Fry Girl Tries on The Bikini Burger at Carl’s Jr.

Stupid TV. I bask in your glow for hours, hang on your every image, and break commitments with friends so I can stare into your one, giant, flickering eye, and you repay me with a commercial about a fast-food chain’s burger hawked by a D-list reality TV star eating it…

Backyard Pizza Night at Jason Raducha’s

Standing on a hand paved brick patio, vines climbing a wrought iron trellis, a moonlight sky, inhaling the scent from the wood fired oven, it was hard to believe we were in north Phoenix rather than northern Italy. It was Backyard Pizza Night at Jason Raducha’s. Professionally, Jason wears a…

Chef Chat: Kelly Fletcher of House of Tricks (part two)

Yesterday we heard from Chef Kelly Fletcher of House of Tricks. Today the conversation continues. While House of Tricks’ staple dishes are sticking around, Fletcher says he would like to see a few new ingredients on the menu. “I always want to see more offal, more sweetbreads, more tongue and…

Battle of the Gumbo: Hey, Waiter, There’s an Embryo in My Soup

A decade ago, just before I moved to Phoenix, I considered heading to New Orleans instead. My then-boyfriend and I called around checking on graduate schools and apartments but practically needed a Creole-to-English translator to figure out what the heck everyone was saying. Needless to say, it was Phoenix or bust. Ya tink? …

Public Market in Photos

Hump day got you down? Here’s our fix: Wednesday nights at the Phoenix Public Market and Urban Grocery & Wine Bar at 14 E. Pierce Street, 4pm – 8pm. Don’t be a dork – bring your own bags…

Cartel Coffee Lab: No French Roasts Harmed in Fire

Cartel Coffee Lab in Tempe was temporarily evacuated when its coffee roaster, aka Big Red, overheated and caught on fire around noon. Owner Jason Silberschlag says the small fire caused no damage, but Cartel fans might expect to smell a bit of smoke in the lab for the next week.The…

Chef Chat: Kelly Fletcher of House of Tricks

Thank god for the corporate food world — it’s what brought Chef Kelly Fletcher to House of Tricks. “I hated [the corporate] side of the industry,” Fletcher says. “I was with an entire room of guys and girls with tattoos and piercings that had to break down our entire look…

Ryan Gaumont, What Are You Eating?

Ryan Gaumont The member of Bully Mammoth, a local group that performs written comedy, performs at the Phoenix Fringe Festival on Friday, April 9 at 8:30 p.m. at Space 55. What’d you eat for dinner last night? Pizza and beer. But the pizza had mushrooms on it, so it was…

Simply Unique Gelato: Closed for Business

Even if you’ve visited downtown Chandler a few times, you’re probably not familiar with Simply Unique Gelato & Italian Ice. Since opening in November 2008, the husband-and-wife shop struggled in its low-visibility location behind SanTan Brewing Company. That’s “struggled,” as in past tense, because Philadelphia transplants Richard and Diane Martin…

Catch Up with Urban Cookies’ New Trailer on Twitter

    We just caught wind that the good folks at Urban Cookies will be debuting their new 1958 Aljo Canned Ham trailer downtown tonight, in honor of First Friday. Catch up with the cookie monsters on Twitter, twitter.com/urbancookies, to learn just where they’ll be tonight and beyond, as they’ll be roving monthly……

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: Summery Lunch at RnR in Old Town Scottsdale Ahwatukee…

Free Candy, Live Music and YoYo Demos at Smeeks Day!

​It’s no secret that Chow Bella’s sweet on Smeeks — we’re still scraping the caramel off our teeth after last week’s Caramelpalooza. And tomorrow we’re grabbing the kids and heading over to our favorite candy store for Smeeks Day. Billed as a special day for kids (akin to a strip…

March Restaurant Closures

Later, gator. It’s time to say goodbye to the following restaurants that shut their doors during the month of March… That’s Italiano The Kitchen by Good Eats Grocer Pho Thang Long Nine O5 Tutto at Southbridge…