Local growers like those you find vending at the Scottsdale Old Town Farmers’ Market and Downtown Phoenix Public Market are typically a peaceful lot. But this past weekend, that calm was shattered when word got around about a recent online article by Kate McClendon of McClendon’s Select about their decision to not…
Looks like Big Earl’s BBQ, chef James Porter’s home of “old school ‘Q” in Old Town Scottsdale has found a replacement for Tony Morales, their pitmaster since January who left last week to focus on Desert Smoke BBQ, his business of signature sauces and spice rubs. Chef James Fox, who…
Ever since Epic Meal Time landed on the scene last year, Youtube cooking shows, blending hearty amounts of internet humor and ego with varying levels of culinary talent, have been on the rise. In the digital age, where everything and anything can be recorded and put online, it seems anyone…
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. 48: Tinga…
Oh my, looks like we lost two Valley restaurants as of late. Parc Central, home of progressive American cuisine in the Scottsdale Quarter and only open since January, posted on its Facebook page last Wednesday that it was closed for the day and to make reservations for a future date…
Whether you’re a CSA devotee, a farmers’ market weekender or consider ketchup a veg, we’ll bring you fresh inspiration for how to prepare our local produce. This week’s harvest: Purslane/Verdolagas Purslane is the fancy schmancy succulent weed that you see at farmers’ markets around town and the rest of the…
Usually, phone calls at 2 a.m. bring no good, but for Noca owner Eliot Wexler, this one was a welcome wake-up. The call came from 27-year-old chef Matt Taylor. Taylor, currently working at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas with celebrity chef Michael Mina, had called to inquire…
I don’t know about you, but I am ready to give my cook top a break — send it on vacation with the chefs who, like a NYC shrink, shutter their doors for a summer respite. My ambition to make a meal has been reduced to quick and easy preparations that…
Following Sweet Republic’s stint last week on Food Network’s The Best Thing I Ever Ate, looks like another Valley ice cream eatery will be getting some cool television exposure. Paletas Betty, the paleteria with locations in Chandler and Tempe and specializing in handmade Mexican popsicles, will be featured on the…
In the mood for some new summertime fare with minty freshness? Me, too. District American Kitchen & Wine Bar, the American comfort food restaurant at the Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel, has a rooftop garden bursting with several varieties of the flavorful herb (think chocolate mint, pineapple mint, spearmint, and peppermint),…
Oh my, is it here already? Cycle, the pop-up venue hidden inside the Lexington Hotel in downtown Phoenix, will shut its doors on August 27th, when the restaurant and hotel will transform itself into a boutique, arts-driven hotel and restaurant concept opening in 2012. But this pop-up powerhouse ain’t goin’…
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. 49: Manti…
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. New Coffee Shop Opening Next to Over Easy in…
Paul Schwennesen wants you to forget what you know about beef jerky. Every week, Schwennesen and his team from Double Check Ranch in Winkelman bring pure grassfed beef to the folks of Arizona, setting up shop at the Phoenix Public Market, the Gilbert Farmers’ Market, the St. Phillips Plaza Farmers’…
Tired of the same old tired orange chicken and California rolls? Want to venture beyond the standard suburbian-stale take-out? Here comes Chop PHX, with the Valley’s rarer Asian offerings. This Week: Okonomiyaki from Chef Nobuo Fukuda of Nobuo at Teeter House The Basics: Okonomiyaki is one of the staple dishes…
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. 50: Cheddar…
The bar thing’s just part of the name problem, the would-have-been landlord says. “Partnership issues prohibited the name of Barrio Cafe from transferring to another location,” Mike Bennan, principal at Oakmark Development, the company who worked with Esparza on the Gilbert location, told me this afternoon. “The original letter of…
Our grandmother didn’t have elegant place settings or opulent flatware. But when the family got together for Sunday dinner, not one of us cared about the lack of decor. Grandma was a cooking machine and her family-style servings of comforting classics was all we needed to be happy. Maybe that’s…
HOLLA! HOLLA! Glendale in the house! The second season of Top Chef Just Desserts, the competitive series on Bravo showcasing the best of the best in the world of pastry arts hosted by Gail Simmons (Call me!), announced the cast of its new season today. In the running: Glendale’s own…
Silvana Salcido Esparza, owner and chef of Barrio Cafe, the Phoenix restaurant featuring modern versions of traditional Mexican cuisine, made the announcement today that Barrio Tequileria, her concept for the city of Gilbert, would not be happening. The news comes after six months of lease negotiations. “There’s a Spanish saying,”…
Right down to the name, Chef Justin Beckett has centered his Arcadia neighborhood restaurant concept, Beckett’s Table, around a stunning, reclaimed black walnut community table. Last night he took it up a notch with a new concept, the Grown Up’s Table, a three-course menu paired with three wines — served, naturally, at that now-somewhat-infamous…
In the kitchen with: Carla Logan, aka Carly Making: olive tapenade It’s a sweltering July afternoon, but inside Carly’s Bistro it’s dim and cool, with blinds drawn to filter out the light. And although we came during the lull between lunch and dinner, the owner’s life is plenty busy. With…
