CREW, 34505 North Scottsdale Road (El Pedregal Marketplace), Scottsdale, 480-488-8840. Hours: Lunch, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday; closed for lunch Sunday; Dinner, 5:30 to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 5:30 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The proprietors of year-old CREW modestly describe their restaurant as a…
A barren island in the San Francisco Bay, Alcatraz was from 1933 to 1963 the site of the notorious federal prison known by its residents as “The Rock” and famous for its inescapability. Rain forests, found around the world near the Equator, are wet jungles characterized by incredibly dense flora…
I love food. As an obsessed foodie, I believe that cooking is a lot like making love. Like most lovers, I have a special place where my food fantasies seem closer to reality. Welcome to the secret world of restaurant supply. I remember my first visit to a restaurant supply…
D’Atri’s Cinema Paradiso, 10303 North Scottsdale Road (Windmill Plaza), Scottsdale, 480-348-0377. Hours: Lunch, Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Dinner, Tuesday through Saturday, 5 to 9 p.m.; closed Sunday and Monday. Isn’t it wonderful to live in a city teeming with cafes? Cafe life is so vibrant, just…
What a Waste: Everyone knows the acronym GIGO — Garbage In, Garbage Out. Usually, it refers to the pitfalls of computer programming or, more generally, mapping any plan. These days, though, it may refer to what’s going into our bodies. Literally. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, chefs…
No drink says “let’s celebrate” better than champagne. No night says “let’s party” louder than New Year’s Eve. Need to buy a bottle of champagne by year’s end? You’re not alone. Finding a decent bottle of bubbles to ring in the new year doesn’t have to be a champagne in…
Mary Elaine’s, The Phoenician, 6000 East Camelback, Phoenix, 480-941-8200. Hours: Dinner, Monday through Thursday, 6 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 6 to 11 p.m. This is the time of year when many folks take stock and count their blessings. Right now, I imagine the executives at the opulent Phoenician…
I’ve been going to an annual Christmas party for 16 years. Everyone brings an appetizer and a bottle of wine. I like the wine. Half the people bring something cheesy. One man crushes those little cheese crackers into a paste, and somehow manages to get this paste to adhere to…
Grateful Thanks: This is the time of year when we count our blessings. Yes, I’m grateful for family, friends, mild Phoenix winters and the extension of the Squaw Peak Parkway. But as someone who eats out 225 times a year, here’s what makes me particularly warm with gratitude: I’m thankful…
Dong A, 4808 North 35th Avenue, Phoenix, 602-841-4152. Hours: Lunch, Monday, 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Lunch and Dinner, Tuesday through Friday, 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Sunday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. How much of an adventurer are you? Do you buy stocks…
What’s New: When the calendar turns to November, we know it’s time to welcome three things to the Valley: brown air, winter visitors and new restaurants. I can’t get excited about the first two. But a trio of new eating spots has caught my eye. I’m looking forward to checking…
Tomaso’s 2000, 16640 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 480-991-2000. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Dinner, 5 p.m. to 10, seven days a week. In the old days, when the West was being settled, development took a predictable course. First came the explorers. Then came the hunters…
The Reign of Spain: It not only wasn’t broke, it was running in tip-top condition. But the culinary team at the Scottsdale Princess resort decided to fix it anyway. And I’m crushed. What’s been “fixed” is the swanky Marquesa, one of the best restaurants in this time zone. Over the…
Coronado Cafe, 2201 North Seventh Street, Phoenix, 602-258-5149. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Lunch, Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Closed Sunday and Monday. “Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp,” wrote the poet, “or what’s a heaven for?” The proprietors…
News You Can Use: Here comes the holiday season. How can you make yours a little more memorable? • The American Heart Association doesn’t want you eating your heart out. So it’s presenting a series of classes/dinners, presided over by some big-name Valley chefs. All the recipes adhere to the…
Central Bistro, 5202 North Central, Phoenix, 602-234-2768. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Saturday, 2 to 11 p.m. Closed Sunday. Real estate experts know that certain businesses and certain locations don’t mesh. You shouldn’t put a fine chinaware…
Book Notes: A new restaurant guidebook should be hitting the stores any time now: 100 Best Restaurants in Arizona, 2000-2001, by Harry and Trudy Plate (Kelton Publishing, $9.95). The guide has appeared biennially since 1977. The current edition should make a decent stocking stuffer, if you’re interested in an undemanding…
Madera Grille, 6601 West Bethany Home, Glendale, 623-847-1847. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Monday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. The west-side restaurant scene could use some help. Fine dining? You’d have better luck scouring the avenues looking for the Loch Ness monster. Meanwhile, every chain restaurant on the planet…
Gourmet Goofs: Every October, Gourmet magazine puts out its annual restaurant issue. Readers in North America’s major cities are polled, and the results trumpeted across the pages. As you might expect, the poll tells you a lot more about the readers than it does about the restaurants. I should know,…
Seasons Rotisserie & Grill, 10050 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 480-443-1300. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; Dinner, Sunday through Thursday, 5:30 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 5:30 to 11 p.m. When a bunch of jocks get together and open a restaurant, you can usually count…
Fish Story: On one visit, Seasons Rotisserie & Grill (see this week’s Cafe review) offered a tempting seafood special: pan-seared escolar, served with a calypso bean-cremini mushroom ragout, watercress and lemon-sage aioli. Fashionable and delicious, escolar started showing up on Valley menus about five years ago. Found in the tropical…
The man in the black fisherman’s cap reminds you at once of Timothy Leary in his later years — minus the drugs. Mind-altering substances, to be sure, do not define the life of Hans Traulsen. Rather, he marks his own 86-year-long “trip” with much more laudable escapes. The first, his…
