By Michele Laudig Lunch at Digestif yesterday was quite a treat — an orgy of pancetta and Epoisse and homemade pastas. Although the menu is essentially the same format as it’s been, there were quite a few new interesting dishes I was curious about. I ended up with the tripolini,…
By Amy Silverman Is there a curse at the Chinese Cultural Center in Phoenix? I’m starting to wonder. I’ve had more bad Asian meals than I can count from a grouping of businesses that should be the best in town, given the billing. I’d about sworn off the CCC entirely…
By Jay Bennett The Two Hippies empire has expanded to include a fun taco and burrito stand on East Camelback Road. Said hippies (who also own Two Hippies Magic Mushroom Burger on Indian School Road) took over the shuttered boutique Gold Lion, on the corner of Camelback and Fifth Street,…
The stock market may be sinking, but at swanky new Sushi Roku, you can still party like it’s 2005. That was my stunned first impression of the super-trendy Japanese restaurant that opened a month ago at the W Scottsdale hotel. How to describe the decadence? Completely over the top. Good-looking…
By Michele Laudig Yes, it’s true. The team behind Urban Campfire is at odds over the future of the business. According to co-owner Robert Stempkowski, his business partner Stephen Wolff’s vision for the Tempe restaurant is so different from the original concept that Stempkowski says he “can’t participate in it.”…
By Benjamin Leatherman GFCB’s “Chocolate Delight” Cookies: egg-free, dairy-free, wheat-free, but not flavor-free. When I last visited my doctor in April, he didn’t pull any punches. Start losing weight now, he told me, or you’ll be dead in 10 years or less. Damn. As depressing as his proclamation was, it…
By Michele Laudig What just happened? I heard from a couple of sources that chef Matt McLinn — former owner of the now-defunct Methode Bistro — just got fired from his postion as chef de cuisine of BLT Steak, celeb chef Laurent Tourondel’s fancy new steakhouse set to open at…
By Amy Silverman There seem to be some storage problems at Tortas Ahogadas Guadalajara in Chandler. A recent inspection revealed a first aid kit stored on top of tortillas, and a hat on top of the potatoes. Raw chicken was stored above “ready to eat items” — a big “no…
By Michele Laudig Are you a chef? Are you a glutton for punishment? And are you willing to let brilliant British chef Gordon Ramsay rip you a new one on national television? If so, hit up the Hell’s Kitchen casting session from 5 to 10 p.m. next Tuesday, October 7,…
By PJ Standlee SanTan Brewery’s first ever Oktoberfest on Sept. 27 packed a crowd of hundreds to sample tasty beers from Arizona breweries, but the long lines, tiny tasting cups, and lack of lederhosen relegated the advertised German styled Oktoberfest to a lesser beer tasting event. While most happily suffered…
By Eddie Matney Chef Eddie Matney is the owner of Eddie’s House in Scottsdale…
There aren’t many places in town worse for dieters than the Indoor Swapmart near 27th Ave. & Camelback. Well, there’s the state fair. Or the Heart Attack Grill. But a recent costume-hunting excursion to the ‘Mart (don’t even ask…you’d guffaw like a schoolyard bully at my geekiness) had me prowling…
By Michele Laudig Tammie Coe. I’m an Obama girl myself, although I wouldn’t mind taking a big bite out of that shiny McCain-Palin cookie, too…
By Wynter Holden 27-year-old barista Joseph Boos comes off as an innocent Virgo-type, but there’s a Gemini duality brewing under the skin. His Jekyll side sings cheesy ‘80s pop tunes with his co-workers while dishing up lattes at Coffee Rush in Chandler, and speaks fluent “Starbuckanese” – though he gently…
By Eddie Matney Chef Eddie Matney is the owner of Eddie’s House in Scottsdale…
By Jonathan McNamara I haven’t enjoyed it (not entirely true) but lately I’ve been sucking down a lot of sweet-tasting beers in order to prevent you, the reader, from following in my sickeningly sweet foot steps. Though I’ve penned these saccharine-laced reviews in the hopes of assisting you in your…
By Amy Silverman If you were a teenage girl in Phoenix in the 1980s, chances are that you indulged more than once in Tokyo Express. The whole notion of (relatively) healthy fast food was a novelty at the time — except for the baked potato at Wendy’s, everything quick and…
By Jay Bennett I can never eat a “regular” pancake again after trying a few bites of the sweet potato pancakes at Lil’ Mama’s Soul Cafe, a little storefront eatery on Seventh Avenue halfway between Indian School and Camelback roads. The missus and I ducked into this unassuming little strip-mall…
By Michele Laudig Is it a bible? Is it a phonebook? Is it the September issue of W? No, it’s the New Times Best of Phoenix issue! The thing finally comes out today, and it is full of so much food and restaurant stuff that you won’t believe your eyes…
The restaurant name is so evocative: Imagine Spain. It has me thinking of a country that’s sophisticated, exciting, and naturally beautiful, where the good life is all about sharing fantastic food with friends in a warm, inviting atmosphere. “Convivial” is the word one of my pals used to describe the…
The perfect comfort food. By Sarah Fenske Every time I go to Cheese ‘n Stuff, the remarkable little deli/food shop on Central, I order the same thing. This is not the fault of the owners. They have an amazing variety of food here, from sandwiches made with Boar’s Head meats…
By Michele Laudig The 43-year-old chef who fed many happy customers at Different Pointe of View and Convivo and other Valley restaurants passed away last week in Dallas, Texas, according to an obituary today. How incredibly sad…..
