They call them “Chica Sexy” competitions, and that’s exactly what they are — sexy girl contests, held at Mexican nightclubs. For the best show in town, head to Paraiso, a cavernous club on the west side. Usually, at these contests, anything goes. Bras and panties barely stay on (flashing is…
W.C. Fields didn’t live long enough to see the modern incarnation of the wine bar, but he had some great thoughts on grapes and grub. “I cook with wine,” he said. “Sometimes I even add it to the food.” My favorite Fieldism: “Some weasel took the cork out of my…
The kitchen is out of frogs’ legs. I’m disappointed. Frog is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes. My dining companion is wrinkling his nose at the thought of nibbling on the little limbs, but he’s never actually had the delicacy before. Trust me, I tell him: Frogs’ legs, when absolutely…
Let’s get one thing straight. I’ve got strict expectations for high-end eateries — spotless ambiance, spotless service, and, of course, spotless food to go along with the spotless silverware. I’m paying big bucks for perfect, and am quick to complain if I receive anything less. But funky can be a…
As the rest of the Valley heads to Walgreens for another bag of Kit Kat bars, some Mexicans will be rushing out for a loaf of pan de muerto. For a proper Day of the Dead celebration, be sure you have plenty of tequila on hand — if that was…
Luz Acosta, the owner of Pepe’s Taco Villa in west Phoenix, barely took a break from her job to give birth to her first daughter. One day not long ago, she stood very pregnant in the kitchen of her very small restaurant, offering a tour of her restaurant’s expansion into…
Once upon a time, in restaurants far and wide, food was food. There was Italian, Chinese, Mexican . . . but we pretty much always knew what we were getting when we ordered. Spaghetti, chow mein, a burrito. There was high-end cuisine — but the genteel recipes were protected by…
The soup is fashioned from little more than cilantro, garlic, potatoes, avocado and chicken stock. It’s entirely simple. Still, the concoction has me mesmerized. I could buy these ingredients in any grocery store. I’ve got the knives with which to chop, the pots in which to simmer. I could measure…
It’s 7 p.m. on a late summer Sunday, and cars are streaming out of the parking lot at El Gran Mercado, the Mexican swap meet on 35th Avenue and Buckeye in west Phoenix. But just as many cars are entering — and it’s not for last-minute shopping. These people are…
Letters, I get letters. Usually, if a reader takes the time to write or call, he’s pretty passionate about his food. It’s impressive how worked up some folks get over a taco or a burger. Sometimes, these readers are almost scary in their pleas. I have here in my hand…
The waitress at The Willows slipped up. Working me at the new restaurant inside Casino Arizona-McKellips, she showed her hand too quickly. She did a good job pushing the food. The chef crafts each dish to order, she had told me proudly, frying the chicken tenders fresh for the salad,…
Barmouche has always been unpredictable. The stylish bistro debuted with an offbeat menu in 1999, emphasizing French cafe cuisine along with a bit of English pub fare, and even some American diner food. There was elegant brandade de morue (a paste of salt cod and milk with potato gratin) up…
A few weeks ago, the last stop closed in what was once a market run that produced some of the best huevos rancheros in west Phoenix. Nearly 30 years back, mothers and grandmothers — or abuelas — made a frequent trek that took them first to Hickman’s Egg Ranch on…
Let your eyes adjust to the darkness inside Federico’s — a little Mexican bar at Eighth Street and Broadway in south Phoenix — and the first thing you’ll wonder is, how does anyone get a drink around here? The waitresses are all on the dance floor, shaking it with the…
I have a sudden fascination with mariachi music. I used to think I hated the stuff, after spending too many years in Rocky Point bars being molested by those wandering “Macarena” minstrels spewing “Guantanamera” over and over and over. Holy mole! One night, I cringed when a ruffled pack of…
I’m thinking our nation’s airline security force may have a new threat on the horizon. It’s called food. Forget sharp objects and explosives; what edibles people are bringing onto planes these days can be downright dangerous. Since America West, et al., limited in-flight noshing to a sack of pretzels, entrepreneurs…
The Panamerican Bakery & Deli may be in central Phoenix, but step inside and you’re in the heart of South America. This place is a virtual Latin United Nations, with members from such faraway places as Colombia, Venezuela and Chile — and food to remind them of home. These days,…
The guy on the other end of the phone was bitter. He’d just come from lunch at a fast-food hamburger joint, and was ranting over what he considered an “outrage.” Specifically, he’d ordered a Carl’s Jr. “Western Bacon Six-Dollar Burger,” a sandwich highly promoted to be of sit-down-restaurant quality. But…
El Norteño is the Jekyll and Hyde of Mexican restaurants. By day, the popular joint courts business types and office workers craving authentic Mexican food at a good price. On weekend nights, the place transforms itself into a true Mexican street scene, enlivening the corner of Seventh Avenue and Roosevelt…
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Japon-ese! Hideji Moritoki — Sensei to his friends — is showing off a large “Techniques Car Club” logo etched on his back to a handful of ink aficionados at a tattoo vendor’s booth inside the 25th Annual Arizona Lowrider Super Show. Another tat of a winged Virgin Mary on his…
Virgins in Guadalupe are getting scarce. That’s not a slam on the sexual mores in the tiny Yaqui Indian enclave tucked between Tempe and Phoenix, but a simple statement of fact: Someone keeps stealing paintings of the Virgen de Guadalupe from their place on Baseline Road, and it’s not much…
