Yeah, yeah, cocktails have funny names. Remember a shot called The Abortion, from the 80s? If you do, ladies, you’re likely old enough to identify with a drink on the menu at The Vig called Cougar Juice. This pretty (ballsy) drink is a potent mix of house infused vanilla Ketel One vodka,…
When the press release arrived, we practically fell over ourselves, reaching for the phone to call for reservations. A Friday aftenroon tea party at the Ritz-Carlton, with members of the cast of the touring production of Mary Poppins, currently in residence at Gammage Auditorium in Tempe? How perfect! We already had…
We freely admit it — we have a blog crush. It’s Posie Gets Cozy, penned (okay, typed, but penned sounds so much more romantic) by Alicia Paulson — creator extraordinaire, to the point that it would get nauseating or infuriating if she wasn’t so self-effacing and dear and resident, natch,…
ourchocolateshavings.blogspot.com Here’s a blog with a refreshing twist — no personal story to slog through, on your way to good recipes. Instead, Tastespotting is more of a virtual recipe file, inviting readers (even you!) to submit photos and recipes, and rate others. More than anything, it’s some serious food porn. Check…
True, you might want to toss in a sangria or two — thereby upping your bill, and, most likely, your craving for a big bowl of guacamole and homemade chips. But if you’re really broke, and still jonesing for dinner out, you can feed yourself and a friend well on…
After skipping out on both the Jell-O and dip showdowns recently, I decided to whip something up to show the Chow Bella staff some love, in honor of the season. Almonds seemed like the perfect treat — healthy (pretend healthy, at least) and tasty, particularly with a few sweet additions…
We were delighted to see something new (to us, at least) in the Valentine aisle at Walgreen’s — conversation hearts in Spanish, alongside the traditional English variety. Sadly, when we ripped into the bag, we couldn’t help but notice how piss-poor the quality was…
OK, so you’ve got those Valentine treats baked, and they’re too cute for a Ziploc. No worries. The blog Twig & Thistle has an adorable goody bag for you — and all you have to do is download the design and print it on bags. No charge. T&T has created a…
Just when you thought the cupcake thing was over, here comes a sign that it’s anything but. Last night we stumbled upon yet another cute cupcake web site — this one is called Bella Cupcake Couture — and some breaking news (something you don’t often encounter on a cupcake web…
Today’s headlines over on our news blog, Valley Fever, are full of local restaurant news. First Heart Attack Grill, and now James King comes at us with a story about Coopers’town. Turns out, Alice Cooper’s former business partner is full of allegations of bad behavior by the Valley’s favorite shock rocker, in connection…
We mentioned it briefly yesterday, but today Ray Stern takes a deeper look at the Heart Attack Grill’s lawsuit against a Florida sports bar, over on our Valley Fever blog. (For earlier coverage of the concept, go here.) True, the name “Heart Stoppers Sports Grill” is awfully similar. But who…
Despite the absolutely stunning midcentury-mod aesthetics of the place, we’ve been hearing mixed reviews of the super-cool, still newish St. Francis, including from our favorite food critic. So we were dubious when we headed to Camelback Road and 2nd Street earlier this week, on assignment to try S.F.’s “Business Lunch.” …
This morning we hit up our favorite Tempe coffee spot, Cartel Coffee Lab, with one of our favorite writers — C.M. Redding, of Forking fame. The four-shot latte at Cartel is simply fabulous, though they practically had to peel us off the ceiling by the end of our confab, we were…
Last night, I had the pleasure of joining a dozen other grown-up kids in a candy store. Smeeks, to be exact — the super-cute shop in CenPho that everyone from Sunset magazine to Chow Bella has been raving about since it opened in July. (Here’s our slideshow.) I was there to lead a writing…
Still exhausted from making all those holiday treats? We are. No. More. Sugar. Cookies. While trolling half-heartedly for a recipe for homemade granola the other day, we landed on New York-based Sara Snacker, whose mouth-watering array of cute treats had us filling up an online shopping cart before you could…
Check this out, people. Creating social change through pie. Quick, someone, do this here!…
Gee, that was fast. No sooner had we posted our concerns about Einstein’s Facebook bagel promo — wondering just what they were going to do with all that info they’re admittedly gathering when we sign up for a free bagel with cream cheese — than we’d heard back from Corporate…
Don’t get us wrong, we’re all about a free lunch. Or even just a free bagel. But yesterday, when we — along with hundreds of thousands of others, according to Einstein’s — went to sign up for a a free bagel and shmear (that’s cream cheese to you, if you…
Yes, you read that right, folks. Deep-fried cupcakes. Two trends collide, and while we haven’t tasted the results, we can guarantee this is not the next Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup you’re looking at. Still, we had to share, because frankly, it takes a lot to suprise us these days, jaded as we…
Tell the truth: How long did your New Year’s diet last? Yeah, ours too. Here at Phoenix New Times, we take a while to contemplate our resolutions — so just this week, we published our annual Resolution Guide. If you’re feeling guilty about those fries you just scarfed, sidle up…
As if we needed another excuse to hit up one of our favorite spots — Gallo Blanco, the cafe at the Clarendon Hotel in CenPho, home of the best roasted corn on the cob ever — we just logged onto Twitter and learned that @galloblanco is offering a deal today…
There is no shortage of options for ethnic dining in Tempe, but frankly, we’ve grown tired of the grunge factor in many of the establishments near Arizona State. We’re not saying these places are dirty — and many do serve good food — but let’s just say the shine is off…
