenix for people with Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, and autism, has found himself a ... More >>

Noca's New Chef Is 27 Years Old, Has Worked with Four James Beard Award Winners, and "Killed" the Tasting, Says Owner Eliot Wexler

Jackie Mercandetti ​Usually, phone calls at 2 a.m. in the morning bring no good, but for Noca owner Eliot Wexler, this one was a welcome wake-up. Chef Matt Taylor​The call came from 27-year-old chef Matt Taylor. Taylor, currently working at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas wit ... More >>

Chris Curtiss Talks About Why He Left Noca, What's Next, and Settles a Rumor

​On Sunday, a disturbance in the dining force was felt at Noca, the contemporary American restaurant in Central Phoenix, when it was reported that its executive chef, Chris Curtiss, was leaving. I had a chance to talk with Curtiss, the culinary whiz who was nominated this year for the Southwe ... More >>

Executive Chef Chris Curtiss Leaves Noca Tonight

​Here's some big breaking news. Chris Curtiss, executive chef at the contemporary American Central Phoenix dining establishment Noca, is leaving the restaurant after almost three years, a source at the restaurant told me. His last dinner service is tonight, the employee said. Curtiss was una ... More >>

Final Meditations on the Phoenix Food Scene from Michele Laudig

Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame Nominees Announced

What's up with all the contests lately? Last week, the big news was all the Arizonans on the semifinalist list for James Beard Awards. Also, Noca's Chris Curtiss landed in Food Wine's chef popularity contest, which the public can vote on. Now, round three in the competition department: the Ar ... More >>

Noca's Chris Curtiss Up for People's Best New Chef in Food Wine Poll

​A slew of chefs have been nominated for the Southwest category of Food Wine magazine's new The People's Best New Chef contest -- ten in all, from Arizona, Colorado, Utah, and Texas -- but there's only one representing our great state: Chris Curtiss, executive chef of Noca. It's not ... More >>

Noca Set to Launch "nocawich" Lunch Service

Noca's famous lobster roll.​For anyone who scratches their head at the thought of relaxed fine dining spot Noca going all casual and sandwich-centric for its new lunch service, I have two words for you: Lobster roll. It makes perfect sense, actually. The eatery has been doing a clever, up ... More >>

BBQ Battle, Dinner & a Movie, Tapas Classes and Jellied Tongue in Today's Eater's Digest

www.nopatternrequired.com​ Hungry for your early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives?Weekend Time!No plans for the weekend? We have a couple ideas to get you off the couch, outta the house and filling your belly with some tasty eats. Always wanted to host your ow ... More >>

Sea Saw's Nobuo Fukuda Teams Up With NOCA

Sea Saw chef Nobuo Fukuda's cutting-edge sashimi creations and luxurious omakase dinners have earned him not only legions of devotees, but a prestigious James Beard "Best Chef: Southwest" award. And since the opening of NOCA last August, chef Chris Curtiss has gained a cult following for h ... More >>

Eight AZ Names Among James Beard Nominees

Creme brulee at Vincent's In a press release this morning, the James Beard Foundation announced its preliminary lists of nominees for various categories in the prestigious James Beard Awards. There are 20 nominees in each category, and eight Arizona individuals and restaurants are among t ... More >>

Fun With Wagyu: Pastrami at Noca

It seems like I've been hearing about it for months now: Noca's mythical wagyu pastrami. Owner Eliot Wexler was busy tracking down wagyu brisket -- definitely an unusual cut of the pricey, succulent Kobe beef -- while chef Chris Curtiss was fine-tuning the ultimate recipe. Wexler was ... More >>

NOCA Cult Keeps Growing

Eliot Wexler and chef Chris Curtiss have never explicitly told me that they're trying to turn us all into NOCA addicts, but I'm convinced this is their grand plan. And you know what? It seems to be working. At a birthday party last weekend, I danced my ass off in a friend's kitchen, and ev ... More >>

Mark Your Calendar: Simple Supper Schedule at NOCA

I Love It: Lobster Roll at NOCA

Arizona Restaurant Week Update

Simple Suppers at Noca: Special deal this weekend

Noca's opening night -- with lots of pictures . . .

Eliot Wexler is banking the success of Noca on his food knowledge and local connections

West of Western Feeds Downtown