In Chow Bella’s new comic, Wait or Die, we tell the stories of waiters and waitstaff from restaurants around the Valley. Submit your stories here: waitordie@newtimes.com — and be sure to let us know if you wish to remain anonymous…
Around this time last year, I was gathering stories about food and Christmas to run on Chow Bella when my friend (and one of my favorite writers) Kim Porter mused, “I sure wish we could read these aloud.” Wish granted, thanks to Charlie Levy and the other nice folks at…
It’s going to be hard to keep up with all the new restaurants that opened this month including several highly-anticipated spots from local chefs. Check out all the comings and goings…
Henry Ku is the chef and restaurateur who has been credited with putting Taiwanese food on the map in Seattle. And he isn’t stopping there. With three restaurants in the Seattle area, Ku opened Henry’s Taiwan in Tempe in August and will open a location in Los Angeles this month…
The Guilty Pleasure: Cinnabon Delights Where To Get It: Taco Bell, locations everywhere Price: $1.49 What It Really Costs: At 260 calories, you can do worse. Taco Bell seems to have found an unusual secret to success: Some of their most noteworthy products are cross-promotional efforts. I know a few…
Luxury chocolates have arrived in Old Town Scottsdale by way of Belgium — and just in time for holiday gift-giving. Chocolade van Brugge, 4225 North Marshall Way, comes courtesy of local owners Frederiek and Christine Verbeke. The couple’s new shop, which opened in November, features an assortment of more than…
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…
This week, we’re chatting with Meagan Micozzi. You might be more familiar with her blogging pseudonym, Scarletta Bakes. The Scottsdale-based food blogger has been sharing her culinary adventures online for several years and just released her first cookbook, The New Southwest, which she describes as a primer on modern southwestern…
La Bocca, the stylish pizzeria and wine bar in Tempe opened in 2008 courtesy of restaurateur and Arizona State University alumnus Julian Wright, is expanding to the North Valley. Wright, whose company, Fork & Dagger Restaurant Group, also owns Modern Margarita in Phoenix as well as The Handlebar, Canteen Modern…
Meagan Micozzi Food blogger, scarlettabakes.com Author, The New Southwest When Meagan Micozzi started writing her blog, Scarletta Bakes, two and a half years ago, she had no idea that a few short months later she’d be a recognizable face at a national conference of food bloggers. When she set out…
Biscuits and gravy, a simple, yet popular breakfast dish, can be made with many variations of sausage gravy–pork, turkey or even chorizo here in the Valley. Smother two homemade buttermilk biscuits with gravy and it’s the ultimate comfort food for chilly winter mornings. We took a look at two restaurants,…
The Guilty Pleasure: Mass-market holiday novelties Where to Get Them: Your favorite grocery store, mostly Price: A few bucks. Easy impulse buy if you see them in the store. What They Really Cost: Like you needed another excuse to eat more this time of year. Now that it’s almost December…
There’s nothing better than a pizza after days of stuffing yourself with Thanksgiving dinner and leftovers. You’re in luck, because Chow Bella spent the past year scouring the Valley to find the best pizzerias. Here’s a list worth saving for when you need a great pizza, no matter where you…
During the holidays, pumpkin- and gingerbread-flavored items tend to be everywhere, particularly in seasonal beverages. Mountainview Coffee in Fountain Hills has those two covered but also offers a Candy Cane Frappe that makes peppermint a strong contender in the season’s flavor throwdown…
From time to time here at Chow Bella, we challenge one another to a showdown. This fall’s theme, naturally, was pumpkin. Damn you, pumpkin-infused Kahlua and pumpkin-flavored Pringles — you’re ruining it for the rest of the pumpkin goodness out there, like the dishes our colleagues prepared for us a…
If you garden in the Phoenix area this time of year, you likely have a bed or two full of basil, sage, oregano, and other herbs. Of course, herbs are delicious, but you may be surprised that some plants and herbs in your own yard, or nearby, can help you…
Are you the kind of diner who enjoys dishes that dole out the heat? Not from a blistering fury of chile peppers, but from a complex harmony of Indian spices that punish and delight in equal measure? Then the cuisine of Chettinad, a dry, remote region of the state of…
Welcome to Chow Bella’s Bites & Dishes, where Valley chefs and restaurateurs respond to a question New Times food critic Laura Hahnefeld has on her mind. Have a question you’d like to ask? E-mail laura.hahnefeld@newtimes.com. Nearly as anticipated as the feast, the post-Thanksgiving turkey sandwich has a place in our…
In Chow Bella’s new comic, Wait or Die, we tell the stories of waiters and waitstaff from restaurants around the Valley. Submit your stories here: waitordie@newtimes.com — and be sure to let us know if you wish to remain anonymous…
Tracy Dempsey Pop-up Holiday Boutique Friday, November 29 Since Tracy Dempsey left her gig as pastry chef of Cowboy Ciao in 2009, she’s been focusing her energy on her line of packaged boutique confections, Tracy Dempsey Originals. They’re available locally at Smeeks, in addition to being sold throughout the southwest…
From time to time, Chow Bella’s contributors challenge one another to a showdown: Make the best dish you can, using one common ingredient. This time (naturally), it was pumpkin. For the past few weeks, we’ve been sharing the results, and tomorrow, we’ll let you know who won. Today: New Times…
The Valley food community lost a dear friend this past weekend when Lisa Giungo, more commonly known as “Lisa G.,” passed away after a battle with lung cancer. Following years spent working at Scottsdale’s Arcadia Farms, Giungo opened her own place, Lisa G’s, in a 1930s bungalow in Central Phoenix…
