A friend just sent me a link to today’s dining post in Tasting Table, a sort of Daily Candy-style food newsletter with New York, Los Angeles, and “Everywhere” editions. Phoenix got the “Everywhere” love, except Tasting Table’s four dining picks for this city were so predictable. I wish they would’ve…

Good for The Phoenician. I doubt anyone would argue that this city needed yet another high-end steakhouse, but the resort’s partnership with celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten was a really smart move. Why do I like J&G Steakhouse so much? For me, this stylish spot successfully navigates the fine line between…

I sort of understand why today would be a good day for restaurants to promote themselves. After you’ve done your time under a pile of paperwork — and perhaps coughed up some dough to Uncle Sam — you could use a free taco from Taco del Mar (print out a…

Just got the word from chef Matt Taylor at Metro Brasserie that the SouthBridge eatery has changed up its menu. A salad of green asparagus, morel cream, cured lemon, and fried corn; a pork pate banh mi (traditional Vietnamese sandwich on baguette); lardo-wrapped halibut; and duck breast with rhubarb, beluga…

The Scottsdale Culinary Festival sounds monolithic, but the granddaddy among the Valley’s culinary festivals is surprisingly multifaceted — a dozen different events at 16 different restaurants and venues around town, ranging from casual tastings to semi-formal sit-down occasions…

Got a craving for Pizzeria Bianco lately? Better get yourself down there asap — like, probably tonight — before too many people start cracking open their brand-new copies of Martha Stewart Living. The place is notorious for its wait, but I’m betting it will soon be even longer. Phoenix’s celebrated pizza…

Big changes are happening on Stetson Drive. According to Mari Markogianis of Spaghetti Western Productions — the umbrella for Old Town Scottsdale faves Cowboy Ciao, Sea Saw, Kazimierz, and Digestif — Cowboy Ciao chef Bernie Kantak is leaving the restaurant sometime in the next two or three months to “spearhead a new…

Chef Jared Porter tells me that he traded his apron for a tool belt in recent weeks, but now he’s finalizing his menu for The Parlor, the new pizza joint set to open later this month (tentatively April 27) in the old Salon de Venus on Camelback at 20th Street…

New Times writer Ray Stern has more to say about the arrest of Citrus Cafe owner Andrew Paparella Jr. on the Valley Fever blog today — check it out…

Everything is relative. Compared to Foodbar, the restaurant that used to occupy the SouthBridge space next door to Digestif in Scottsdale, six-month-old Metro Brasserie is a welcome change. I thought Foodbar was a total dud, with an awkward atmosphere and unimpressive food. Honestly, anything would’ve been an improvement, so when…

CenPho is on a roll, yo. After a revolving door of restaurant concepts that have come and gone at the Clarendon Hotel since the departure of Camus almost two years ago, there’s news that chef Doug Robson will be the owner/operator of a new in-house eatery called Gallo Blanco Cafe,…

April Fool’s Day was a week ago, so I guess the news is no joke: Citrus Cafe’s current owner, Andrew Paparella Jr., was arrested by the Chandler P.D. for allegedly stealing customers’ credit card info to order things online and then re-sell them on eBay, reports The Trib. Un-freaking-believable! Hope you…

If you live in the vicinity of 16th Street and Bethany Home, I already envy you for living so close to Richardson’s. And now I hear there’s something new on the very same corner: Luci’s Healthy Marketplace. The retro-modern market sells ready-to-eat meals to go, organic groceries, household necessities, beer…

Listening to chef Christopher Gross explain the mind- and palate-expanding sensation of eating “miracle fruit,” I can’t help but think of Willy Wonka waxing poetic about Everlasting Gobstoppers. “You can eat a lemon wedge, and it tastes just like a piece of candy!” he tells me. It’s called flavor tripping…

Six months after it closed unexpectedly, downtown Chandler’s 98 South wine bar has reopened under new ownership. It opened its doors last Friday night, just in time to get some attention from folks attending last weekend’s Chandler Jazz Festival. Chef Brian Ferguson tells me that the current menu is extremely…

You knew it couldn’t stay vacant for long. The historic Cavness House, which housed Palatte until about a month ago, is just too inviting a location. Now there’s word on the new place set to open there in the next month or so, Local Breeze, which will serve breakfast, lunch,…

So many new restaurants, so little time. But hey, at least I’m trying to keep track of them for you. Here’s a quick cheat sheet on new spots that have opened recently. In Phoenix, there’s Postino Central, Moira Sushi, Scramble, Corona Cantina, Barrio Cantina & Grill, Saito’s Japanese Steakhouse, and…

When was the last time you ate at Top of the Rock, the fine dining spot at The Buttes in Tempe? The place never seems to come up in conversation, but maybe that will change, now that the resort has overhauled the restaurant, hired a new chef, and as of…

This week was Prado vs. Prado in the world of restaurant reviews, and this morning, EaterAZ handed me a sweet plug. Thanks, guys!…

Tapino’s Locavore dinners started off as special events at the restaurant, always featuring locally grown produce, ingredients from local purveyors, and Arizona wines. Inevitably, the events would sell out, and they’d have to add new dates. Lately, Tapino has taken things to the next level by going straight to the…

A couple days ago, I reported that Old Town Scottdale’s Lyte Lounge had just closed, and that a dueling piano might be filling the void. Yep, it’s true. Former Lyte operator Robert Burghart tells me that he’s involved in a joint venture called Howl at the Moon, a “rock and roll…

Nothing lasts forever. Here’s a rundown of the latest local eateries to throw in the towel. In Phoenix, Lil’ Mama’s Soul Food Restaurant is gone, alone with the award-winning Wicked Bakery (that one was a bit of a surprise) and downtown breakfast joint Palatte. As for Ninetta’s Passion Bistro, well, their…