Vagara Bistro, 6137 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 948-9928. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Dinner, 5:30 to 10 p.m., seven days a week. If you’re searching for a town on the cutting edge of the 21st century, Phoenix probably won’t make your short list. After all,…
Zona Rosa, Crown Sterling Suites, 2630 East Camelback, Phoenix, 954-9258. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. The line separating highbrow from lowbrow is a lot less rigid than we think. Take Shakespeare. In Elizabethan England and…
Zona Rosa, Crown Sterling Suites, 2630 East Camelback, Phoenix, 954-9258. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. The line separating highbrow from lowbrow is a lot less rigid than we think. Take Shakespeare. In Elizabethan England and…
Chicken Feed: Last November 9, a money-losing fast-food company named Boston Chicken, Inc., decided to go public, offering almost two million shares of stock at $20 per share. By the time the market’s closing bell rang, Wall Street traders’ jaws had dropped to the floor. Boston Chicken finished the day…
Chicken Feed: Last November 9, a money-losing fast-food company named Boston Chicken, Inc., decided to go public, offering almost two million shares of stock at $20 per share. By the time the market’s closing bell rang, Wall Street traders’ jaws had dropped to the floor. Boston Chicken finished the day…
Pink Pony Steak House, 3831 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 949-8677. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Dinner, 5 to 10 p.m., seven days a week. A restaurant’s reputation is bound to soar once it’s known for attracting certain elite groups. In Los Angeles, for instance, Hollywood…
Pink Pony Steak House, 3831 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 949-8677. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Dinner, 5 to 10 p.m., seven days a week. A restaurant’s reputation is bound to soar once it’s known for attracting certain elite groups. In Los Angeles, for instance, Hollywood…
Sorry, Wrong Number: Last week, I wrote about Sandy Bemoras and her Commitment to Life Card. It’s her way of honoring the memory of her brother, who died as a result of AIDS. The card features discounts at 18 Valley restaurants and clubs, including Hops!, Gianni and Timothy’s. It costs…
Sorry, Wrong Number: Last week, I wrote about Sandy Bemoras and her Commitment to Life Card. It’s her way of honoring the memory of her brother, who died as a result of AIDS. The card features discounts at 18 Valley restaurants and clubs, including Hops!, Gianni and Timothy’s. It costs…
Copper Creek Steakhouse and Grille, Arizona Center, 455 North Third Street, Phoenix, 253-7100. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Dinner, Monday through Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 4 to 9 p.m. Anyone who recalls the downtown Phoenix of…
Love Me Slender: For almost all of recorded history, an “eating disorder” meant only one thing: You weren’t getting enough food. A few years ago, a historian did a study of dreams in the Middle Ages. What did people 500 years ago lust after? Power? Sex? Fame? Nope. Food. In…
Love Me Slender: For almost all of recorded history, an “eating disorder” meant only one thing: You weren’t getting enough food. A few years ago, a historian did a study of dreams in the Middle Ages. What did people 500 years ago lust after? Power? Sex? Fame? Nope. Food. In…
Copper Creek Steakhouse and Grille, Arizona Center, 455 North Third Street, Phoenix, 253-7100. Hours: Lunch, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Dinner, Monday through Thursday, 4 to 10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 4 to 11 p.m.; Sunday, 4 to 9 p.m. Anyone who recalls the downtown Phoenix of…
Reay’s Cafe at Reay’s Ranch Market, 9689 North Hayden, Scottsdale, 596-9496. Hours: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week. For well-heeled gourmands, a day spent cruising the aisles of a fancy supermarket can spark the same kind of intense excitement that a trip to…
Reviewing the Situation: Even though I’ve been writing the Cafe column for more than two years, I’m continually astonished by the number of people–readers, restaurant owners, publicists–who still don’t understand the two guiding principles of restaurant reviewing. First, no review can be credible if the restaurant knows a critic is…
Rancho Pinot Grill, Town & Country Shopping Center, 4709 North 20th Street, Phoenix, 468-9463. Hours: Dinner, Monday through Saturday, 5:30 to 10 p.m. Everyone knows that death and taxes are inescapable, though they’d be somewhat easier to bear if they came in that order. But there’s a third inevitability that…
Be My Valentine: If your sweetie requires high-end, high-up dining, the Valley offers plenty of choices. Among the best: Top of the Rock (the Buttes, 225-9000): This beautiful room provides a 360-degree panoramic view of the Valley. The Southwestern-themed food looks just as good. If the lobster Napoleon is on…
For years, if someone mentioned Asian food, visions of tangerine beef, mee krob or tempura danced through my head. Oriental cuisine always meant dining on Chinese, Thai or Japanese specialties. But two factors are changing the Asian-dining landscape in the Valley. First, diners are growing increasingly bold and sophisticated. After…
The Write Stuff: How long should a critic wait before reviewing the fare at a new restaurant? Most of my colleagues like to give new places several months’ grace, letting them work out the opening kinks. I’m inclined to be a bit less charitable. When Broadway producers are getting a…
Wagon Yard Steakhouse, 2625 East Bell Road, Phoenix, 992-6860. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Sunday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. January, in the Valley of the Sun: Snowbirds, in recreational vehicles large enough to have their own zip code, drive 20…
Wagon Yard Steakhouse, 2625 East Bell Road, Phoenix, 992-6860. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Sunday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. January, in the Valley of the Sun: Snowbirds, in recreational vehicles large enough to have their own zip code, drive 20…
Wagon Yard Steakhouse, 2625 East Bell Road, Phoenix, 992-6860. Hours: Lunch and Dinner, Sunday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 11:30 p.m.; Thursday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. January, in the Valley of the Sun: Snowbirds, in recreational vehicles large enough to have their own zip code, drive 20…
