This is part two of our interview with Jason Raducha and Claudio Urciuoli of Noble Bread, the micro-bakery that’s been producing Old World-style breads of top quality since last year. Today, we’re back to talk about Urciuoli’s family history and how it drew him to bread making. If you missed…
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…
Welcome to Cook’s Day Off, chronicling the food-centered wanderings of a Valley cook — away from the heat, noise, and chaos of the kitchen. Just because it isn’t a day in the kitchen, it doesn’t mean it isn’t a day about food. In San Francisco, the hills are alive with…
Welcome to “Schaefer,” in which Eric Schaefer — a local guy with a big (but discerning) appetite and a sense of humor to match — takes on the Phoenix food scene. I’d like a job at Oregano’s. If anyone from corporate is reading this, please call me, okay? Never mind…
The folks behind Chandler’s Vintage 95 wine bar and eatery have brought the booze to a new concept in an unexpected place. Called V95 Wine Lounge & Coffee Bar, the new spot offers a varied selection of wines by the glass and bottle, light dining options, and a full coffee…
Scottsdale’s oldest restaurant, The Pink Pony, is nearly ready to ride again. After being closed since summer, the more than 60-year-old landmark restaurant will reopen at the end of this month — and for those who are familiar with the old spot, the good news is that not everything will…
The Guilty Pleasure: Bacon Insider Where To Get It: Jack in the Box, locations Valleywide Price: $4.99 (your mileage may vary) What It Really Costs: About 730 calories, almost 400 from fat. For some time now, bacon has been almost fetishized by all manner of culinary folk. It’s understandable. Bacon…
Jason Raducha and Claudio Urciuoli Noble Bread www.noblebread.com Artisan bread is hot right now. But for the guys behind Noble Bread, it’s not about the trend. It’s about reconnecting to the way things used to be done, using a stone hearth and stone-ground heritage grains to make naturally leavened bread…
When you first walk into Juicd Life, the new juice bar at Biltmore Fashion Park, you’re going to notice it has a lot of two things: juice and really, really good-looking employees. Now we can’t speak to the quality of the model-esque workers, but we can tell you that Juicd…
It’s been over a year since UNION at the Biltmore Fashion Park opened its doors, giving a roster of local businesses retail space alongside national chains at the upscale mall. But in December, shoppers had to say a sad goodbye to Smeeks, the retro candy store owned by Georganne Bryant,…
The Arcadia neighborhood somehow has become the burger capital of metro Phoenix. I can’t think of another part of town that has a higher concentration of chichi burger joints. Indeed, it seems burger-centric restaurants outnumber all the other places combined. And so when The Stand first took over the space…
Since opening in December, The Clever Koi has quickly become a favorite spot for inventive modern Asian cuisine. We’ve rated the happy hour, given our first impressions, and reviewed the whole menu. And just this week, the restaurant introduced a lunch menu to the mix, with affordable — if limited…
As we reported Wednesday, Phoenix-based Hispanic retailer Pro’s Ranch Market was sold for $55 million earlier this week to a California-based company — an LLC made up of two other supermarket chains. The family-owned Pro’s Ranch Market declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy last June, saying that the bad economy and negative…
Though the origin of ceviche is disputed, it’s likely that the dish comes from the South American country of Peru. This dish, which is made by curing raw seafood or fish in citrus juices, has been popular in South America for years, with nearly every country offering its own take…
For more than two decades, Voltaire in Scottsdale served the same menu of classic French-inspired fare. Dishes like Beef bourguignon, oysters Rockefeller, and Duck a l’orange stayed, while restaurants elsewhere worked to incorporate buzzy concepts like “organic,” “free range,” and “all-natural” into the mix. But in August, the restaurant reopened…
I’m a longtime food truck fan, from way before food trucks were cool. During college in Hawaii, I regularly ate out of trucks parked on the Manoa campus. I ordered what Hawaiians call “plate lunches”: an entrée served with two scoops of rice and one scoop of macaroni salad. It…
Strong Beer Festival Saturday, February 15 This weekend kicks off both Arizona Beer Week and Arizona Cocktail Week (really, organizers? Do we have to do this every year?), so as you can imagine, there’s a whole lot of drinking to do. On Saturday, beer lovers will want to hit the…
It’s got to be tough for gluten-free diners to have to watch their brunch companions dig into pancakes, waffles, and biscuits and gravy while they stick to eggs, bacon, and a mimosa (or two, to ease the pain). Well, suffer no longer gluten-freers because Jewel’s Bakery and Cafe in Phoenix…
There’s no kidding about kidding, it’s serious business. Does give birth to one and two kids in one kidding — and so, it’s all hands on deck at The Simple Farm, where kidding season lasts from mid-January through February. Eventually, the little ladies born will assist in making the milk…
For years, Chakra 4 has been a hidden treasure for healthy and vegan diners. The restaurant is located in Town & Country Shopping Center, which recently benefited from the addition of a new Whole Foods Market and several restaurants. Soon the tea shop, herbal store, and restaurant will join the…
The Guilty Pleasure: New limited-edition Oreo flavors. Where To Get It: Your favorite grocery store. Price: About $3 a box. What it Really Costs: Can you resist the thought of cookie dough flavor Oreos? I have to admit, the folks at Nabisco know what they’re doing with marketing the century-old…
On Monday, two California-based Hispanic retailers reached an agreement in U.S. Bankruptcy Court to acquire Phoenix-based Pro’s Ranch Markets. The Pro’s Ranch Market chain includes seven stores in Arizona, two in New Mexico, and two in Texas. As we told you in June, the family-owned company filed for Chapter 11…
