Chef Silvana Salcido Esparza will tell you if there’s one thing she holds dear, it’s la familia. The way she explains it, la familia is more than just family — it’s the community, culture, and friends that form the unbreakable bedrock of her work and life. Her flagship restaurant, Barrio…
You’ll soon have a new restaurant to hit before Phoenix coyotes games and concerts at Gila River Arena. Bar Louie, the restaurant and bar with one Valley location at Tempe Marketplace, plans to open a second metro Phoenix location at Westgate by the end of April. The restaurant, which was founded…
When a new spot opens in town, we can’t wait to check it out — and let you know our initial impressions, share a few photos, and dish about some menu items. First Taste, as the name implies, is not a full-blown review, but instead a peek inside restaurants that…
The wait is almost over. By next week, Valley diners will be able to dig into 100 percent all-natural, antibiotic-free Angus beef burgers and fresh-made frozen custards at Shake Shack, the famous New York-based burger chain that’s set to open three location in metro Phoenix this year. The first of the…
Where: The Stand When: Sunday to Thursday 11 a.m.-10 p. m., Friday & Saturday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., dine in and carry out until 9 p.m., drive-thru until close daily Dish: Chocolate Chile Shake Price: $4.69 The Setting: The staff at The Stand was quite friendly, holding the door and greeting us as…
If you’ve got $5, it’s a really good time to be a fast food fan. As long as your preferred drive-through is McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, or Carl’s Jr. (sorry, Jack in the Box aficionados), your favorite burger spot has quite the deal for you. Who started it first is…
North Scottsdale sushi lovers have one less option when it comes to places for maki rolls and sake bombs. As of February 1, Stingray Sushi at the Scottsdale Quarter has shuttered. The company announced the restaurant’s closure on Facebook: The local chain of Japanese eateries still has restaurants in Chandler…
Old Town Scottsdale is getting a new spot for lobster rolls, crab cakes, and cocktails next month. The restaurant, called Crab & Mermaid, comes from Square One Concepts (the same folks behind Cold Beers & Cheeseburgers and Wasted Grain), and is expected to open on Saturday, March 19. Seafood lovers can look…
This morning the James Beard Foundation released the list of 2016 James Beard Award semifinalists. Four Arizona names made the list — and if they look familiar, it’s because they are. The two Arizona chefs, one restaurateur, and one restaurant named as semifinalists this year have been named semifinalists in…
A new food truck festival is coming to the Valley. Called Valley Plaza Food Truck Festival, the new event begins on Sunday, February 21 at Tempe’s Valley Plaza shopping center, 3115 South McClintock Drive. The first iteration of the festival will see appearances by Aioli Burger, Bites Donuts, Cousins Maine…
Last year developers Habitat Metro and Bond Partners announced details about plans to renovate the former Lexington Hotel in central Phoenix and transform the building into a boutique art hotel. At the time of the announcement last October, they mentioned plans for a restaurant concept — and now we know the…
From the outside, Cornish Pasty Co.’s soon-to-open downtown Phoenix location might not look like much. As you stand on Monroe Street just west of Central Avenue facing south, there’d be no way to know that this isn’t just the fourth Valley Cornish Pasty Co. restaurant — but rather an eatery, pub,…
It’s no secret that Phoenix is thick with Sonoran-style Mexican restaurants, bastions of machaca dinners, deep-fried chimichangas, and thin, pillowy flour tortillas often melded together with bright orange cheese. The cheese crisp, served on a round aluminum platter like a pizza, is the hallmark of old school Arizona-Sonora Mexican food,…
When it comes to restaurants, there’s a lot happening on Seventh Street. Just south of Bethany Home Road, you’ll find The Yard with Sam Fox’s Culinary Dropout and chef Silvana Salicido Esparza’s Barrio Urbano, as well as Okra, the second restaurant and bar from chef Cullen Campbell and mixologist Micah…
If you grew up dining around Central Phoenix in the 1970s or 1980s, there’s a good chance you have memories of eating at La Piñata, the Sonoran-style Mexican restaurant famous for its steady output of cheese crisps and its iconic vintage neon sign, featuring a zippy yellow arrow pointing to the building. “Steady” is…
Detroit-style pizza is taking a cue from the snowbirds and heading to the Valley of the Sun. As we told you late last year, Jet’s Pizza is set to open two locations in metro Phoenix — one store in Phoenix at 10855 North Tatum Boulevard and another in Chandler at 4245 South Arizona…
Congrats, Chandler-ites. This spring you’re getting not just one, but two new eateries: the Valley’s third La Bocca Urban Kitchen + Wine Bar and second location of Modern Margarita. The restaurants will be located at 1 East Boston Street, on the southeast corner of Boston Street and Arizona Avenue, in the space…
After about seven months, the sixth location of Over Easy has shuttered. The well-loved breakfast restaurant, which opened in late June 2015, was located at The Yard at Farmer Arts District, a multi-concept complex that’s also home to a Culinary Dropout restaurant and fitness studio called The Madison. Known for…
Let’s start by stating the obvious. George & Dragon in central Phoenix is a dive. A well-loved one, yes, but a dive nonetheless. It’s the kind of place where you expect your food to be greasy and cheap because you’re mostly using it to chase pints of beer or two-ingredient…
Downtown Mesa residents looking for a place to pop into for a quick lunch or a nitro cold-brew coffee have a new option as of today, the grand opening of Worth Takeaway. The restaurant is located at 218 West Main Street in Mesa and serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The spot’s…
They schlep food to and fro. They explain the meaning of al dente. They clean up after your kid, who left behind a giant pile of cracker crumbs. Here, in hopes of making you appear less ridiculous to restaurant waiters, are eight stupid things you should never ask your server…
Phoenix may be a particularly pizza-loving town, but that fact apparently wasn’t enough to save Forge Pizza. The 1,500-square foot restaurant closed its location at the Biltmore Fashion Park earlier this month. The restaurant, which has two sister spots in California, opened in October of last year and specialized in…
