Top Ten Dessert Trends

Have you ever heard of the International Food Futurists? Me neither, but it sounds damn cool, like a space-age network of culinary spies. Can I join? Anyway, The Food Channel just released its predictions for the Top Ten Dessert Trends, based on research the website conducted with the International Food Futurists…

The Gelato Maker Opens in Scottsdale

It’s going to hit 90 in the next couple of days; doesn’t some gelato sound good right about now? That’s what Yaron Cohen is hoping. The Israeli native and his Argentinian relative, Leo Faria, just opened their new shop, The Gelato Maker, last weekend. The two trained in a gelato…

Kai Celebrates Five Stars and Five Diamonds Rating

Surely even the most casual of Phoenix foodies will begin to salivate at the mere mention of Kai at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort and Spa. But did you know that Kai has achieved Mobil Travel Guide’s 5-Star Rating in addition to AAA’s 5-diamond rating? That’s right, Phoenix. We’ve…

NOCA Hosts Four Peaks Beer-Pairing Dinner

I’ve knocked back many a fine glass of Malbec at NOCA, and enjoyed some great cocktails there, too (like Hendrick’s gin with a spherical ice cube and a carafe of tonic). But it turns out that the restaurant’s food also goes really well with beer. To prove the point, they’ve done…

Ten Sushi in Cave Creek Closing This Weekend

How often do you hear about sushi restaurants closing down? A lot less often than you hear of them opening up, I’d say. So here’s one of the rarities. Ten Sushi and Asian Fusion, a sleek spot in Cave Creek, is closing this weekend. Sunday is its last day in…

Cafe: J&G Steakhouse

After a few weeks of palate put-offs, Food Critic Michele Laudig sinks her discerning fork into some beautiful cuisine crafted by celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten at J&G Steakhouse. Food Critic Michele Laudig on J&G Steakhouse: Why do I like J&G Steakhouse so much? For me, this stylish spot successfully navigates…

Pimping the Obvious in Phoenix

A friend just sent me a link to today’s dining post in Tasting Table, a sort of Daily Candy-style food newsletter with New York, Los Angeles, and “Everywhere” editions. Phoenix got the “Everywhere” love, except Tasting Table’s four dining picks for this city were so predictable. I wish they would’ve…

Random Restaurant Holidays

I sort of understand why today would be a good day for restaurants to promote themselves. After you’ve done your time under a pile of paperwork — and perhaps coughed up some dough to Uncle Sam — you could use a free taco from Taco del Mar (print out a…

Metro Brasserie Rolls Out New Menu

Just got the word from chef Matt Taylor at Metro Brasserie that the SouthBridge eatery has changed up its menu. A salad of green asparagus, morel cream, cured lemon, and fried corn; a pork pate banh mi (traditional Vietnamese sandwich on baguette); lardo-wrapped halibut; and duck breast with rhubarb, beluga…

We’ve Got Your Meal Ticket

Ever thought of pairing your spicy tuna roll with prickly pear ponzu, or creating a ceviche roll? If so, we’re impressed with your culinary adventurousness — and happy to introduce you to the new Banzai Cowboy Sushi Restaurant & Martini Bar at Scottsdale’s DC Ranch Market Street. This isn’t your…

Scottsdale Culinary Fest Comprises 12 Events This Week

The Scottsdale Culinary Festival sounds monolithic, but the granddaddy among the Valley’s culinary festivals is surprisingly multifaceted — a dozen different events at 16 different restaurants and venues around town, ranging from casual tastings to semi-formal sit-down occasions…

Big Feature on Chris Bianco in Martha Stewart Living

Got a craving for Pizzeria Bianco lately? Better get yourself down there asap — like, probably tonight — before too many people start cracking open their brand-new copies of Martha Stewart Living. The place is notorious for its wait, but I’m betting it will soon be even longer. Phoenix’s celebrated pizza…

This Week In Chow Bella

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: LocavoreAZ Dinner at Superstition Farm is an a-moozing experience…

Kantak Leaving Cowboy Ciao, Dempsey Opening Own Spot

Big changes are happening on Stetson Drive. According to Mari Markogianis of Spaghetti Western Productions — the umbrella for Old Town Scottsdale faves Cowboy Ciao, Sea Saw, Kazimierz, and Digestif — Cowboy Ciao chef Bernie Kantak is leaving the restaurant sometime in the next two or three months to “spearhead a new…

Many Farmers’ Markets to Close for Summer Soon

As we move into the season of relentless, broiling sunlight, several of our local farmers’ markets very sensibly take a break until people start wanting to hang around outdoors again. (It’s also a challenge to keep human beings — let alone produce, dairy, or meat — fresh in a little…

Sneak Peek: The Parlor

Chef Jared Porter tells me that he traded his apron for a tool belt in recent weeks, but now he’s finalizing his menu for The Parlor, the new pizza joint set to open later this month (tentatively April 27) in the old Salon de Venus on Camelback at 20th Street…

More on Citrus Cafe Scandal

New Times writer Ray Stern has more to say about the arrest of Citrus Cafe owner Andrew Paparella Jr. on the Valley Fever blog today — check it out…

Cafe: Metro Brasserie & Bar

The concept of “rustic French cuisine” with a New Orleans edge has us salivating. In her latest Cafe column, Michele Laudig shares our gluttonous desires, though she points out Metro Brasserie & Bar still has a long way to go to live up to her expectations. Food Critic Michele Laudig…

Coming Soon: Gallo Blanco Cafe at the Clarendon Hotel

CenPho is on a roll, yo. After a revolving door of restaurant concepts that have come and gone at the Clarendon Hotel since the departure of Camus almost two years ago, there’s news that chef Doug Robson will be the owner/operator of a new in-house eatery called Gallo Blanco Cafe,…