When a new spot opens in town, we can’t wait to check it out — and let you know our initial impressions, share a few photos, and dish about some menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review, but instead a peek inside restaurants that…
First there was The Whining Pig, a less than 500-square-foot beer and wine bar located on the northeast corner of Bethany Home Road and 16th Street in Phoenix. Then came The Pig’s Meow, a second, larger spot located in Arcadia that opened last fall. Now Greg Malkin, the former bankruptcy…
Scottsdale-based Pomo Restaurant Group recently announced plans to open a fourth location of Pomo Pizzeria in Glendale. The restaurant already has two locations in Scottsdale and Phoenix, as well as a third location that’s currently under construction in Gilbert. The newest Pomo Pizzeria will take over the space formerly occupied…
Strong Beer Festival Saturday, February 14 This weekend kicks off Arizona Beer Week and on Saturday the festival’s marquee event, the Strong Beer Festival, will take over Steele Indian School Park in Phoenix. The event brings together dozens of craft breweries that will pour hundreds of different types of beers…
Every spring, the Scottsdale Culinary Festival and the Scottsdale League for the Arts honor some of the Valley’s top chefs, restaurateurs, and mixologists with induction into the Arizona Culinary Hall of Fame. Last year’s winners included well-known names such as Chef of the Year Aaron Chamberlin of St. Francis, Beverage…
Just in time for Mardi Gras, the southeast Valley will be getting a new destination for Southern eats such as crawfish, etouffee, and gumbo. On Saturday, February 14 a new restaurant called Creole Cajun Bistro, located at 5070 S. Gilbert Road in Chandler, will open its doors to the public…
Fans of House of Tricks in Tempe may notice a few changes to the restaurant’s lengthy lunch menu. Earlier this year the restaurant removed a few items from the lunch selection and replaced them with new dishes. The changes include taking away the restaurant’s popular PB&J sandwich, which was made…
Arizona Cocktail Week is just around the corner and whether you and your liver are ready or not, there’s going to be no shortage of things to do, see, and drink. The fourth annual event will include parties, seminars, and dinners all over the city and town, though most of…
Still haven’t gotten your significant other a gift for Valentine’s Day? Don’t worry, there’s always the fail-safe option of a nice box of chocolates to honor the date. You could just pick up something brown and sweet from the grocery store, but let’s be honest, if you want to really…
For the last year Bink’s Midtown, which opened in March 2013, and Bink’s Scottsdale, which opened in December 2013, have earned reputations as great places for seasonal American cuisine. But neither restaurant has really established itself as a destination for cocktail enthusiasts — at least, not until now. Mixologist Richie…
Cory Oppold Executive Chef Juan Zamora Sous Chef Atlas Bistro 2515 N. Scottsdale Road www.atlasbistrobyob.com Since opening in 2002, Atlas Bistro has established itself as a must-go destination for adventurous diners. Thanks to the ever-changing menus of contemporary cuisine, food enthusiasts know they can count on a seasonally influenced fare…
Scramble Today As of today, it’s been one year since Scramble opened its doors at the Scottsdale Marketplace on the northwest corner of Lincoln Boulevard and Scottsdale Road. In celebration of the restaurant’s birthday, Scramble is giving away free pancakes from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. All diners that come…
Good news for folks who plan to head out to the second day of the Street Eats Food Truck Festival at Salt River Fields in Scottsdale. The fourth annual event offers a great selection of trucks, and though lines are still an issue with some particularly popular trucks, wait times…
Whether you’re a Wes Anderson fan or not, chances are good that by now you’ve heard about the director’s most recent movie The Grand Budapest Hotel. After all, it did get a whole slew of Oscar nominations last month, including in the Best Picture, Directing, and Writing (Original Screenplay) categories…
It’s been a tumultuous few weeks for the restaurant at The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix. Last week restaurant operators Doug and Denise Robson announced that Gallo Blanco, which had been located inside the hotel since 2009, would stop operations as of January 31. The closure, according to the Robsons, came…
Late last month we told you about local filmmaker Travis Mills and his plan to make a feature film about legendary Valley restaurant owner, Jack Durant. Mills just needed $100,00 to make the movie, called Durant’s Never Closes, which he hoped to raise on Kickstarter. Arguably there’s good reason to…
Looking back at the best bites of last month makes me confident in saying that 2015 should be quite a delicious year. Two of my most memorable dishes from January come from collaborations between local chefs, and I have a feeling that the trend of kitchen collaborations isn’t going anywhere…
Last month eight Valley restaurants earned D’s during county health inspections. Many of the violations relate to food storage and safety, making these violations a high priority for health inspectors even though they may not sound so shocking to diners. Other restaurants seem to be slacking on simple sanitation practices,…
Street Eats Food Truck Festival Saturday, February 7 and Sunday, February 8 This weekend the biggest street food celebration in the Southwest takes over Salt River Fields in Scottsdale. The fourth annual event, co-sponsored by New Times, will feature dozens of trucks including The Grilled Cheese Truck, Press Italian Street…
After just about a year and a half, chef Paul McCabe is preparing to leave his position as executive chef of T. Cook’s at the Royal Palms Resort in Phoenix. McCabe will go to San Diego to help relaunch the Town & Country Resort & Convention Center, the largest property…
On Sunday, March 1 cocktail enthusiasts will want to be at Crescent Ballroom in downtown Phoenix to see some of the city’s top bartenders compete in a boozy throwdown of skill featuring locally-made spirits. The finalists who will compete in the sixth annual Devoured Bartending Competition have just been announced…
Since the end of the 12 days of Christmas (which is an actual period of time between Christmas Day and the day before the Epiphany, not just the name of a song) and up until Mardi Gras, it’s been Carnivale season for those down south. And Carnivale means king cakes…
