Chef de cuisine Jack Strong of Kai, the AAA five-diamond restaurant at Wild Horse Pass, has given notice with his employer after three years with the fine-dining destination. After his last day on April 18, the Oregon-born Native American (from the Confederated Tribes of Siletz) will return to the Northwest to…
There’s something magical about the atmosphere at Prado, the Andalusian-inspired fine-dining spot at Paradise Valley’s brand-new InterContinental Montelucia. Indeed, the resort as a whole has a special luster — thanks to President Obama’s recent stay here — but the restaurant, in particular, deserves a nod as one of the prettiest…
Check out the latest post on one of my favorite local food blogs, Eric Eats Out, where you can get the lowdown on La Naranja Grande’s fabulous “heaux-heaux.” Boy, this guy can write, and he is funny as hell!…
Skip happy hour and splurge on the latest swanky culinary event, Forks and Corks, on Thursday evening. Proceeds benefit scholarships for the Arizona Hotel and Restaurant Foundations. Chefs from the Arizona Biltmore, Lon’s at the Hermosa, Fairmont Scottsdale, Hyatt Regency, and many other resorts and restaurants will be on hand…
Really, really late-night eats are hard to come by no matter what part of the Valley you’re in, but in Old Town Scottsdale, where there are plenty of places to go boozing, there definitely aren’t enough places to grab a bite and soak up a night’s worth of sake bombers. The folks behind…
A restaurant can only get so far on notoriety and vagina jokes. Pink Taco closed its three-year-old Scottsdale location today, with plans to expand its operations in Southern California. That’s okay, California can have ’em. I just took a look at a review I did of the Scottsdale Waterfront eatery…
Lyte Lounge, the Scottsdale eatery where executive chef Justin Chacon (known for his now-defunct Justin’s Ragin’ Cajun Cuisine in Cave Creek) cooked up health-conscious tapas for the hungry nightclubber set, has closed, according to restaurant co-founder Robert Burghart, president and CEO of JB Entertainment Group. Lyte opened its doors a little over…
Go get seconds of Pierino Jermonti’s luscious caramel cheesecake creme brulee while you still can. T. Cook’s executive pastry chef, who’s been at the restaurant since 1996, is on his way out. Today marks his last day on the property. According to the Republic, Jermonti’s headed to Terranea, a Southern California…
To me, coming home, thrashed, at the end of a long day and finding a new mag in the mailbox is one of life’s simple pleasures. Better still is to flip it open and find something familiar in its shiny pages. This time, I expected there’d be some kind of Phoenix…
Arizona Capitol Times just announced the winners of its annual “Best of Capitol” survey a few days ago, and it’s interesting to see the restaurant picks of our local political movers and shakers. Not surprisingly, Cheuvront’s gets props (owner Ken Cheuvront is a state senator), while Durant’s seems to be…
When it opens sometime in the next six months, what might you expect to eat at Tapino chef James Porter’s upcoming bistro, Petite Maison? Roasted heritage chicken from Willcox. Braised shortribs. A nice Nicoise salad with grilled fish. Some cheese, some charcuterie, and maybe a hot little souffle. “Nothing super fancy,” he…
Is Phoenix the last major city to have a sushi restaurant in its downtown? Until now, the sushi boom has happened elsewhere in the Valley, especially in Scottsdale. So tomorrow night is kind of historic, isn’t it? That’s when Moira Sushi (215 E. McKinley) opens its doors at 5 p.m. (Friday, March 27),…
There’s been talk for quite a long time that chef Matt Carter of Zinc Bistro and The Mission has had his eye on downtown — particularly around Roosevelt Row. Well, he finally made his move. Carter’s in Uruguay right now, says Brian Raab at The Mission, but before he left, he…
Who needs a calendar? These days, I pretty much measure the passage of time by the reoccurrence of NOCA’s fried chicken night. The monthly special always happens on the fourth Sunday, so the place is inevitably packed with people chowing down on some of the tastiest bird ever (not to…
These days, if “real estate” and “restaurants” are in the same sentence, it’s probably not an optimistic one. All around the Valley, the limping economy has amounted to closures, canceled projects, and indefinitely postponed openings. But not all the casualties came about because of the real estate crash. Some of…
The most titillating news I’ve heard in a while is that James Beard Award-winning chef Robert McGrath — formerly of Roaring Fork and Pischke’s Blue Ribbon — is now on the payroll of Entertainment U.S.A., the parent company of upscale strip club Christie’s Cabaret and 15 other venues across the country…
Can’t wail ’til dinner to pop the cork? No prob. One of Phoenix’s finest BYOBs, Coup des Tartes, just started a weekday lunch service (11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Monday through Friday). And even if you’re not up for a little day drinking (a girl can dream, can’t she?), this…
True to its name, the brand-new Corona Cantina on Indian School has a full bar, and slings the drinks ’til 2 a.m. daily. But it’s a restaurant, too. The Mexican-inspired menu features everything from chimichangas, enchiladas, tacos, and tortilla soup, to burgers, bruschetta, wings, and salads. Dinner service runs until…
A restaurant opening early? When does that ever happen? In the wonderful world of Postino, where they’ve got it all figured out, apparently. The brand-new Postino Central, located in the renovated Katz Deli building at Central and Colter (5144 N. Central), just opened its doors a matter of minutes ago…
Wah wah wah… Today’s an anticlimactic day for some of the most talented people in the Arizona restaurant biz, as the James Beard Foundation announced its finalists for the 2009 awards. Nobody from this state was on the list. But the eight semifinalists who’d been in the running for various categories since the…
Hey buddy, can you spare a buck? If so, that dollar will buy you dinner at Bar Louie’s Tuesday night happy hour. The Glendale watering hole serves up one-dollar burgers from 6 p.m. until close on Tuesday nights (while supplies last), with the exception of game/concert/big event nights. The only…
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.”…
