Subject: Peter Kasperski

• Baroque and The Tavern close their doors

  July 2, 2007

• Ciao, Fella

  It's "So long Hapa, hello Cowboy" for Scottsdale sushi chef

  November 1, 2001

• Waiter Confidential: Waterfront Woes

  My food handler's Card reads "Food Service Worker," not "Industry Analyst." But on the flip side, those are credentials enough to see the kind of economic Love Canal the Scottsdale Waterfront's becoming for a number of its restaurant tenants. Second helpings of Scottsdale Galleria anyone? Sniffing around SouthBridge just after seven in the evening, at the height of holiday shopping season, I find Canal in virtual dry dock. A cordial hostess puts on a brave face and accommodates me when I ask t

  December 18, 2008

• Sea Saw: End of an Era?

  In a thriving economy, we'd call Scottsdale restaurateur Peter Kasperski's grand plans to expand one of his eateries (Sea Saw) and open three brand-new ones (Mexican Standoff, Shell Shock, Confection) "ambitious." Reeeally ambitious. These days, as the SouthBridge spaces for his unopened businesses sit dark (oh god, the rent!), the guy seems incredibly overextended. A piece on AZCentral today reflects the dire situation. It's not surprising to hear that Sea Saw chef (and James Beard award-w

  February 10, 2009

• 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 the elite group. Finalists will be announced on March 23, and the awards gala will be held in New York City on May 4. In the running for Best Chef - Southwest, there's Kevin Binkley (Binkley's), Mark

  February 13, 2009

• Summer Guide: Shaking it Up with Valley Mixologists

  June 4, 2009

• Digestif: Pavle Departs, Payton Gets on Camera

  Digestif's chef Payton Curry (left) and GM Pavle Milic hug it out over some fresh mozz at last year's Eats3 Pavle Milic, general manager at Scottsdale's groovy Digestif, was a man with a plan. But in the words of John Lennon, "Life is what happens while you're busy making plans." So although Milic had gotten the ball rolling on opening his own gourmet panini restaurant (inspired by Ino, in New York City), the economic climate put a damper on it. Meanwhile, another opportunity

  March 20, 2009

• Digestif in Scottsdale serves up absinthe and "Cal-ital food for the soul"

  April 17, 2008

• Walking on Water

  November 8, 2007

• To Go . . . Or Not To Go

  October 4, 2007

• Star Struck

  Bunny versus duck

  October 5, 2006

• Best Seller

  No doubt about, Sea Saw is unequivocally good sushi

  September 19, 2002

• Bar Trek

  Plot a course for a nip and a nosh

  June 14, 2001

• Chef Bernie Kantak Planning Five Restaurants Downtown

  Former Cowboy Ciao chef Bernie Kantak and his business partners have finalized a deal to open not one, not two, but five new restaurants downtown, reports the Republic today. The concepts will be Southwestern, Southern, steakhouse, Latin, and wine bar, and will be located at 1st Street and Jackson, at the heart of the still-nonexistent Jackson Street Entertainment District. Earlier today, the Republic also mentioned that Estate House chef Gio Osso would also be involved, but

  June 9, 2009

• Digestif Moving; Kasperski Selling Restaurant Spaces

  Digestif is downsizing. Later this month, chef Payton Curry will be working the display kitchen at the former Sea Saw location on Stetson Drive, pending the sale of restaurateur Peter Kasperski's two SouthBridge restaurant spaces, the current Digestif and the half-finished space that would have become Mexican Standoff. (Plans for Mexican Standoff are officially off the drawing board.) Those spaces are tied in a master lease. Spaghetti Western spokesperson Mari Markogianis (Digestif, Cowboy

  July 6, 2009

• New in Scottsdale: Acua

  ​Just a month after we said R.I.P. to Canal, chef Joseph Gutierrez is already up and running in that space with his second of three restaurants at Scottsdale's turnover-prone SouthBridge development. Acua opened for dinner service last Thursday, serving an Asian-French fusion menu comprised of ten small plates, ten large plates, a handful of salads, and half a dozen desserts. Among the tapas-sized selections, there's tempura quail with candied celery, honey Chinese mustard gastrique, sw

  August 25, 2009

• Chef Payton Curry to Leave Digestif for Expanding Caffe Boa

  Chef Payton Curry (left) with former Digestif GM Pavle Milic at last year's Eats3​The imminent departure of chef Payton Curry from Digestif is the big news from this weekend.After cooking at the restaurant through the Crave Arizona weekend (October 22 to 24), he'll join Caffe Boa, restaurateur Jay Wisniewski's popular restaurant just off Mill Avenue in Tempe. (Another Caffe Boa, in Ahwatukee, is unaffiliated.)Wisniewski also plans to open a Mesa Caffe Boa within the next four we

  October 12, 2009

• Digestif Closes in Wake of Payton Curry's Departure

  ​Chef Payton Curry had planned on staying with Digestif through this coming weekend (for the Crave culinary festival), but last night was his final turn in the kitchen there. Curry recently gave notice at the Old Town restaurant to make a move to Tempe's Caffe Boa. Spaghetti Western "buzz and schmooze" gal Mari Markogianis says the restaurant is now closed, although restaurateur Peter Kasperski wants to reopen it by the end of the year as a different restaurant. "We had a good run with

  October 19, 2009

• CRAVE Arizona is Perfectly Balanced Gluttony

  ​Celebrity chefs. Blind wine tasting contests. Food samples from dozens of Valley restaurants. Only two weeks after Scottsdale's Dine Out With the Chefs event, culinary afficianados from across the Valley loosened their belts for another huge epicurean event: CRAVE Arizona, formerly known as Eats3. This year's event was a relaxed, outdoor affair. It seemed to strike the perfect balance in attendance, with enough of a crowd to make everyone feel sociable 

  October 26, 2009

• Coming Soon: The Main Ingredient Ale House & Cafe

  ​You probably saw my post about Lisa G closing over the weekend -- where I mentioned new owner Matt Diamond -- but now that I've had a chance to chat with Diamond, I have more details for you. So he's got a serious wine background. He's traveled to various wine regions, worked for such local restaurateur/wine luminaries as Tom Kaufman (Humble Pie) and Peter Kasperski (Spaghetti Western Productions), and was involved in the opening of Phoenix's uber-wine bar, Postino. "Those guys gave me

  November 2, 2009