Arizona native Bill Sandweg, owner and master barista of Copper Star Coffee in Phoenix, has wanted to do a restaurant since 2004. “Copper Star was originally going to be a restaurant,” Sandweg tells me. “But then I got talked out of it and coffee ended up being a good idea…
Restaurant Week 2011 is just one week away. With more than 200 restaurants participating, it’s hard to sort through all of those menu. Every time you look at one and think, “Holy cow that sounds amazing,” then you look at the next two and completely forgot about the first one since…
Following the recent closing of Fred’s at Barneys, Scottsdale Fashion Square can add another restaurant shuttering to its list of casualties: Marcella’s Italian Kitchen. Part of a Columbus-based chain, Marcella’s, known for “authentic Italian cuisines of pizzas, pastas, handcrafted cocktails and world-class wines,” opened in October of 2009 at Scottsdale…
Last year we marked the hundred day countdown to Best of Phoenix by sharing our 100 Favorite Dishes with you. Now we’re back – with the 2011 edition. Have a suggestion for a dish you’d like us to try? Leave it in the comments section or email laura.hahnefeld@newtimes.com. 14: Moist…
Whoever said the food truck fad was on its way out better get his engine checked. Thanks to Food Truck Fridays at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market and the upcoming Phoenix Food Truck Festival on October 22, grabbing grub from a motorized vehicle never tasted so good. No wonder Phoenix…
In an effort to make mom proud, Chow Bella’s taking a good, hard look at the most important meal of the day in the form of Scrambled, a weekly review of local breakfast spots. This week: Butterfield’s Pancake House A little bit sunny retro, a little bit traditional diner, this Scottsdale café…
Hungry for your early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives? Italian Wine Dinner Gina Buskirk and her husband Chris, founders of Gina’s Homemade, have just scored themselves a pretty sweet deal with Whole Foods. The grocery chain has picked up their locally handcrafted cheeses, sauces, and…
Fred’s at Barneys New York, the stylish, modern bistro and brainchild of Fred Pressman, son of Barneys New York founder Barney Pressman, closed today. Located on the second floor of Barneys New York, which opened in October of 2009 in the Fashion Square Mall in Scottsdale, a Barneys’ associate told…
Another week has come and gone leaving us to ponder the upcoming events that will shape our lives and, more importantly, our dinners out. But before we move on, let’s have one last look at the blog posts from this week. #1 Super Everything Pho from Khai Hoan FnB Back…
Tired of the same old tired orange chicken and California rolls? Want to venture beyond the standard suburban-stale take-out? Here comes Chop PHX, with the Valley’s rarer Asian offerings. This Week: Mooncakes from the Super L Ranch Market bakery in the Chinese Cultural Center (668 North 44th Street, Phoenix) The…
Yesterday we met Jenna Cacciamani, bartender at Tempe pizza place/beer bar Mellow Mushroom. Today she shares with us the recipe for the Baked Pear Martini, a drink she created that’s on the restaurant’s menu. “The prickly pear vodka comes from a local place,” Cacciamani says. “We try to do that…
You should know right away where this is from. I mean, it’s chicken and waffles. This is basically a freebie. Do you know where I’m eating?…
If you’re into tradition, third anniversaries are celebrated with gifts of leather or crystal. If you’re Sushi Roku, third anniversaries are celebrated by offering every dish on the menu at half-price. When do we eat? From Sunday, September 11th, through Thursday, September 15, Sushi Roku, the swanky eatery in Scottsdale,…
Every town has a handful of sketchy restaurants. Often it’s the joints that look the most questionable that hold the secrets of culinary enlightenment. Then again, they might hold nothing more than a one-way ticket to whatever you stuffed down your gob firing back out from both ends. It’s the…
Out with the old, in with the new. The ol’ My Big Fat Greek Restaurant in Old Town Scottsdale has shut down and been replaced with a cooler new locally owned restaurant, Limelight Dipping Bar & Grill. Dipping Bar? What the hell is a dipping bar? We’re guessing it has…
Last year we marked the hundred day countdown to Best of Phoenix by sharing our 100 Favorite Dishes with you. Now we’re back – with the 2011 edition. Have a suggestion for a dish you’d like us to try? Leave it in the comments section or email laura.hahnefeld@newtimes.com. 15: Har…
Tacos may very well be the perfect food, but let’s face it, the standard Meximerican fare can get a bit stale after a while. Taco the Town is here to highlight some of the more unusual Mexican finds in the Valley. This week: Chorizo Breakfast Burritos served up by Los…
If Chick-fil-A, In-N-Out Burger, and T.G.I. Friday’s had a baby, its name would be Raising Cane’s. The chicken fingers chain, based in Louisiana, opened its first Arizona location on Tuesday, at 2715 West Peoria Avenue (1-17 & Peoria Ave.) With a concept called, “One Love” (Bob Marley?), the menu at…
Juicy barbecue, ice cold beer, and a good cause? This one’s a no-brainer, or, in the case of Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue in Cave Creek, a Beer for Brains fundraiser. At 6:30 p.m. on Monday, September 12, Bryan’s Black Mountain Barbecue will be pairing up ‘que and beer with proceeds…
Hungry for your early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives? Turn Up the Heat Gas up the car and grab a snack, then embark on your journey to the depths of Mesa for the Eighth Annual Hatch Chile Festival. Way out on Power Road between Elliot…
The tender: Jenna Cacciamani The bar: Mellow Mushroom (740 S. Mill Ave. 480-967-6355) The pedigree: When Cacciamani’s manager at Applebee’s needed a bartender about 8 years ago, she was originally opposed– she was working tables, was fine with the money she was earning and liked her regulars. But she eventually ended up…
A round-up of tasty morsels from Valley food blogs. Chris Tingom from ArizonaCoffee.com picked some of his favorite examples of latte art from the 2011 SWLAC this past weekend. He wanted you to know what good latte art looks like. Check out the rest of the pours over on his…
