Japanese illustrator Mao Sugiyama had his genitals removed on his birthday, March 31. A couple of weeks later, he served those genitals — scrotum, testicles and penis — at a special dinner where six “lucky” individuals paid the equivalent of $250 to consume them. Sugiyama advertised this unique meal via…
From now ’til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers — Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you’ll know; for others, it’ll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you’re here, check…
What’s your favorite beer? We at Chow Bella get this question a lot, and though it may seem a simple choice for the uninitiated, it can be much harder to answer for those who have tried a multitude of brews. Even among the relatively small selection of beers made in…
Love it or hate it — AZ Restaurant Week (Spring Edition) is officially over Sunday night. According to Bernie Kantak, chef and co-owner of Citizen Public House, this calls for a celebration. But then, with Kantak, what doesn’t? He and his partners Richie Moe and Andrew Fritz are hosting a…
Note: This post has been edited since its original version. A new reality TV show called Mystery Diners airs on Food Network tonight at 10 pm, and the “stars” — for the next five or six weeks anyway — are Phoenix area restaurant owners and their employees…
Every week, there’s a cornucopia of new Phoenix food news, features, and reviews to report here at Chow Bella. If you’re like most people, you probably just don’t have the time to get to all of it. It’s kind of like those burgers at Old Town Whiskey; it just won’t…
In this occasional series, Pavle Milic will spill about his current mission to learn how wine is made — literally from the Southern Arizona ground up. Today: pruning and weeding. The alarm goes off at 4:30 am. I jounce out of bed in fear of pressing snooze to enjoy the…
A 30-foot ficus tree, a patio lined by French Quarter gas lamps and an eight-foot ivy wall, and, as their Facebook page states, a “man cave” and “one hell of a martini,” will be a few of the focal points at Kelly’s at Southbridge, the new American pub and grill…
In what appears to be a start in filling the restaurant void at the Camelback Esplanade, the mixed-use development on the southeast corner of Camelback Road and 24th Street, Del Frisco’s Grille will be opening in the former Houston’s location on Saturday, June 9. From the Dallas-based Del Frisco’s Restaurant…
If you’ve lived around here for more than a few years, you’re probably familiar with a little drink called the Jamaican Ten-Speed. Odds are good that your favorite bartender will whip up one for you in the blink of an eye. Then you go on vacation in the Caribbean. A…
Chow Bella has confirmed that the chef at one of the most popular restaurants in town is suddenly gone for good — and during Restaurant Week. Awkward. Late Wednesday afternoon, the rumor leaked that chef Matt Taylor was no longer at Noca. I called Taylor on his cell and left…
It’s that time of year: time to enjoy the Valley’s great restaurant patios before the summer heat gets totally unbearable. One of the best places in town to sneak away for a quick retreat is The House at Secret Garden, featuring a lush garden seating area surrounded with trees. There’s…
When it comes to tripe, we Americans have it exactly backwards. We don’t have a problem reading tripe, viewing tripe, or listening to tripe. We even spout a good bit of it ourselves on Facebook and Twitter. As a culture, we pretty much swim in the stuff. But the other…
From now ’til we publish the 2012 edition of Best of Phoenix, New Times and Chow Bella present 100 Tastemakers — Valley residents who make the cut in our culinary scene. Some you’ll know; for others, it’ll be a first introduction (but likely not the last). While you’re here, check…
If you love cooking shows that focus on teaching — not drama — you’re in for a real treat at 7 p.m. on Monday, June 4. That’s when Eight, Arizona PBS premieres Jacques Pépin Cooks for Eight, a two-hour cooking special starring world-famous French chef Jacques Pépin and Arizona’s own…
Happy Memorial Day weekend! Time for barbecues! And pool parties! And drinking beer out of cans! All in honor of the fallen souls who protected our country. We’re pretty sure most of you will be hit the road to escape the heat this weekend, but if you’re planning on sticking…
Mirth, which announced its existence at TechCrunch’s Disrupt NYC convention, bills itself as a business-friendly alternative to deal programs like Groupon and LivingSocial. A Mirth account is attached to your credit card and automatically recognizes when you’ve gone to an establishment twice in a single month. This makes you a…
Coke is misused as a mixer. While we often employ it as a cheap, sweet vehicle for carrying bottom-shelf rum or whiskey, cola is better-suited for pairing with less powerful alcohols. In a Diesel, it can bring life to a dull lager; in the Calimocho, it covers up the inadequacies…
I’m convinced there’s not many things in life a well-made torta can’t cure. Bad day? Torta. Un-friended on Facebook? Torta. Walking around with a piece of torta in your teeth? Torta. Monster-size and cheap, these popular Mexican sandwiches — stuffed with meat, thick slices of ripe avocado, pickled jalapeños, lettuce,…
Some of my favorite recipe pins on Pinterest are those that list the ingredients right in the description. It’s nice to know up front what’s required. This gummy fruit snack recipe was one of those pins, see. Given the simplicity of the ingredients, and the fact that I’ve deprived my…
Like the Pimm’s Cup featured on Chow Bella a few weeks ago, the Moscow Mule is another thirst-quenching summery cocktail, often served in bars in a cold copper mug. Where the Pimm’s Cup is a Brit invention, the Moscow Mule is purely American. Created in Los Angeles in the ’40s…
White asparagus are to green asparagus as veal is to beef. They’re not always available, and when raised right, they’re tender and pale. Conveniently, I’m not aware of a single vegetable rights groups proclaiming that growing asparagus in light-deprived conditions (to keep them white) is morally wrong. Last night, I…
